The Second Floor

This Friday the 13th, Salima Hashmi will regale us with tales ranging from her early years and the two men in her life, Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Shoaib Hashmi, to her work in comedy. And on a more serious note, Salima will show a slideshow of her work and also discuss the crucial significance of art education.

Salima Hashmi is one of Pakistan’s most well-known and accomplished artists. She studied in the United Kingdom and the United States, receiving a diploma in Art Education from Bristol University in the UK and a Masters in Art Education from the Rhode Island School of Design in the US. Salima taught at Pakistan’s prestigious National College of Arts (NCA) for thirty years and was the Principal of NCA for four years. In 1999, she received Pakistan’s Pride of Performance award. Salima is now the Dean of the School of Visual Arts at the recently established Beaconhouse National University in Lahore and also runs her own art gallery featuring works of young artists.

Salima comes from a socially and politically active family. Her father was the legendary Pakistani poet, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, and her mother, the British-born Alys Faiz was a respected journalist and peace activist in Pakistan. One of two daughters, Salima was always active in the arts, performing in plays before taking on painting professionally. Salima Hashmi has also been active in the human rights movement since the early 80s when she was one of the founding members of Women’s Action Forum, an organization dedicated to promoting women’s rights.

Date: Friday, 13th June, 2008

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