Mr. Ammar Faiz MDSVAD - BNU

Ammar Faiz is a Lahore-born visual artist whose practice spans film and audio documentation, drawing, multi-faceted installations, and collage. His work explores anthropological themes, focusing on the intangible cultural settings that exist at the intersection of urbanization and rural traditions.

Ammar has exhibited his work at prestigious national and international platforms, including the New Wight Biennial at UCLA, Los Angeles; The Image Show in Tanzania; the traveling exhibition Make Being Radical in the Netherlands; and AMP Gallery in London, UK. His local exhibitions include Datum 2.3 (in collaboration with IAPEX, curated by Aarish Sardar), Singer Not the Song (2021) at Dominion Gallery, Lahore; Islamabad Art Fair (2019); Making History (2018); Amalgamation (2017); and What Belongs to You (2016) at Sanat Gallery, Karachi. He has also showcased his work at Common Fabric (2015) at Rohtas II, Lahore, and Dialogue 1 (2011) at Alhamra Art Center, Lahore.

His films have been screened at the Reykjavík International Film Festival (2017) in Iceland, the Ozark Short Film Festival (2016) in Lamar, USA, the Salair International Independent Film Festival (2016) in Russia, and Visionaria (2015) in Italy. In 2023, he co-curated The Day After exhibition at the Islamabad Literature Festival.

Ammar holds a Master in Art and Design Studies (2018) and a Bachelor of Visual Arts (2015), both with distinction from the Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts and Design, Beaconhouse National University (BNU), Lahore. He is the recipient of the ADA Award (2020–2021) in the Video Art category and was shortlisted for the Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten (2019) in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Currently, he serves as an assistant professor at the Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts and Design, BNU.

• Master in Art and Design Studies (MAADS) with Distinction, Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts and Design, Beaconhouse National University (BNU), Lahore, Pakistan
• Bachelor of Visual Arts (BFA Visual Arts) with Distinction, Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts and Design, Beaconhouse National University (BNU), Lahore, Pakistan

Teaching Experience

• Permanent Faculty & Program Coordinator for the Master of Art and Design Studies (MA ADS) at Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts and Design (SVAD), Beaconhouse National University (BNU), Lahore. (2015–Present)

Other Work Experience/Projects

• Restored artifacts at Chitral Cultural Museum for the UNESCO-backed project Improving the Educational Role of Chitral Museum, with Salima Hashmi. (2018–2019) Documented the archives of Salima Hashmi’s artwork at Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong. (2017)
• Worked as a visual artist for Stories We Tell, a collaborative project by BNU and Lahore Biennale Foundation, supported by the Danish Center for Culture and Development (CKU). (2015–2016)
• Served as an artist assistant to Rashid Rana for My East is Your West, a collateral project of the Venice Biennale. (2015)
• Conceptualized and directed promotional interactive videos for Beaconhouse National University (BNU). (2014–2015)
• Worked as a videographer for the Implementing Right to Information (RTI) Law project, supported by the World Bank. (2014)
• Assisted artist Shweta Bhattad in the I Have a Dream community project, Lahore segment, part of the Vancouver Biennale. (2014–2016)
• Created a virtual tour of the National History Museum (NHM) for Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy Films and the Citizens Archive of Pakistan (CAP). (2012)

• Recipient, Art, Design and Architecture (ADA) Award for the Video Art Category (2020–2021)
• Shortlisted for Visiting Artist Fellowship, The Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, USA (July 2019)
• Shortlisted for Artist-in-Residence, Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten, Amsterdam, Netherlands (June 2019)
• UNESCO Madanjeet Institute for South Asian Arts (UMISSA) Scholarship for Master’s Program, School of Visual Arts and Design, Beaconhouse National University (BNU), Lahore, Pakistan (2016–2018)
• Graduation Scholarship for Undergraduate Studies (Fully Funded), Beaconhouse National University (BNU), Lahore, Pakistan (2012–2014)

