Muhammad Arshad Khan ( ur, , born October 14, 1969) known as MAK,
is a Pakistani artist, painter, sculptor, social worker and the president of the
Pakistan national committee for the World Art Games. He has painted several paintings, did not go to any art college, and learned painting from
Bashir Mirza
Bashir Mirza (1941 – 19 January 2000), also known as BM, was a Pakistani painter artist.
Early life and education
Born in Amritsar, British India in 1941, Mirza joined the Mayo School of Arts (now National College of Arts (NCA), Lahore ...
.
His style of painting is identified by some as ''Mak Art''.
Early life and education
Muhammad Arshad Khan is the son of Muhammad Azam Khan, born in Pontia, Tehsil
Topi,
District Swabi,
Khyber Pukhtunkhwa on October 14, 1969. His official birthdate is February 16, 1972.
He spent a few early years in
Karachi, then his family shifted to
Topi where he grew up in Mohallah Serai (a labour colony of
Pukhtoon
Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...
Society).
He studied at Government Primary School Shaheedan
Topi, Government High School
Topi, from which he obtained his secondary school certificate in 1988. After qualifying intermediate examination from
Peshawar Board, he studied sociology as a major subject, along with mass communication, community development and urban sociology as specialized subjects in Bachelor of Arts (Honors) in
Karachi University. In 1996, he earned a Master of Arts degree.
He did a research thesis titled "Study of The Factors Effecting Maternal and Infant Health in Low Income Groups of Urban" to qualify for his master's degree. Presently, he resides in New Muzzafar Abad Colony, Landhi Industrial Area, Karachi.
Career as artist
He was better in drawings among his schoolmates but he couldn't attend art school to learn drawing. Khalid Zaman brought him to Karachi.
There, he was involved in arts/theater as an actor, under the guidance of Ahmed Farooqui, an actor qualified at Poonum Arts School.
Soon after graduating from
Karachi University, he took an appointment in
TCS TCS may refer to:
Organisations
* Tata Consultancy Services, an IT company headquartered in India
* Taxpayers for Common Sense, a US nonpartisan federal budget watchdog organization
* TCS Courier, a Pakistani courier service
* Touring Club Suis ...
. He got an opportunity to become a student of
presidential
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese fu ...
Performance Award winner, painter and ex-Cultural Attaché for Australia
Bashir Mirza
Bashir Mirza (1941 – 19 January 2000), also known as BM, was a Pakistani painter artist.
Early life and education
Born in Amritsar, British India in 1941, Mirza joined the Mayo School of Arts (now National College of Arts (NCA), Lahore ...
.
Mirza started teaching him drawings and paintings from September 1997 until his death on January 5, 2000. He had also taken some classes from Nayyer Jameel.
He was introduced to the "Sunday gathering" at Indus Gallery by Bashir Mirza in 1997, where regular members Ali Imam, Bashir Mirza, Saleem Asmi, Professor Dr. Haroon, M. M. Usmani, Suleman Ganchi, Iqbal Jaffery, Aftab Tapal, Tasaduq Sohail and other national, as well as international, artists and celebrities interacted about art.
Besides this, Mak uses his art to give tributes to his ideals. He accompanied with his other mates take part in exhibitions at Karachi and in other cities.
Community service
Ranrraa Development Trust
"Ranrraa", established in 2006, is basically a
Pashto word which has multiple meanings such as light, sacred conception and bright vision.
He associated with the trust to help students affected by terrorism. "The mission of trust is to boost up the morale and life standard of the students directly affected by terrorism in Swat and Waziristan and... restart the life circle."
RDT always tried to create awareness among people about the issues, and gave opportunities to students so they could study in a calm atmosphere and look forward to their promising future. Besides this, RDT also executed
campaigns
Campaign or The Campaign may refer to:
Types of campaigns
* Campaign, in agriculture, the period during which sugar beets are harvested and processed
*Advertising campaign, a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme
*Bl ...
in order to create awareness.
Anti-toy gun campaign
Toy guns are seen in the streets of Karachi. Mak raised his voice through RDT against toy guns as they train children for violence. In festivals, the sale of these guns increase. They are frequently used as a toy by the children of Karachi. RDT lifted up the banners at
Press Club to stop toy guns and to save children. In an interview, Mak told the BBC, "If you are buying the gun, you are training five-year-olds to put a bullet in the chamber and fire shots. After using the toy gun, a child can easily use a real one."
Pukhtoon Thinkers Forum
Muhammad Arshad Khan is a founder member of the Cultural and Literary Secretary of Pukhtoon Thinkers Forum, which was established on November 16, 2007. It is a non-profit organization established to promote philosophy of non-violence, especially the version practiced by
Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, Pakhto to Pakhto, literature, culture and arts.
Pukhtoon thinkers forum worked for the literature of
Pashto and provided books to the corner. The Forum also translated books and organized several events. PTF paid tributes to the great poets with the help of
seminars and organizing
events. In an interview with the ''Express Tribune'', Mak said, "We wish for such events to act as a bridge between our culture and that of others".
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Muhammad Arshad
Pakistani painters
1969 births
Living people
People from Swabi District
University of Karachi alumni