DAMMAM, 16 May 2003 — Good things, they say, come in small packages. Abeera Atique is one of them. A young Pakistani artist with an impressive resume. She was recently chosen to represent Pakistan. This was no easy task. Of 10,000 applicants, only 150 were selected. Abeera has had over 20 exhibitions of which three were solo.

Her works are displayed in art galleries all over Pakistan and even in New York. The principal of Karachi School of Art and famous sculptor Rabia Zuberi called Abeera “the most versatile artist who has established her credibility through much hard labor.”

But for Abeera art is a labor of love. She knew from childhood that she wanted to be an artist. While in second grade in London, she was chosen as the best artist of the class and her work was shown on a children’s television program. “Art is in my blood. My mother was an artist. When I was young, my mother was attending a fine arts school in London. Instead of sending me to a baby sitter, she took me along and while she worked, I played with paper and paint brush. That was my earliest exposure to painting.”

Abeera did a B.Sc in home economics learning textile and interior designs. Simultaneously she did a four-year diploma from the prestigious Karachi School of Art. Then she joined Punjab University for a masters in fine arts where she was the only married woman in the class.

Abeera does oil paintings and etchings on metal. Her style is a blend of realism and impressionism.

Her etchings of Qur’anic ayats in mixed medium involving metal and semi-precious stones are outstanding in beauty and creativity. She also has a passion for drawing horses and the sea in motion. “I paint motion and everything in movement. I hate static things. The rhythm and the sound of the sea and horses running are the most beautiful sounds.”

She points to a big oil painting which shows horses running wild, and explains, “You can see the beauty of the movement in this. I’ve painted some horses purple. That color to me signifies beauty, so I choose to move away from its natural color.” Abeera is an art teacher at the Dhahran Academy.

“The last thing I ever wanted to do was teach. But now I love the job. It is wonderful when you get e-mails from students who have now graduated saying, ‘Thank you for changing my life. For showing me I could paint.’”

Art is a God-given talent but Abeera believes that it is also a craft that can be learned. “Some of my students pick up a brush and can paint beautifully right away. Some require hours of practice.” Artists are always stereotyped as being poor and a bit crazy. Have those impressions changed with time? Abeera said: “Artists appear crazy to people because they have a deep craving for art. The creative urge may come in the middle of the night so the artist gets up and draws. That is not normal behavior for the average person, so obviously they think the artist is mad! Also history is full of artists who died of hunger.

“Art is expensive, time-consuming and requires dedication. Recognition does not come overnight. For the average artist, it takes between 10 to 20 years to earn recognition and money. I sold my first painting for only 150 rupees. That is why you see more women in this field than men.” Is modern technology helping artists in their work? Abeera said: “Technology is making people more handicapped. Now everyone wants to take a short cut and use programs like Adobe Photo Draw to paint and draw. Creativity and originality have taken a backseat because of that. Look at the beauty of the Taj Mahal. No advancement in technology could beat that. The beauty that used to be in stained glass, the mosaics in mosques — that classical touch is missing in modern technology-aided art.”

In Saudi Arabia it seemed every artist is drawing Arabian sandals, coffee pots and tents. Are artists overwhelmed, over-awed only by those things in Saudi culture? Abeera said that those things were an integral part of Saudi Arabia but also it was difficult for an artist to go out with an easel and stand by the road or in the middle of a crowded street and paint.

“In Lahore or Karachi, people are used to seeing artists working on the streets. But there are many talented Saudi artists whose works are appreciated all over the world.”