Lok Mela revives dying art of truck decoration, cinema board paintings | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

Lok Mela revives dying art of truck decoration, cinema board paintings

ISLAMABAD: The on-going annual artisans-at-work festival ‘Lok Mela’ being held at Shakaparian under the aegis of Lok Virsa and Ministry of Information & Broadcasting put special focus on truck art and cinema board painters.

Lok Virsa organized a special exhibition of truck art and cinema board painters coinciding with the ‘Lok Mela’ festival. The exhibition features twenty artists from all over Pakistan.

One can see them busy creating their masterpieces at their beautifully designed artisan pavilions. The truck art artisans that are participating in the exhibition includde Jamiluddin, Haider Ali, Muneer Tahir, Muhammad Zahid, Suiar Khan, Imran, Andis, Abbot, Daniel, Wali Muhammad, Hanif Chishti & Zulfiqar whereas cinema board painters include Agha Saleem, Muhammad Ajmal, Tasadduq Hussain, Sajid Hussain and Muhammad Imran.

The most prominent artists among them are Jamiluddin and Haider Ali who came from Karachi to demonstrate their skills at the festival.

They learnt this art from their forefathers who migrated to Pakistan from India after partition and commenced working in this particular field.

Talking to this scribe the artist Jamiluddin said “Truck art now is growing popularly in Europe and other countries where people are getting much impressed with indigenous traditional designs and motifs inscribed on the bodies of trucks and other vehicles.

The first time when Bedford trucks were imported from England in 1960, my father started decorating them. My family is the pioneering one having pride to introduce this unique art in Pakistan”.

Lok Virsa Executive Director Khalid Javaid said, ‘Foreigners often refer these profusely decorated lorries and trucks as ‘jingle trucks’ because of the sound they make when they are in motion’.

He informed that the purpose of holding the truck art exhibition is to revive this art, which was once at peak but now is threatened to vanish.

The exhibition will give artisans related to this art an opportunity to show their talent to the visitors and get them acquainted about their craftsmanship, he added.

Most vehicles are decorated from the top to bottom with no space left blank down to the hubcaps and fuel containers.

The main themes of the paintings are dictated by the choice of the owners reflecting their cultural heritage and tastes.

Designs created consist of geometrical and floral patterns, landscapes with lakes, rivers, waterfalls, snow covered mountain peaks, spring fountains, gardens, flowers, mosques, eagles, peacocks, fowls to mention only the main subjects, the artisans maintained.

Colours used are extremely bring flaming orange, gleaming red and yellow, shocking pink, an intense emerald green, the mystical and blue, combined with all shades of spectrum.Intricate mosaics of coloured glass, mirror and bone coloured plastic pieces, as well as finely executed wood carvings adorn the superstructure of the cabins and cabin doors with flowers, leaves garlands, sometime birds, and often designs composed of florescent coloured plastic tape.
Source: Daily Times
Date:6/6/2011