AN EXPERIMENTAL MODE OF DESIGNS WITHOUT LIMITS;
A CREATIVE MIND BERSERK WITH INTELLECTUAL IMAGES:
THE DUST COVERS OF BOOKS AND INSIGNIAS GALORE.

The intellectual companions of Abdur Rahman Chughtai were many. And each one shared poetic thoughts with him. Most were interested in the artist designing the cover jackets for their books. And the artist did so. But on one condition. The manuscript of the book was to be sent to him, and he would read it, scanning and relishing its content. His designs spurred from his analysis of the contents of the book.

The artist Chughtai Sahib must have designed more than 500 cover jackets for the books of his intellectual friends. And he always charged them nothing, perhaps a copy of the book for him was his best reward. And knowing the financial value of his friends, he devised the most efficient form of printing for them. The cheapest and economical, versus the most enduring in colours. He would give the pen work and get a few print copies of same design, Then he would suggest the colour for same. Printed one at a time, a four colour direct process on ordinary printing presses, doing same in least financial terms. The authors rejoiced, the most famous designer and hardly any cost. Intellectual circle got larger and larger with him. And his reputation spread in even more circles for the reach of readers of poetry and intellectual discourse.

The originals were given to the authors and copies of the printed one colour design came. He then filled those areas with colours of his own suggestion. Result most unique dust covers in the whole world. You can recognize one with a thousand others. There were many unorganized with us. We kept collecting more. We are in possession of nearly 200 of them. but we know there are more. It has been a long time since they were printed. The books do come at second hand book shops but mostly with their cover, torn and destroyed with time. Cornell University has many of the same books but no clue to their covers. This was told to me by Iftikhar Dadi himself, and I sent some of them to him. I could send more to any university interested in same. Also given to a local bureaucrat, who never put them to any use.

In the same way insignias are another matter. The designs of PTV, Radio Pakistan, Pakistan Postal Stamps, PIA hostess, Flower Society, etc. Insignias for letter heads of Government of Pakistan.  It is a wide journey. We try to archive everything for the future of Pakistan, and our contribution to the world of Art and design.

In these designs there are no limits. The imagination of Chughtai sahib runs riot with ideas and visions. So this is one area which requires more research,  and any university student can indulge in research on same. All are welcome here. Our facilities are always free and moronic petty clerks go wild with their insinuations against us. Hundreds of forms of students from all over the world belie such assumptions. Enjoy the designs of M.A. Rahman Chughtai and be inspired by them. Most artists in Pakistan are totally empty of the design impulse, and with limited appreciation continue to spit on the moon. Naturally the spit falls on them.

SOMETHING HAS HAPPENED, SOMETHING WILL HAPPEN; 
CAPTURED NEXUS OF CHUGHTAI ART: A MOMENT IN TIME.

We all know that a painting on  a flat surface is  basically a two dimensional thing, yes it has a length and breath. Artists cannot do much about it, and work in that limitation. But Masters go forward, to introduce a third dimension in it, depth of the work is created, by in-fluxing of images in it of different proportions, to give an air of depth. M.A. Rahman Chughtai is indeed a Master of creating this in-depth illusion, and we find most of his paintings using the background to highlight depth of the worth. One or two figures may be sitting or standing, but then in the background, from near the figures, to far away in horizon, depths are created by use of different size images. Third dimension is always there in Chughtai Art.

But another very difficult proposition is created with it. On a flat surface, image of a movement is created. It tells us that before that image, something happened, and after that image something else will happen. And that moment in time is captured by the artist and defines the character of his observational undertaking of a moment in time. People without insight may not notice it, but there is movement in Chughtai Art. His eyes not only zoom in and out all the time, but move in other directions too. A dancer’s gown may be moving, a direct impression of a blowing wind, or even a raised hand in act of throwing something, or catching something. Observe the painting of two Hindu girls watching a contest of warriors, and the desire to select one hero, by throwing a lotus on his feet. Two ladies one has made a choice and is throwing same, the other is still thinking of same. Reflect the dimension of this masterpiece and it shows the Master in movement of the moment in time. A remarkable artist in remarkable moves on flat surfaces. A finite move in multi-directional possibilities. Only remarkable eyes can notice this movement.

