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.