I have curated several exhibitions and performances on different monumental, disputed, and public places in Karachi while working as an independent curator with various renowned organizations, including I Am Karachi, Culture and Tourism Department, Government of Sindh, Pakistan National Art Association, Alliance Francaise de Karachi and Lahore, Stichting White Cube, Netherlands, and Independent artists, Italy. I have curated traveling exhibitions in major cities Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad, and have also curated a cultural exchange project ‘Kabutar’ in collaboration with the Municipality of Busto Garolfo, Italy funded by Orbit adv.
I have curated artworks, performances, and site-specific installations of renowned artists from Pakistan, including Amin Gulgee, Jamil Baloch, Abdul Jabbar Gull, Masood A. Khan, Naheed Raza, Ahmed Zoay, Tassadduq Sohail, Najmi Sura, and many others. Through my practice, I have promoted various emerging artists working in a diversity of mediums. I have also curated international artists and have collaborated on curatorial ventures.
In 2017, curated by Mehreen Hashmi, organized by Spaces Gallery and sponsored by Faisal Bank, Limited, Karachi Art Summit is Pakistan’s first art summit, which was held at twelve different sites of Karachi from 21st March to 5th April 2017. At the Karachi Art Summit, besides various site-specific installations and sculptures, there are two curatorial projects, more than 80 artists, including 34 international artists, three talks, and five performances. Artists from other countries are also participating with their curatorial projects. Our sites include the National Museum, Art Council, Kothari Parade, State Bank Museum, Commune Artist colony, Fomma art trust, Goethe Institute, Alliance Francaise de Karachi, Karachi University, Frere Hall, Quaid-e-Azam House, and Free Mason’s Lodge. These venues are main historical buildings of Karachi and are open to the general public.
“PAYWASTA REH SHAJAR SE”, a community-based project, concluded with an art exhibition showcasing artwork by children from different backgrounds. The project was first initiated in 2013. This show is an outcome of planned and skill-based art classes conducted during the summer. During these classes, children learn basic skills of drawing and painting according to their age and abilities. These classes have been conducted on voluntarily basis at BPW Quality School, Azam Town, The Orange Tree Foundation, and AAS (Alleviate Addiction Suffering)
Public art projects and other exhibitions
A significant focus of my work has been engaging weaponized drones (unmanned aerial vehicles/UAV’s) and the costs of drone warfare from a perspective of critical atonement. I question the use of these remote weapons and seek, as an American citizen, to call attention to and memorialize the invisible and forgotten victims of our remote, foreign incursions. In the works described, I’ve engaged in projects ranging from individual acts of tactical remembrance to collective memorials, which include processes of counting and naming the dead from America’s drone wars. The various projects purposefully incorporate ephemeral materials and processes such as paper, rubber stamps, GIFs, performance, and computer games, and perhaps most significantly, to invite and involve others to participate, make, and share in processes of intervention and critical reflection.
Opposite: students and community volunteers, “The Drone Project: A Participatory Memorial”, CSU Fresno, 2014
Cansu Ergin , a performance artist from Turkey was invited along with Joerieke from the Netherlands and Christiana Marchi from Italy to Karachi, Pakistan for Kabutar project.