Whenever a painting was completed, the artist would seek opinion of others on same. If we the family were around, he would ask us. If not, he would even ask the ignorant cleaner lady sweeping the floor nearby. Yeh tasveer kay baray may keya khail hai? She would reply ” Bahut piyari hai Sahib jee“. Of Course it never stopped there. He would invite others to check out his creation, The feedback always enriched him. He listened to others with attention. Gathering data for future creations. One of a kind Ustad in all ways.

I remember one day my father showed me a painting he had done of a Shepherd. He asked me my opinion. But added that he wanted to tell me the source of his inspiration. Recently a painter had been through the toilet. And there was some spilling on the door wooden frame. While sitting on the desi Turkish toilet, he was observing the trickled drop of a white wash. In his eyes came the shape of a shepherd tending his goats. We have the work with us even today. We will add it for view. 
Chughtai Sahib is famous for his flowing line, but few people know that he was fond of studying the movement of water, as inspiration for his art. He was fond of throwing stones in pool of water or even the river itself. The ripples he would carefully  notice. Not many people will know that Rembrandt made many etchings of people urinating in the streets. Urination was also an inspiration for the artist. In desi (Turkish) toilets of his time, when a person urinated, the flow would reach the floor in front of him. An artist always notices this flow. Once a Canadian artist came to our museum and he too talked of this natural flow and its study of movement. Chughtai Sahib himself told me that he was careful in study of the flow of his urine on the floor, before throwing water on it. It was a pack load of information on flow of natural stream. Who would know it? Not the ignoramus critics of Pakistan, who take pride in worshipping modern Western Art as stooges of the West. Always searching for ideal landscapes with small cut pieces of various magazines. Or verbatim kicking our Ideology with red paint spilled over roofs as signs of our terrorism. Or hovering of black clouds over our entire region. Or a pornographic display behind the gauze of a woman’s burqa. Or Mullahs with faces of pigs, or even thrashing their wives with dandas. All this is a pack load of bullshit on behalf of Western lobbies. Facilities matter, not the country, or its Ideology. Very few artists remained with pride for their heritage, and M.A. Rahman Chughtai was the foremost in them. But this heritage he took forward. Basil Gray wrote about him in 1977, as:

“By his natural gift for colour harmony and for sensitive and lively line assiduously developed, Chughtai was enabled to achieve a personal style which at the same time appeared like a flesh blossom grafted into an old stock, and this at the same time both old and new.”

Of all the critics he enjoyed sharing his art, were Dr Muhammed Din Taseer, Malik Shamas (both close friends), and the indomitable Razia Sirajuddin, a woman of substance, with great insight in his art.

NAQASHIS AND THE BACKGROUNDS IN CHUGHTAI ART;
GEOMETRICAL PRECISION OF GADGETS AND TRAINING.

Not many artists are prone to being thorough in their art. In all ways M.A. Rahman Chughtai was a complete artist. His very initial training was Naqashi education from his Uncle (Phopha) Baba Miran Baksh, son of Umar Din Naqash. Besides him his two brothers Abdullah and Abdur Raheem were also students there in the Wazir Khan Mosque Lahore. Son of Baba Miran Baksh, Muhammed Hayat Naqash was also a student there, along with many others. Miran Baksh could never realize the extent to which his student will carve a name in Naqashi, but as he died in 1920, he did see his student progress in the art world.

OfCourse Chughtai Sahib did a lot of Naqashi works, but he wanted to add his training in the color paintings itself. To enable that precision in a Wash Color was extremely difficult,  and he required a lot of instruments to make it happen. A first time view of some of them are added to our writing on this blog. And we have given examples from his paintings too. It was strenuous work and at times for routine jobs, he enlisted help of others. But that was merely to repeat the designs he had already started in same. These efforts made great art, even greater in all respects. For inspiration he frequented great Mughal buildings both in Lahore and in Agra, and obviously the Wazir Khan Mosque was a constant reminder of his doings. And for that matter in all ways, he had bought books and engravings of great Naqashi art of the past, as an inspiration for his own work. Even today we find prints of LA ARAB ART in his drawers. But he always added his personal touch to same. 

