November 21st, 2019
The exhibition Paper Jewels Early Postcards of Pakistan opened at the Salam Hall of Government College University (GCU) in Lahore on November 17, 2019. The first postcard exhibition in the country, it is part of the Faiz Mela (Festival) 2019. It includes over 200 postcards, reproductions and originals, covering all areas of the country as well as specific subjects like Advertising Cards, Village Life, Eid Cards, Bridges and Tunnels, World Wars, Violence in the Frontier, and much more. There are numerous postcards of old Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, and Quetta as well as some of the earliest postcards of Government College. Extensive text supports the visitor.
The exhibition runs through November 29th. It was organized by Salima Hashmi, and curated by F.S. Aijazuddin and Omar Khan from the latter's collection. Zanira Sandhu with Asad Hayee managed the set-up and design of the exhibition, installed by students from the Fine Arts Department of GCU. Hundreds of students are expected to visit the exhibition each day, in addition to numerous external visitors.
At the opening, after introductions by Sumera Khalil, Salimi Hashmi, Chairperson of the Faiz Festival, the Vice Chancellor of Goverment College Prof. Dr. Asghar Zaidi, author F.S. Aijazuddin and Omar Khan all spoke about the importance of making visual history available to modern audiences. The hall was recently named after Pakistan's first Nobel Prize winner, Dr. Abdus Salam, a graduate of Government College. Completed in 1877, it was recently restored.
A few days later, F.S. Aijazuddin, Omar Khan and Raza Ali Dada spoke and presented a slideshow about early postcards of Pakistan at the Alhambra Center as part of the Faiz Festival as well.
Read the DAWN newspaper story ‘Paper Jewels’ – an exhibition of timeless postcards – at GCU.