Shams Ul Arfeen Hashmi is a Lahore based visual artist. In 2012, he graduated from Beaconhouse Sadiqabad Campus and was shortlisted for their Distinguished Alumni Award. In 2019, he graduated from the National College of Arts and he is furthermore working as an actor and a singer.

The artist’s paintings are largely autobiographical - an acute observation of the constant transformation of life and its surroundings. Breaking the mould of traditional landscape painting, he plays with composition by taking a fragment of a panorama and magnifying it, realizing it on a large scale canvas. Exploring his native grassland landscape, Shams immerses himself in his surroundings, investigating the process of going beyond himself to reach a certain free and meditative state.

Navigating a balance between realism and abstraction, the artist uses unconventional techniques such as sanding, splashing, dripping and scrubbing the paint. This combination of painterly, conceptual, and poetic tools is what shapes his process, while the gradual build up of layers creates a sense of depth that draws the viewer in.

''I visualise what I want to achieve without knowing how I am going to reach my destination. My journey begins with feelings, then the thoughts, lines and colours follow, and eventually a harmony between textures.''

Arfeen’s works have been displayed at E-Exhibitions Ejaz Art Galleries, O art space Lahore and at Canvas gallery Karachi, curated by internationally acclaimed artist Imran Qureshi. The artist currently lives and works in Lahore, Pakistan.