‘The National Art Gallery is a building created by and for the citizens of Pakistan,’ says architect Naeem Pasha in his book Documenting the National Art Gallery of Pakistan, 'a successful design relies on the architect’s ability to resolve the dichotomy between the service and what it serves, between the pragmatic and the intuitive, between the numerical and the non-numerical. This becomes exceedingly evident when a building is not merely a function but an ideal, an aspiration; when a building has a will of its own.’

This journey in architecture is presented beautifully and in an objective and unbiased manner. The building triumphs, it works, it is magnificent, the spaces it houses are exceptional. But what also stands out is how this book is presented.

Pasha’s narrative is strong, written without expressing negativity about the frustrations caused by delays due to bureaucratic or political processes. The first national competition to select the architect for the art gallery building was held in 1981 then another in 1988. Along the way, there have been major iterations, stops, restarts, and site changes. The building was finally completed in 2007. This journey has spanned 27 years.

The writing retains a gentleness and an overall sense of humility and calmness. This narrative both written and visual, is special, since the process of achieving the completion of the National Art Gallery has been prolonged, complicated, and probably painful.

Naeem Pasha’s publication and documentation of the design and the process undertaken by the firm Suhail & Pasha, is an important document for architecture in Pakistan. An architectural book that focuses on one building, especially one of national importance, is always valuable and one dedicated to the arts is critical.

This publication is structured into three chapters. The first appropriately addresses the art housed in the inaugural show. The book includes descriptions by 13 curators in their own words and voices, providing an overview of the exhibitions in the 11 galleries, the Grand Hall, and the dynamic connecting pathways. Stunning works from nationally important artists populate the images of walls, floors and spatial volumes.

The galleries are conceived and created as interconnected experiences in spaces that flow into one another. This has allowed the tying of art into a continuous thread. The ability to walk through the galleries and not miss an exhibit was critical to the architectural designers.

“In an art gallery, the art objects are more important than the building itself, so that a visitor must not miss an object,” writes Pasha. “Each gallery looks into each other such as Gallery 6, which is holding a landscape exhibition, sneaks down from the balcony into Gallery 1, and the love themed exhibition. That is when Love is communicating with the landscape”.

Concept and spirit

That the concept and spirit is infused into the Gallery’s built form, is evident. But the aspiration of a ‘will’ that our National Art Gallery shows and almost demands, is palpable. This comes across in the way the pertinent words are written by the contributors of articles and especially in the passion felt when reading Pasha’s words.

The essence of spirit is paramount and very visible in this book. In Pasha’s search for meaning and conceptual depth he narrates a discourse and questions he raises, invoking the late poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz.

I found meaningful Pasha’s mentioning the poem by Faiz;

‘Stay close ( پاس رہ ) ‘

Pasha includes conversations he had with Faiz. For example, he had once asked the poet about ‘pain laden anklets that turn to indigo’… why indigo? The connotation of indigo with sadness and the reference to anklets of pain... objects of ornament but also of constraint, is poignant and worth contemplation, especially about the emotions being referenced.

These powerful verses continue:

At this hour when hearts, deep in their hiding places,
Have begun to hope once more, when they start their vigil.

‘If you are looking for meaning in your work, you must look deeply into folk and myth,’ Faiz told Pasha, sharing a conversation he had with the architect Hassan Fathy decades earlier about borrowing inspiration from nature, in a manner that it’s not taken for granted, but rather enhanced.

Notable too in Pasha’s writings are quotes from the great Estonian born American architect Louis Khan, one of them in this context; ‘A city is a place where a small boy, as he walks through it, may see something that will tell him what he wants to do his whole life.’

Nuggets of thought

Such nuggets of philosophical thought are important to Pasha’s conceptual, poetic, philosophical and communication process. These relevant thought words are infused into the built interior and exterior spaces and most certainly speak out… let me say… they do sing… One feels it in the words and images presented in this book.

This second chapter shows not only the building’s exterior elevations with exquisite detailing, but also the enclosed spaces, sans art. They show the interpretations of the internal ‘white cube’; the galleries for exhibits, they showcase the very beautifully articulated brick arched auditorium walls and also the very skilfully planned connections, both walkable and visual.

‘One begins to design any building by getting into the fever of the creative process. It’s like falling in love. I never design a building from the outside in, but from the inside out’, writes Pasha.

‘To me every bit of the National Art Gallery is in many ways poetry,’ writes Pasha.

The third chapter is perhaps the most valuable for any student of architecture or history of the arts in Pakistan. It is also a lesson in perseverance and tenacity, so needed in the circumstances prevalent. The changes required, the repeated competitions, the adjustments in brief and reassignment of sites. All of these stories are told as a quietly stated fact, in letters and dated sets of plans.

What I have enjoyed tremendously is the poetry and the drawings. Verses are placed in the text and symbolically embedded in the very beautiful competition sketches and design development drawings. These hand renderings are presented in the book without fanfare or show.

The drawings speak for themselves. This is as it should be. The one that stands out for me is on page 150. This exquisite hand rendering of the elevation is dated March 91 and it carries the artist’s signature, architect Pasha Sahib’s distinctive signature.

Naeem Pasha is not just an architect - he is an artist, an incredibly sensitive multilingual poet and a thinker whose work, including this book, raises enquiry and instills in one a desire to learn more… to explore. It reveals a dimension to his sensibilities that I can only respect. On reading this book I find myself looking for more answers to questions that arise. Some I have found within these pages, not only in words but also in the images presented.

Here are two more quotes from the artist, architect, poet, and thinker, taken from the beginning of his book in his own words.

‘At the dawn of awareness, my conscience castigates me -
why is there no calling in you?’
‘This is my song, stay close to the walls
And let the walls sing my song.’

Documenting The National Art Gallery, Pakistan

By Naeem Pasha

Published by Liberty Books, 2024
Pages: 184; Price: PKR 12,000 (USD 42)

(The author is a Karachi based architect, film maker, poet and an environmentalist who was present at Naeem Pasha’s book launch at Mohatta Palace, Karachi, 6 January 2025. By special arrangement with Sapan)