THE MATERIALS USED IN CHUGHTAI ART WORKS;
ENDLESS EXPERIMENT WITH THE BEST OF BEST.

Surely this is a vast and rarely written topic. We held a full exhibition on same. In this age of hurried things, experimentation with  brushes, drawing paper and pigment colours is a rare thing. Even in museums there are no matching data to update with materials used by M.A, Rahman Chughtai. National Museum Karachi could not do it and falsified results, and embarrassed themselves forever. A moronic analyzer who literally knew nothing about pigments.  I asked the British Museum and they said they had no pigment data for same. I referred to a book by a specialist on colours. Tried other sources too. Even Winsor and Newton. A booklet of 1932 explains the colours of Winsor and Newton. Rare print out. I did my best. I can just relate, to understand it needs research and time.

The earliest advice given to Chughtai Sahib was by his mother Chiragh Bibi. A home bound woman told her son to use only clean water for his work. A strange advice for its time indeed. The quest for permanence was in the minds of the artist. Not only the best came under his scrutiny but the need to make it more and more perfect. Take colours for instance. He used Winsor and Newton artists colours (meaning actual stone colours) but never directly single from source. He was in the habit of mixing many colours to attain the colour that was in his imagination. It means that the mixture was so subtle, that maybe he would not be able to repeat it. Then on small pieces of paper, he would put strokes and wait days to see the result for permanency. His colours were so bright and luminous, so his works shine with brightness of life. Keeping in mind that these colours are direct from nature and are not commercial chemical colours. No fading away ever. In fact even if thrown in water, and taken out, the colours remain intact, and once mounted again on board, looks like ironed again.

Chughtai Sahib was working in the Photo litho department at Mayo School of Arts when a pair of Japanese artists came to Lahore. They were selling artists materials. Chughtai Sahib had himself seen Abindaranath Tagore working in his studio in 1919 and saw that the Hindu Master used cloth rags to wash his works. This had no appeal for the artist as with a rag, nothing could be made on a larger scale. And no smoothness could be achieved. The Japanese Wash rushes fascinated the artist and he spent two rupees in buying them.  We still have the very old ones. Later he ordered same from the Master Shop in Kyoto Japan. The box which brought them is still with us. I visited their Tokyo Branch in Japan in 1988 and discussed same with them. They were utterly surprised. I asked them about their brushes. Under Royal banner and command, they told me the brushes used to be made for Master artists working for the Emperor and their shop was more than 400 years old. Made from selected sable hair, under a manual thumb selection of hair, the last professional who used to make them, died 15 years before that. The brushes were now antique material and cost thousands of dollars of the few which were left with them. I bought a small one for comparison with ones we had. All that is in museum record for posterity. So sad no one knows, no one wants to find out. This was floating above the petty values of our pseudo writers.

The pencils used were both German based Staedtler,and USA based Venus, and ranged from 2H to 9H. Usually about 4 H.His works were not of the type that HB pencils could be used. No sharpeners used but actual pocket knives. He would take out a long length of lead by knifing the wooden part and used the pencil in a calligraphic swing. A long line of unbroken drawing. Only hard lead could survive the drawing. If he picks up the pencil before the stretch is complete, it becomes a broken line; under magnification one can see that the line never gets broken. He used the pencil, sharp and long, like a sword in a duel contest.

Yes, Chughtai Sahib experimented with drawing papers, but his choice mainly remained J. WHATMAN, a firm which came to England, in guise of TURKEY OLD MILL, in the 18th century. Even the Queen of England used Turkey Old Mill for all her paper needs, even stationery. Many papers carry the watermark and one can see the same in many of Chughtai’s works. The paper used for printmaking was different, like WhitChurch (Laverstoke Mill near Hampshire) mark, paper used for currency notes of the Bank of England (from 1719 to 1963). A research project of its own. The printmaking process is even a more complicated one and will be dealt separate from these writings.

