KARACHI: The National Art Exhibition, organised by the Arts Council of Pakistan Karachi at its Ahmed Pervez Gallery, concluded on Sunday after runningforthree days.

The scope of the show is large because it has works on display of more than 90 artists of high merit. They include the likes of Prof Ijaz ul Hassan, Mashkoor Raza and Anwar Maqsood.

It is precisely for this reason there are too many painters to marvel at that it becomes difficult to individually highlight their artwork. However, one can`t hold back saying what a cerebral delight it is to view Prof Hassan`s metaphorically poignant paintings with sociopoliticalundertones. He is a master at what he does; someone who even in the exceedingly tough period from the late 1970s to the late 1980s painted images that disturbed the authorities andenriched the art world.

The exhibition was inaugurated on Friday by Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori.

Speaking on the occasion, he said, `Art reflects the past and the future of asociety. Intellectuals, poets and painters know more than us. This is why we should bring forward painters`[work].

He urged the artist community to project Pakistan`spresent and future in their works.

Karachi Administrator Dr Saifur Rehman, Arts Council president Ahmed Shah and artist Farrukh Shahab also spoke.