Fauzia Aziz Minallah is an Islamabad based artist, author, photographer, designer and a political cartoonist. She is also the founder of Funkor Childart Centre Islamabad.

Education and Training May 1991, M.Sc. Communication Design. Pratt Institute, New York Dec, 1986, M.Sc. International Relations Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad Worked as Communication Design Consultant for: UNICEF, ESRA/USAID, UNESCO , British Council The Ministry of Environment. The Ministry of Social Welfare and Special Education,  ActionAid, FAO, AKRSP, Center for Civic Education, The British High Commission.

Art Residency: 

Exhibitions

Papers:

'Connecting Children with Multicultural Roots of Islamabad', Asian Regional Cooperation Conference Heritage Management, Conservation, Education and Tourism organised bythe Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage in Delhi, 2008

'Raising Awareness about the Natural and Cultural Heritge of Islamabad' , National Training Session on the Role of Civil Society Institutions and the Media in Raising Awareness about the Cultural Specifities and Cultural diversity, Lahore, 2008.

'Natural and Cultural Heritage of Islamabad' International Conference on Buddhism of Pakistan a source of regional Cooperation, Taxila Istitute of Asian Civilisations and Ministry of Culture, 2007

 ‘Lost Clay Traditions of Saidpur”  seminar ASNA International Clay Triennial. Karachi 2007

Awards and other information:

Winner of All Pakistan Newspaper Society Award 1985 – 86 for best editorial cartoonist. She is first award winning female political cartoonist of Pakistan.

Winner of National Book Foundation Award 2003 for promotion of children’s literature.

The team of "Sadako's Prayer Project' written and Illustrated by Fauzia Minallah was the winner of Hiroshima Citizen's Award.

Revived a dying craft ‘Chitarkari’ or slate engraving, found in the cemeteries of Gangar mountain range, Hazara, N.W.F.P.  

To promote Children’s art founded Funkor Child Art Centre in Islamabad, the only centre specifically dedicated to the promotion of children’s art in Pakistan.

News clippings:

Preserving the past   

Rina Saeed Khan views a unique exhibition of slate engravings      

Fauzia Aziz Minallah is an artist with a mission. She is trying to promote and preserve an ancient art that is unique in many ways, not least because it was extinct until Fauzia started reviving it in the 90s.

 For centuries, in the small villages of the Gangar Mountains in the Hazara district of the Frontier, slate engravings were used exclusively to decorate tombstones. The slate would be excavated from quarries high up in these mountains, and sold to craftsman in the villages. The slate engravers would then painstakingly engrave the smoother slabs of slate with different symbols and geometric patterns. It is not easy to excavate a smooth block of slate, let alone chisel intricate patterns upon it. With the introduction of hardier materials like cement and marble in the 60s, the use of slate started dying out. Soon slate engravers had turned to other professions like masonry and carpentry.

Fauzia, whose ancestral family belongs to this district, grew up with the images of these delicately engraved tombstones seared onto her subconscious. ‘‘We would always visit my mother’s village for Eid,’’ recalls Fauzia. ‘‘I just fell in love with the slate engraving.’’ Fauzia, who has done her M.Sc in Communication Design from the Pratt Institute in NY, was soon photographing the tombstones in the cemeteries outside the village and making rubbings of the images engraved upon them so that they could be preserved. She decided to learn the art of slate engraving herself, and traced out three engravers who had turned to other occupations. She then decided to open up a small gallery in Islamabad from where she could commission work and build up a market for the engravings.

Today, Fauzia, along with the others-Said Rehman, Aziz ur Rehman and Mohammad IIyas-are reviving this ancient art. Fauzia supervises the entire operation-buying slate from the quarries, transporting it to the craftsman in the village and then bringing the engravings to Islamabad where she has set up the ‘‘Gangar’’ Gallery. The slate engravings-which include Fauzia’s contemporary designs along with the more traditional tombstone designs that have been replicated by the craftsmen-were recently exhibited at the Alliance Francaise in Lahore .