Nowadays a lot of people pose as specialists of Lahore and yet they know hardly little. Same applies to Art. People writing about art do not even know the ABC of its background. A saying goes in our culture, Andoon mein kana raja. It means in group of blind people, one eyed reigns supreme. All they can think are ways to demolish the rivalry of Chughtai Art, long after the death of the artist. In Pakistan few survive the harsh realities of endless competition. Here is an artist who does not go away. No one has been able to undo Kamaluddin Behzad, no one can undo M.A. Rahman Chughtai. All those puerile objections have gone down the drain, along with their writers. Learn about Art. Learn about Chughtai Art. Learn about Abdur Rahman Chughtai. Do not fall into the blind alley of knowing nothing. Rise to a level in which you can view Chughtai Art without remorse of your own failings. Pakistan Forever! Chughtai Art Forever!

ONE LOOKING AT PICTURES IN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE;
VARIOUS VIEWS OF CHUGHTAI ART IN LOCAL CONDITIONS.

In 1977 Basil Gray, Curator of British Museum was our guest here in Lahore. It was not only an entertaining visit but enlightening for me in various ways. Many discussions were held with him. An important aspect of any pictorial art is, who is viewing it, and in which circumstances. I never thought that would be important but I was in store for great revelations.

ART FOR RELIGIOUS SAKE

We could start from pictorial art in caves, anything from a few thousand to thousands of years back. Even twenty thousand years back. There are works on walls, or on ceilings, but who gets to view same? Why viewed at all? Obviously dark conditions,  camp fire lights, or hand held torches? Gifts to evoke gods to  be kind for hunt, or engender motivation in fellow hunters. Or to drive away evil spirits. But the idea never changed. Religious worship. Same applied to enhanced cave art on walls like Ajanta and Ellora. And even still for events. From Cave to Churches. In Churches artists like Michelangelo carried out his magic for delicately placed candles to pray to God for blessing. In all ways Art for religious sake. Never forget that all the West or Hindu traditions carried was Art for Religious sake.

ART FOR ART’S SAKE

On other hands, Muslims started things in different ways. A normal development for more than 200 years and then rigid Mullahs created fancy stories, which overshadowed Quranic convictions, and outlawed pictorial art itself. It was not the Quranic truth but engendered by obstinate Mullahs for centuries.  Once forbidden for them was having photographs taken, now delighted themselves on live TV all the time. The allergic Mullah fell in love with his own image, and even rickshaws on street roads carry a plethora of Mullah faces.

The story of Islam goes further. Umayyads sponsored paintings on walls but were meant for enjoyment of Kings and Queens. Ghaznavis had horse ridden warriors and ministers painted on walls and throne rooms. Even Sultan Masood Ghaznavi sponsored an erotic room works for sexual enjoyment. Threat from father made him destroy the room. But later on the terms led to miniatures for the Kings and the nobility to enjoy volumes on elephant back or on horseback or campfires. Meant for individual viewing. Or few gathered around albums. A new age was meant to come eventually.

Basil Gray told me the concept of paintings hanging on walls in frames is a new phenomena. It is not ages old. And for the first time the pictures were meant to be hung in a gallery or a museum, for view of many. He added Chughtai Art is essentially a development in hanging wall art. To be viewed at a minimum distance, under artificial light conditions. This determines a larger size for the painting and details which will match the exposition circumstances.

The Art of M.A. Rahman Chughtai can be divided as:

1. Watercolour paintings.
2. Pencil sketches.
3. Etchings and Aquatints.
4. Dust covers for books.
5. Insignias for organizations.

Looking at them requires different perspectives. We have talked of watercolor paintings as a framed hanging art in a museum gallery. Pencil sketches require lesser viewing distance because of the delicacy of the work. Etchings and Aquatints fall into hanging art but their viewing distance is lesser too. Dust covers are books distributed and are a one to one view of the reader. Insignias are spread over the Media like PTV, Radio Pakistan, Alhamra, Pakistan Flower Society, and even aspects of PIA. Art and designs used for cards of various types, are distributed on a much larger scale. An example is given of each. Enjoy them at all levels.

