Curated by Irfan Hasan, Ummeed e Bahar: A Ray of Hope brings together a sensitive selection of artists whose works move beyond traditional representations of scenery and open a wider conversation around landscape, memory, place and renewal.
Presented at Taseer Art Gallery, Lahore, the exhibition reflects on nature not only as a visual subject, but as an emotional, cultural and spiritual space. Through different artistic languages, the participating artists explore how landscapes can carry memory, identity, longing and hope.
The exhibition was very well curated in both concept and work, bringing together artists whose practices approach landscape through drawing, painting, soft pastels, charcoal, oil, graphite and watercolour. Together, their works create a calm yet deeply reflective experience for viewers.
“Ummeed e Bahar is a quiet return to hope — a reminder that landscape can hold memory, healing, resilience and the possibility of renewal.”
Curatorial Note
The exhibition moves beyond scenery as a decorative subject and instead presents landscape as a living archive. Across the works, land becomes memory, atmosphere becomes emotion, and natural forms become symbols of endurance and transformation.
From Irfan Channa's quiet graphite landscapes to Rabbia Khalid Khan's soft, almost dissolving urban views, and from Nasir Shehzad's mountainous stillness to Raja Najam ul Hassan's intimate moments of nature, the exhibition creates a dialogue between observation and feeling.
The idea of “bahar” appears here not only as spring, but as renewal — a state of returning, beginning again, and finding hope within changing terrains.
Featured Artists
Irfan Channa
His practice centers on landscapes shaped by native places and journeys, blending memory, terrain and human presence through delicate monochrome works.
Kaleem Khan
A distinguished Pakistani artist whose landscapes are inseparable from memory, culture and lived experience, revealing land as a living archive.
Nasir Shehzad
His paintings celebrate Pakistan's northern regions, capturing natural beauty, cultural heritage and the emotional depth of place.
Rabbia Khalid Khan
Her work explores human presence within landscapes through soft pastels and cyanotype processes, creating images that feel meditative and indistinct.
Raja Najam ul Hassan
His paintings reflect a personal connection with nature, capturing mood, atmosphere, scent and stillness through intimate landscape studies.
Sajjad Nawaz
His drawings investigate the hidden geographies of Cholistan, transforming terrain into memory, trace and visual reflection.
Yawar Abbas
His work reflects the transition from monochrome to colour, drawing from observation, memory and the textures of nature.