 The engravings were not only aesthetically pleasing, but they exuded a timelessness that comes from the use of slate. The texture of slate is unlike any other-the metal grey surface reveals lighter shades when chiseled or scratched and different depths can be created. Viewed from a distance, the finely engraved images take on an enigmatic, classic quality. While Fauzia’s images of the woman she encountered during her visits to the region are a worthy, contemporary tribute to this traditional art, what fascinated me were the images that appeared on the ‘‘replica’’ tombstones. One engraving display the image of a rifle-the man for whom the tombstone had been made must have been a warrior. Another tombstone featured a mosque-no doubt a pious man deserved that image; yet another showed a teapot-a symbol of the deceased’s generosity [tea in the region is a luxury].

The Gangar Mountain range might be a poor and rugged region. But these slate engravings reveal a rich and spiritual culture. Thanks to Fauzia’s efforts, one tradition of its ancient culture has been given a new lease of life.

Friday Times, February 6-12 1997

‘Chitarkari’ from graveyards into homes

In a world filled with cliche, redundancy and repetition, it is getting progressively harder to carve one’s own niche.

Fauzia Aziz Minallah is one artist who has managed to achieve just that, she appears to stand alone in elevating and transforming the ancient craft of ‘chitarkari’ or slate engraving into a contemporary art medium. Her exhibition “Ethnic Portraits” which as second part also features the craft work of Said Rehman, Aziz-ur-Rehman and Mohammad Ilyas, opened at the Alliance Francaise, Saturday.

‘Chitarkari’ has been used to decorate tombs for centuries in the Gangar Mountains , Hazara, in the frontier province. Slate was used because of the plentiful quarries in the area. With the availability of ‘60’s coupled with the difficult process of slate excavation, the use of slate receded and the ancient craft started to die out.

In 1990, Fauzia started working with craftsmen in the Gangar area and tried to revive the craft by shifting the focus from the cemetery to interior design elements, such as tables, flower pots and wall hangings.

In ’92 she took the craft work to the Folk Heritage Festival in Islamabad to introduce it to a larger audience. And then, three years ago, she moved on to experimenting with artistic treatment of slate, which brings about this exhibition in Lahore .

Fauzia’s work etches itself into the feminine psyche. Two distinct modes of expression can be differentiated. In one style the emphasis is on shape and space, with the shades of the gray produced by the chisel dominant over the darker un- chiseled slate.

Compared to the second style, there is a deliberate attention to detail in the features and body of the subjects: the features are less prominent; there is an absence of jewellery and other decoration. In toto, there is a contemporary feel to this style; themes of pregnancy, a woman carrying a child on her back, a lady meeting her cold stone glare into yours, even a woman with a ‘garrha’ on her head with hair, clothes and body cascading down in waves of soothing symmetry. The subject addressed may be rural rather than urban, but they lack the sense of antiquity dominant in the second style that emerges at Fauzia’s exhibition.

In this second style the dark gray dominates the light silver gray in the bodies of the subjects. Grate attention is paid to the hair as it is fashioned purposefully on the head, or falling down in diamond shaped links of the braided chain. The features of the face are very prominent, especially the nose and eyes. Eyes are often underlined with dotted semi circles, reminiscent of older versions of cosmetics. Tribal jewellery adorns the figures with all its layers, bulk and simple geometry. This has the effect of linking the centuries old craft with the depth of the traditions of its antiquity.

“These are memories of places I visited. They connect to antiquity because the Kalash culture goes way back. Most of them are contemporary rural women and the things about them that have touched me,” explained Fauzia in an interview with The News. Talking about how an MSc graduate in communication design from the Pratt Institute in New York , happens to be innovating the ancient craft, she says “I am using this particular medium because I was exposed to it in my childhood. In the Eid holidays we would often travel up north. I spent so much time in cemeteries between Tarbela and Haripur because I was fascinated by ‘chitarkari”’. For this reason she has been trying to revive the craft as well as elevating it into the realm of art. 

Fauzia explained the difference between her art and the original craft, “the craft has two surfaces and the depth is rather shallow. As an artist I try to create layers, and there are often three or more surfaces with their different shades’’.

She also experiments more with the different shadings she can achieve, as opposed to the craft which features mostly the dark and the light shade with little in-between.

As already mentioned, Fauzia has also been on a mission to bring ‘chitarkari’ craftsman to the fore, even despite the fact that because of it her art is sometimes treated as craft work. But her mission remains strong. And, it is in this effort that as the second part of the exhibit the work of three craftsmen is featured.

