meethapani

Art & Science Knowledge is often formally divided into the sciences and humanities, as if one can exist without the other and is reflected in the channeling of students into one or the other stream at an early age. We either deprive our young people of the humanizing impact of literature and art or we deprive them of the investigative objectivity of the sciences. Scientists are perceived to be without emotions and artists with too much emotion. It was not always so.  The Greeks considered art to be techne , the source of the word technology. The concept of Art did not emerge in western society until the 17 C The 7 Liberal Arts included sciences until the Victorian era when a narrower interpretation of science as comprising physics chemistry and mathematics was established. The motive was the need for applied sciences to cater to industrial needs.   The perception of Art and Science as separate pursuits became the new norm. A closer examination reveal...

Love in Pakistan Iqbal Bhai Chamak Patti wala was putting the finishing touches on the tram he decorated  in the style of the W11 bus of Karachi. Mick Douglas, who conceived the project for the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, asked him to name it.  His first thought was the name of his wife, Shama.  Then he decided upon Love Is Life. Pyaar zindagi hai . Love is an obsession in Pakistan, a society where public displays of love are not accepted, yet every bus rickshaw song ghazal film TV drama is centred on love, where despite all efforts by zealous religious groups, red roses are quickly sold out on Valentine’s Day. Ironic in a country the world believes is violent. Romance is considered the staple genre for young girls and overworked housewives the world over, but in Pakistan the men are equally obsessed.  I remember being intrigued by a turbaned, very macho, truck driver spending ages in the truck accessory shop deciding which set of lovebirds to...

The Artist’s Estate A family friend Katja Neuburger who escaped to London from a concentration camp, briefly housed the well-known artist, Kurt Schwitters. She would rue the fact that she threw away so many of his drawings that he put in the bin, valued today at £ 10,000.  Andy Warhol famously said "death can really make you look like a star" and “death means a lot of money, honey”. Sadeqain and Gulgee paintings and drawings became worth much more posthumously.  Even in the lifetime of an artist, he or she may have sold their works very inexpensively only to find they later increased greatly in value. Art purchases are one of the more stable investments, as it is a tangible asset, especially when there is a transiting market. While the seller benefits, the artists rarely do. In 1920 in France, a landmark law was enacted when the destitute family of French painter Millet, claimed a share in the resale of his work, The Angelus, which originally sold for $100 b...