TFT: What significance does the Karachi Biennale and your role as curator hold for your own practice? Could it be a case of one small step for a man, one giant leap for the art scene?
Amin Gulgee: I come from the artist-curator’s perspective – and that is an actual term. I began my own journey some 25 years ago, curating a show at the Karachi Sheraton. The show was called ‘Urban Voices’. After that, my gallery opened in 2000. For any show, I either curate it myself or I get a co-curator. Generally a show takes around a year to put together. And mine is not a commercial gallery – I’m not looking to sell anything. So it allows me to experiment. For instance, the theme of our last show was the decade of the 1970s in Karachi. For me personally, the Biennale is all about taking that sort of experimentation forward, on a larger scale.
TFT: In what ways do you see the Biennale transforming the art scene in Karachi, and more broadly, in Pakistan?
Amin Gulgee: Well, I don’t know about that – in the sense that I’m not hoping to transform anything. It’s just a small step. Yet another small step! What we desperately need in Pakistan are more spaces which allow us to showcase contemporary and modernist art. Art belongs to everybody! Right now, most of the collections are not accessible to the majority of people. It is imperative that we establish such spaces, at least in all of the major cities of Pakistan – and so we must begin with Karachi and Lahore.
TFT: Much has been made in recent years about Pakistani art and artists becoming a recognised phenomenon in the global art market and in the consciousness of art critics. Can we say that contemporary Pakistani art is a far bigger phenomenon than the success of some individual artists from Pakistan in the global art scene?
Amin Gulgee: I think it’s wonderful that a lot of our contemporary artists are getting more attention abroad. But I must say that there has to be a certain amount of effort at connecting with people back home. You cannot ignore the fact that art is for change. If you do not change the environment surrounding you, that can be problematic. The focus should be both abroad and at home – so that we don’t forget the context of Pakistan.
'One Belt, One Road' by Talal Faisal
"The work that is being put up at the Biennale isn't all very user-friendly. A lot of the work is extremely challenging and provocative. So in that context I'm really delighted with the response that I've seen"
TFT: It has been argued that the Pakistani art scene is dominated by a few big artists and a handful of galleries – to the detriment of artistic output. To what extent do you believe this is the situation, and if so, in what ways does the Biennale try to address it and open new avenues for younger artists?
Amin Gulgee: I think that is a valid issue.
In Pakistan, we do tend to show artists who have already created a name for themselves. And that is something that I try to address – I’m very open to young artists and their energy. We do, indeed, have a problem in that there is very little support available to young artists.
In the Biennale itself, I have included well-established artists, like Yoko Ono or Noorjehan Bilgrami, as well as very young artists such as Talal Faisal, Shahana Afaq and Stephen Sheehan. That has always been my curatorial practice – to mix the very established with the very young!
TFT: One often hears about young Pakistani artists, their talent, potential, etc. You are known to insist on the highest standards of work, so it would be most appropriate to pose this question to you: just how good is the work of the younger and newer artists entering the art world these days in Pakistan?
Amin Gulgee: It’s fantastic. When I look at this young energy, it always invigorates me.
Consider my own recent experience. Even my curatorial team, I have to mention, is composed of young people. My three assistant curators are at or below the age of 30 and they have worked very hard, indeed – Humayun Memon, Sara Pagganwala and Zeerak Ahmed. Then I have Adam Fahy-Majeed, who is a curatorial team member and he’s 21 years old! And lastly I have Zarmeene Shah, who is our Curator at Large. She’s studied at Columbia and she works with us in an advisory role – looking over the big picture.
Aamir Habib's 3D installation, titled 'Already Eaten'
In this context, I feel I have to emphasise also that because of our lack of a budget, everybody is a volunteer. These people have been putting in over 20 hours a week for this Biennale since last August. So it’s been an incredibly long haul for my entire team and they’ve proven to be so incredibly dedicated, fearless and full of ideas.
So yes…[laughs] I do believe in the next generation. You know, people complain about Millennials, but these people have disproved all the stereotypes. And you know, I’m a hard taskmaster. I’m not very easy to work under. And the fact is: unnkay baghair yeh nahin hota! (without them, this would never have been possible)
It’s been put together with scotch tape and love!
TFT: As a sculptor, in what ways have you seen medium and materiality transformed in Pakistan and the broader South Asian region from the days when you started out, up to the present time?
Amin Gulgee: Art always does follow a certain fashion of the times. Art and fashion are, after all, not so very separate. Previously we had the modernists discussing older issues, formality and so on. Now we have the contemporary scene – and it’s the product of art institutions. What you see is what you get. All in all, it’s just another brick in the wall.
But you know, what really interests me in art is someone who goes against the fashion. We all know what’s topical. We know what mediums and approaches are prevalent in a certain time. But then someone comes along and challenges it all – and that is always something that intrigues me. I’m interested in someone who has the courage to stand against the established norms in art.
TFT: What is the role of the general public in the Biennale and how have Karachiites engaged with the work put on display?
Amin Gulgee: Well, so far, I’ve been extremely grateful for the response. So many people came and visited the sites. There seems to be a general excitement. After all, the work that is being put up at the Biennale isn’t all very user-friendly. A lot of the work is extremely challenging and provocative. So in that context I’m really delighted with the response that I’ve seen.
TFT: Do you believe there is greater freedom of expression and openness in Pakistani society today due to newer forms of media, experimentation and global influences? Or do you see the space for artistic and cultural expression closing up, due to the rise of religious fundamentalism, terrorism and state authoritarianism?
Amin Gulgee: The answer lies in our history. Remember, since the 1970s, first we had Bhutto and the far-left. Then we had the far-right and Zia-ul-Haq. Now we’re somewhere in between, and we’re trying to seek an identity and direction. I think we are a society in transition. And a transitional phase is not such a bad thing for an artist, because it is a time when you’re questioning everything.
TFT: What next for Amin Gulgee and for Pakistani art in general, when the Biennale reaches a successful conclusion?
Amin Gulgee: One obligation that I have is my father’s legacy and the Gulgee Museum that was supposed to have been set up this year. Due to the Biennale, it was not finished. Inshallah I’m going to get back to work on that museum for my father’s work.
And I want to continue with my own art practice – which, actually, is the thing that makes me very happy. I’m a simple man. I like making things. I want to have the freedom to go into my workshop, shut the doors and go back into my dreams…