This part of the exhibition reveals that ‘chitarkari’ can successfully move away from the macabre surroundings of graveyards  make a place for itself inside homes, if given enough exposure. Tiles, rectangular and gravestone shaped tablets feature. Said Rehman, Mohd Ilyas and Aziz-ur-Rehman bring to the fore elements of Islamic geometry and design in terms of arabesques. Two pieces have representations of Mughal castles, and a few other pieces offer symbols of the craftsmen’s tools, like a saw, chisel and divider.

The exhibition features truly unique work, with the art achieving a penetration of themes, emotions, the contemporary and the antiquated, while the craft work is tasteful, different and skillfully finished. The exhibition will continue till the 1st of February.

The News International, Sunday January 26 1997

Reviving Chitarkari

By applying this cemetery art to objects of everyday use, the artist has infused a new life into this dying craft

By Salwat Ali Dawn Magazine

A few minutes with Fauzia Minallah is enough to convince you that she really cares. Her enthusiasm is so enterprising young artist has single handedly rescued the dying craft of chitarkari from oblivion.

Chitarkari or slate engraving has been used to decorate tombs for centuries in the Gangar Mountain Region of N.W.F.P, where slate is found in abundance. Fauzia hails from Sirikot, a village near Haripur and since childhood has been fascinated with the cemetery engravings. An MSc is Communication Design from Pratt Institute in New York not only broadened her vision but also enhanced her appreciation of this craft. Her personal resume is chequered  with an All Pakistan Newspaper Award for ‘Best Cartoonist’ in 1986 while she was the editorial cartoonist for the Muslim, a stint as design consultant  for UNICEF and had solo shows in Peshawar and Islamabad. However, for the last seven years she is totally involved in reviving chitarkari, not just as a craft, but also as an art from. 

Slate excavation is a difficult and laborious process and large lots yield only a few good slabs with the proper leaden tones and just the right surface texture for chiseling. Now a days cement is easier and cheaper to use and the affluent opt marble, both of which is  easily available. Slate in no longer popular and with it chitarkari has also died a quiet death.

Said Rehman from village Kundi is now a full time iron-smith and has not worked on slate for the last fifteen years. Muhammad Ilyas, now a carpenter, from Belgram has only childhood recollection of his father carving intricate patterns on slate.

These two artisans were discovered by Fauzia when she began scouring the Haripur region for former slate engravers. She has rehabilitated Said Rehman to his former status as master engraver and others like Huzoor Hussain and Said Muhammad are joining in, and trainees especially Said Rehman’s grandson, are showing great promise.

With simple tools like a chisel, hummer and parkar (divider) intricate geometrical patterns, arabesques, polygon diamonds, lotus and sunflower leaves and petals are carved with precision and exactness. Headstones in old cemeteries reveal widespread use of carving symbols and figurines indicate the sex, status, and calling of the person buried there. A religious person will often have an elaborate prayer mat and a fancy lota (for ablutions) engraved on his headstone. A young warrior’s grave will have a rifle chiseled at the bottom, farmer or peasant; neckbands, earrings and bracelets adorn female graves, some even have strange fertility symbols on them.

In order to appreciate this geometrical interlacement of patterns and the symbolic language underneath, it is not enough to simply look at the pieces head on, they must be ‘read’ by letting the eye follow the intertwining designs and feel the history engraved on these stones. The repeat patterns and motifs carry Greek, Mongol and Islamic influences. The symbols throw interesting light on the beliefs, culture, material resources and other salient features of the society. Some graves show rougher and simpler motifs reflecting on the modest means of the population.

By applying this cemetery art to objects of utility like table tops, pot holders, decorative tile work etc. Fauzia has infused new life into this. She personally buys slate from the quarries, transports it to the craftsmen and them brings back the engravings to her ‘Ganger Gallery’ in Islamabad . In 1992 she took the craft to the folk Heritage Festival to introduce it to a larger audience and exhibits in Lahore , Peshawar and Islamabad have generated enough awareness for orders to trickle in.

Fauzia is not just promoting chitarkari but is doing it herself also. Having learnt the traditional techniques, she combines it with her knowledge of design, drawing and composition to produce ethnic portraits of women. She borrows heavily from folk art but her expression is contemporary. Portraits are carved in outlines only and the weaving rhythmic patterns are incorporated in the composition making it a pleasing blend of the old and the new. She even manages to introduce tonal values of ash white, slate grey and land by making linear or pock marked textural variations on the surface. A somewhat experimental art from, Fauzia has applied the same technique to chipboard also, where she gouges the surface with a knife and sets the flaky surface with thick layers of oil paint. The metallic finish gives it an antique look. This innovative streak is bound to make her grow as an artist. 

