NOBODY KNOWS THE FIRST VISION OF ANY CHUGHTAI WORK; LIKE PROPHECY A COLOURED IMAGE BUT STARTS WITH SCROLL.

NOBODY KNOWS THE FIRST VISION OF ANY CHUGHTAI WORK;
LIKE PROPHECY A COLOURED IMAGE BUT STARTS WITH SCROLL.

It should be kept in mind that Chughtai Art was not created in a vacuum. Days and nights spent in experimenting with lines as well as colors. That preparation is well understood. But all that is craftsmanship, here we are talking of vision like a prophecy. The vision is like a ready made painting, but translating that vision required working on the composition. The colors would come naturally after that.

The vision starts with an observation. The artist himself confided in me many times the start of such a vision. He once showed me a small drop of paint left behind by a domestic wall painter. The drop had trickled down in a shape. The artist saw a shepherd in it, and the result a painting of a shepherd. Other events for him was throwing a stone in a pool of water and notice the ripples emanating from it. He even told me that when urinating, when the urine is falling on the floor, he notices its flowing. The natural flowing makes him handle the flowing line perfectly. As far as faces are concerned, he had the habit of sitting in a window and observing passerbys. Or walk in a crowded street and look at people. An observer once noticed that he saw the Zutshki sisters walk in the Arab Hotel outside Islamia College Lahore and was transfixed for a long time. As Paul Drury would say that the artist had a memory bank of faces from where he could issue cheques at will for inclusion in his works. Millions of people have seen the Mona Lisa of Leonardo da Vinci, but how many saw the hidden messages in it. Picasso made a statement that an artist is blind and does not see with his eyes. He paints what he feels. Chughtai Sahib paints what he imagines as a literal prophecy. That is why often people say one important thing about him, he was a gifted artist by Divine role. Not an ordinary make believe artist, he was the exceptional Master of Modern Muslim Civilization.

Tackling composition and symbolism in his works needed desperately.

For the next step read our published blog:
http://blog.chughtaimuseum.com/?p=2977

9 thoughts on “NOBODY KNOWS THE FIRST VISION OF ANY CHUGHTAI WORK; LIKE PROPHECY A COLOURED IMAGE BUT STARTS WITH SCROLL.”

Fully agree on the conclusion “ gifted artist by Divine role”

Thank you for sharing these drawing images sir.

One can understand his visions by browsing the thousands of sketches he left behind for us to ponder on his creativity. Those who have not seen were never willing to see.. Recognition is again for those who feel. The power of Moses staff indeed.

As children most of us see things inside other random patterns and shapes because of our unbounded creativity (I certainly remember doing that), but we tend to forget about this when we grow up.

Thanks for sharing these intimate details of Chughtai’s artistic eye and what you have called his Divine role. This is much like Carl Jung’s “Divine child”.

I forgot to say also, that the last of those sketches “Recognition of love” has me entranced. You can actually see that the angle of the woman’s hand is being very carefully and consciously worked out.