In the times of Global crisis, when Pakistan has hardly managed to keep its head above water while another lockdown looms, the art industry has surprised all with numbers.
Quite unprecedentedly the country’s export of works of art, collector pieces and antiques has increased exponentially, according to State Bank of Pakistan. Even a cursory look at the figures will make practitioners and lovers of art in our part of the world feel mighty proud of ourselves. In the last financial year, exports of works of art, collectors’ pieces and antiques were to the tune of $386,000 (July-March) whereas in the current year it increased to $36,594,000.
Explaining the reason for rise in art exports, Khaleel Ahmed, the owner of the Ocean Gallery, said,
“I’m not surprised by the rise in export. In the past what used to happen was that people (buyers) from abroad would come to Pakistan to attend art events, buy artworks and take them to their respective countries. But because of the pandemic, for the past one year, they have begun to buy paintings online. They would look at a work of art on a website or on WhatsApp, and place an order. Just a few days ago, I sent abroad four boxes in which there were 17 paintings. To boot, they pay the delivery charges themselves.”
That’s not the only reason for the steep rise in art selling abroad. For the buyers, Mr Ahmed says, importing art from Pakistan proves to be a cheaper proposition for them for a significant reason: framing (of a painting) in Pakistan is far less pricey than it is in North America or Europe. Therefore, they get their favourite artworks ready-to-hang in their houses.
“The other thing is that coming to Pakistan and taking works of art back home can be time-consuming. Import saves them that time. Also, they don’t pay taxes on art import,” he said.
Pakistani art reaches almost everywhere in the world, mainly the US, Canada and Europe. Countries such as Egypt and Turkey, too, are on that list. And it travels overseas from art galleries in all major cities of Pakistan.