In looking at pictures the light is very important too. In a leading museum abroad, they had to remove Rembrandt for some reasons. They were surprised that each Rembrandt picture changed meaning in different lights. Daylight, artificial light, all mattered. Harry Norman Eccleston told me that they experimented with different bulbs, but the best bulb, least damaging and brilliant, was the simpler household bulb. Full credit to the old one.  We will talk of the materials used in Chughtai Art later. OfCourse that matters too.

Chughtai Art is best viewed in original at a distance of five to six feet. And so if it is framed. Plastic non reflective is not good for it. Glass is best, but genuine quality with no streaks in it. Once Belgium made, now China has caught up with quality. Looking at Chughtai Art is a unique experience, and inevitably the viewer falls in love with the Chughtai World.

A FOURTH CENTURY GUPTA SEAL FROM LAHORE (QUESTION)
MAHARAJA MAHESVARANAGA SON OF NAGA BHATTA
SOLD BY BAHADUR SHAH OF MOCHI GATE LAHORE

The story narrated by J.K. Fleet, recorder of Gupta Inscriptions goes like this. Yes, sixteen hundred years ago, there was Gupta period King by name of Maharaja Mahesvaranaga son of Naga Bhatta. There was a copper seal made by him. It was 1 1/4 inches high, 1/16 inches thick, oval shape of 1 7/8 inches by 1 5/8 inches, with a weight of 2 1/4 ozs, and it was unique in many ways. Obviously it had a cow on it, sitting on a straight line upturned at ends, with a hooded snake (No head to this snake, perhaps a stick of some mythological source) on its lower end and the name of the Raja as we know it. But the strangest part is that it had a CRESCENT on it. A crescent, a rising moon, the sign of Islamic civilization. In Hinduism we have the celebration of AMAVASYA and PURNIMA and I wonder if a coin legend is named after same. But if it was sixteen hundred years old, where did the Islam came from? The 1600 years conjecture is due to paleographical evidence only. That means the evidence of the writing and as it is Sanskrit, the presumed period of that writing. The writing is rather rough and not very calligraphic or beautiful in its flow. I think we can go further than that.

In 418-419 AH Sultan Mahmud Ghaznavi issued a silver dirham at Lahore, at that time named as MAHMUDPUR. It had both languages on it. Islamic represented by Arabic and Hinduism represented by Sanskrit. We hear of Raja Jaipal ruling Lahore who was of BHATTI origin. Even today a gate of Lahore is named after Bhattis, namely Bhatti Gate, Lahore. Here we are told of a Raja by the name of NAGA BHATTA, a missing link in the history of Lahore.

The story of antique dealer Bahadur Shah is well known to us. He was the only person in Lahore dealing in antiques at that time. He had no penchant for getting things from elsewhere. His sources were Lahore itself. When General Cunningham bought this SEAL from him, and did not record its source, it is established that the source of the Seal was Lahore itself. A Bhatti Maharajah of Lahore is no coincidence. It is very well possible. In 1888 it was not possible to gather other evidence, but in the present times, more reliable dating can be given to the Seal. For us it is the earliest record of a Maharajah from Lahore itself., To confuse his use of the name NAGA as with the semi divine race of Nagas, who lived according to legend under the earth, is a mere speculation. Naga is a symbol of respect for Hindus and named after a snake is no confusion for divinity. The name of this Raja appears nowhere else. For us it is a rare break through of knowledge about Lahore.

THE SEARCH FOR IDENTITY IS OF MANY LAYERS:
WITHOUT NEED TO EXPLORE ALL, RELY ON ONE,
THAT DEFINES YOUR NATION AND SUPERSEDES,
YES, CHUGHTAI ART IS DEFINITELY ONLY PAKISTAN. 

After the grand founding and inauguration of Alhamra Arts Council in Lahore, the world cultural event of the Chughtai Show in 1949, when all the Ambassadors in Karachi flew to Lahore to see the same. Governor General Khawaja Nazimuddin was the Chief Guest. An event took place where Chughtai Art became a subject of discussion. Extended by his friend Dr Muhammd Din Taseer, the intellectuals of the city gathered around a gathering to discuss the same. A great event in pictorial art was led by a great event of discussion. Nobody could question the Identity of the Event. But all spoke on positive scale. No one doubted the Identity of Pakistan. 

