KARACHI: In one of the scenes of Shakespeare`s Hamlet, when Polonius asks Hamlet, `What do you read my lord?` the prince of Denmark, who is trying to feign madness, replies, `Words, words, words.` By responding in such a manner he intends to kill two birds with a single stone: one, to underplay the value of words since Polonius is a wise man who utters pearls of wisdom to his children such as `give thy thoughts no tongue, nor any unproportioned thoughts his act;` two, he wants the world to know that he is not attentive to the tragedy that he`s trying to come to terms with his father`s murder. Needless to say, the reality is otherwise.

An exhibition of distinguished artist Muzzumil Ruheel`s artworks titled Choose your words carefully` that opened at the Canvas Art Gallery recently also serves multiple purposes by virtue of some thought-provoking `paint-on-metal` pieces.

As per the artist`s statement provided by the gallery, the display`reflects his current state of mind`. To elucidate this, since the current state could have been triggered by anything, the write-up adds, `The artist believes that globally a new language has been organically developing in our subconscious. This new language of the millennium needs a universal script so that it may become part of life, may be used globally, may be taught formally and may even become the future official language of the world. .

It all sounds like an idealistic scenario, but Ruheel`s art is so powerful and convincing that the moment you start looking at his work, his idealism comes across as realism shrouded in hope. A case in point is the exhibit called `Something is Missing`. The geometry involved in the making of the piece hints at the linguistic flair that it embodies in its very kinetic energy, but the `missing` part is something that has to do with the viewer, not the artwork. And this is the point which makes Ruheel`s effort worth watching over and over.

The exhibition concludes on Thursday (today).