V.M. Art gallery is hosting this unique exhibition curator Riffat Alvi has sensibly divided it into two distinct sections of art and craft. Tombstone replicas, decorative tiles and border pieces dominate the craft section, and Fauzia Minallah’s experimental work is featured in the second section.

Unlike marble or granite which can be polished to a smooth gleaming sheen, slate is dull, grey, rough and very raw. As such it will generate selective appeal only, but this curious mix of the traditional and the contemporary is bound to fascinate  viewers, especially creative art students and collectors of art objects.
Dawn Magazine Sunday, June 8 1997  

Future People

Woman of Many Colours
(By Naziha Syed Ali)

Fauzya Minallah defies categorization.  She is many things rolled into one – design consultant, artist, photographer, writer, and – rare for a woman in Pakistan – a cartoonist as well.   Drawing cartoons came naturally to Fauzya.  “While I was a student of international relations at the Quaid-i-Azam University in Islamabad, I used to entertain family and friends by drawing cartoons of them or of my teachers,” says Fauzya.  “But it was when I joined The Muslim in 1986 as an editorial cartoonist that I really enjoyed this art.”  That same year, Fauzya won the APNS best political cartoonist award.  Her winning entry lampooned Zia’s version of democracy with each member of his Majlis-i-Shoora shown as an identical copy of the general himself.

Now, more than 15 years later, the September 11 attacks in the US have inspired Fauzya to write, illustrate and produce a book for children.  Titled Amai’s Wish , it encourages compassion and empathy for other’s suffering.  Says Fauzya, “I heard an eight-year-old boy say, ‘Good, it (the destruction of the twin towers) happened to the Americans.  Look what they are doing to the poor Afghan children.’  I was very concerned about these comments and I feel that we all have to be very concerned about the messages our children, with their young, enquiring minds, are absorbing from their surroundings... messages of hatred, war and enmity.”  The book is planned by Fauzya as the first of many more under the umbrella of Peace Books alongwith partners Akmal Minallah, Samar Minallah and Ghazala Minallah.  Fauzya’s aim in this venture is clear.  “I want to publish books for a brown Muslim child.  This world is not going to be easy for them.”

Fauzya’s desire to reach out to children has been obvious even in her career as a cartoonist.  She contributed a cartoon strip for children in The Nation , covering varied topics on culture, on environment, and also social issues, such as life through the eyes of a child carpet weaver.

In her more recent political cartoons, Fauzya has taken caustic potshots at the ‘war against terror’.  She voices strong feelings against the suffering being brought to bear on the Afghan people as a result of the US airstrikes on their country.  “They are being punished for what a small group of lunatics have done,” she says. “The Afghan children are as important as American children and not mere ‘collateral damage’.”

Fauzya’s political views are based on her pacifist, anti-war sentiments.  She describes herself as a “very depressed Pakistani” when the entire nation, it seemed, was celebrating Pakistan’s nuclear tests in 1999.  “The ugly tin structures of missiles supposedly beautifying our cities, for me as an artist, are a shameful reflection of our society.”  Although she is herself not inclined towards playing an active role in politics, her mother was for a short time a member of Junejo’s party, and was one of the few with the moral courage to speak out against the Pakistan army’s atrocities in Bangladesh.  Meanwhile, Fauzya’s grandfather was one of the three judges who believed that Zulfikar Ali Bhutto should not be hanged.  Having the courage of their convictions is obviously a family trait.

Fauzya, aside from her freelance pursuits as a cartoonist and writer, works as a design consultant for UNICEF.  She has also revived the craft of ‘slate engraving’ – typical to her village in the Frontier – which was traditionally used to beautify tombs.  Using her innovative, eclectic approach, Fauzya  has encouraged the craftsmen to use engraved slate as table tops and wall hangings and other items.  “My own work is greatly inspired by this craft and I use slate engraving as a medium.  My work on board is also carved out first before painting it,” she says.  Truly one woman who doesn’t believe in borders, whether of colour, creed, or art

Newsline, January, 2002