The direction of the Ideology of Pakistan was as clear as crystal. International lobbies understood this well. There was a need to displace everything that had ideological mooring. Art was under direct scrutiny. A group of young artists were engendered, imported and forced onto the audience. Their claim was very wide. Western art was to be forced onto Pakistan by imitating it in one way or the other. Even their costumes reflected same in shape of jeans, french beards and smoking pipes. National preferences unaccounted. Modern artists wished to give modern images of themselves. Another great change was the shift of water colour painting to oil based works in Pakistan. Various artists handled it in their way, but certainly they were being patronized to upset the existing reality. The 1949 grand show of Chughtai artist upset-ed Shemza. Anwar Jalal Shemza boldly said at Alhamra that he was there to uproot Chughtai artist, and he was heard not by few, but even by my cousin, who tells me the same all the time. Although Chughtai does not take the name, an attendant (guess whom?) of a lecture, he gave at Alhamra, heckled him about his art being Indian and not Pakistani. The reply of the artist was simple, “It was Chughtai Art then, it is Chughtai Art now!”. Did they achieve their goal? They tried their best, now lobbies are trying their best for them.

One big difference between Chughtai Art and others was the fact that M.A. Rahman Chughtai was well known particularly in Muslim world of India as an exceptionally great artist.  He had a big following not only in artistic circles but was groomed famous in the public too. It can be ascertained from the fact that his news was carried by magazines, newspapers as well as films. The bizarre thing was that when the hero used to address the heroine, in praise of her he would refer to her as Chughtai Art. The most extraordinary thing was that in the Urdu lexicon the term Chughtai Art was itself synonymous with beautiful. So not only the term but the artist was well known. In fact he was so much a legend that it was often confused as to which age he was a part off. This identity naturally transformed itself as a NATIONAL IDENTITY of Muslim India. On other hand as Chughtai Art was an evolution of other arts well familiar with the masses like the Sultanate and Mughal Art. Chughtai Art was even before the birth of Pakistan termed the Identity of Pakistan. And Lahore was always the Art and Cultural Center of India. The artist always attached Lahore with his name, even in his signature. 

The idea of an Arts and Cultural centre was formed in Lahore at the house of Begum Shahnawaz. In all cases Abdur Rahman Chughtai was there. And not to miss all Arts Councils in Pakistan were a result of his thinking as well as inaugurated with Chughtai Shows. These included Lahore Arts Council, Peshawar Arts Council, Karachi Arts Council and even Dacca Arts Council. His great friend General Azam Khan was Governor of East Pakistan and Dacca Arts Council was opened with two artists Zainul Abedeen and Abdur Rahman Chughtai. In his speech General Azam Khan narrated the importance of Chughtai in the field of art in Pakistan. Today Chughtai Art is well respected in Bangladesh and geographical separation did not separate the Ideological togetherness of both wings.

Today Chughtai Art is represented all over the world. For instance there are four Chughtai works at the Pakistani desk in the US State Department. A painting at International Court of Justice Peace Palace Hague. A painting in Kennedy memorial in Boston. Museums all over the world. And they speak of the Pakistani Identity in a big way. The same way the first postal stamp of Pakistan paved the way for many others. 

Most artists require signatures and seals of authenticity. Not so for Chughtai Art. Stack a Chughtai design in a pavement of books and magazines. Display a Chughtai insignia anywhere. Stamps or on media. Hang a Chughtai art work with hundreds of others. And you can pick a Chughtai even with a blind dye. He was hesitant in putting a signature to his art. He claimed my art in itself is a signature. It is enough to be recognized. Call it Islamic Abstraction, or Pakistani Identity, or anything else. It is Chughtai and it can be recognized. And a lot of pseudo artists and critics are paved in hell with that recognition. Masters do not come after some days. As Dr Allama Iqbal said, “The flower Narcissus cries for a thousand years without light of insight; With great difficulty is born an insightful one in the garden.”