Group Exhibitions

• Dharti Dhar Dhar Dharke Gi – ‘Artist as Witness’, curated by Salima Hashmi, COMO Museum, Lahore (Sep 2024)
• Unity in Flux: The Ones and the Zeros, Ejaz Art Galleries, Lahore (July 2024)
• Places We Live | Stories We Tell, curated by Prof. Ali Raza, Lahore School of Economics, Lahore (June 2024)
• Datum 2.3, curated by Aarish Sardar, IAPEX, Expo Centre, Lahore (Dec 2023)
• The Day After, co-curated with Quddus Mirza, Islamabad Literature Festival, Islamabad, Pakistan (Nov 2023)
• Medium is the Medium is the Medium, 8B2 Gallery, Islamabad, Pakistan (Oct 2023)
• Tawaif, Dominion Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan (Feb 2023)
• And the Story Goes On…, AlHamra Art Centre, Lahore, Pakistan (Dec 2022)
• The Wise Men of Sundar, Factory Show, Sundar Estate Industrial Area, Lahore, Pakistan (Feb 2022)
• Trojan Horse, Anniversary Show, Dominion Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan (Jan 2022)
• Art Soch Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan (Aug 2021)
• Islamabad Art Fair (IAF), Islamabad, Pakistan (Nov 2019)
• Asking for It, AMP Gallery, London, UK (Oct 2019)
• Crossovers 2019, Alhamra Art Center, Lahore, Pakistan (Oct 2019)
• The Last Image Show, Tanzania (Sep 2018)
• Making History, Sanat Gallery, Karachi, Pakistan (May 2018)
• MA Art and Design Studies (ADS) Thesis Exhibition, Beaconhouse National University (BNU), Lahore, Pakistan (Jan 2018)
• Amalgamation, Sanat Gallery, Karachi, Pakistan (Jan 2017)
• Past & Present in a World of Tomorrow, Royal Palm, Lahore, Pakistan (Nov 2016)
• What Belongs to You, Sanat Gallery, Karachi, Pakistan (June 2016)
• Common Fabric, Rohtas II, Lahore, Pakistan (Nov 2015)
• Everything is Embedded in History (Selfie Billboard), Lahore Literary Festival, Alhamra Art Center, Lahore, Pakistan (Feb 2015)
• Postcard Exhibition, British Council-supported project, Lancashire, United Kingdom (Mar 2014)
• Dialogue 1, Alhamra Art Center, Lahore, Pakistan (Feb 2011)

Biennales

• New Wight Biennial, UCLA, Los Angeles, USA (Sep 2016)

Two-Person Exhibition

• Singer Not the Song, curated by Salima Hashmi, Dominion Gallery, Lahore (Apr 2021)

Tour Exhibition

• MAKE BEING RADICAL, curated by Tereza Ruller, Amsterdam Academy of Architecture, Netherlands (Apr 2017)
• Bonnefantenmuseum, Maastricht, Netherlands
• Dortmunder U, Germany
• East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
• Lloyd Hotel & Cultural Embassy, Amsterdam, Netherlands
• Museum de Fundatie, Zwolle, Netherlands
• Museum Hilversum, Netherlands
• Het Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam, Netherlands
• De School, Amsterdam, Netherlands
• WOW, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Films

• Tower of Babel, Director (2013)
• Loop, Actor (2012)
• IL Venditore, Actor (2012)
• Joey’s Face, Actor (2012)
• Life After Death, Director & Art Director (2012)
• The Loner, Director & Art Director (2012)
• Machis ki Dibiya, Art Director & Producer (2011)

Film Screenings

• Waiting, Reykjavík International Film Festival, Reykjavík, Iceland (2017)
• The Loner, Ozark Short Film Festival, Lamar, USA (2016)
• Shaan, Salair International Independent Film Festival, Russia (2016)
• Shaan, Visionaria, Italy (2015)
• Be Near Me, Italy (2013)

• Cinemadamare Film Festival, Italy (Aug–Sep 2013)
• Cinemadamare Film Festival, Italy (July–Aug 2012)

• Postcard Exhibition – British Council-funded project in Lancashire, United Kingdom. (March 2014)
• Arts and Craft for Kids – Faiz Foundation Trust, Lahore, Pakistan. (Jan–Aug 2017)
• Mime Workshop – Summer School, Faiz Ghar, Lahore, Pakistan. (June 2016)
• Short Film Production Workshop – Lahore Grammar School, Johar Town, Lahore, Pakistan. (Sep–Oct 2015)

• Talk on Folk Games of Pakistan – Comparative Culture Club, Asian Study Group, Islamabad, Pakistan. (2022)
• Artist Talk – Pakistan Institute of Fashion Design (PIFD), Lahore, Pakistan. (2019)
• Artist Talk – Beaconhouse National University (BNU), Lahore, Pakistan. (2016)
• Artist Talk – New Wight Biennial, UCLA, Los Angeles, USA. (2016)

• Folk Games in the Outskirts of Lahore – Published online by Emergent Art Space. (2018)
• Emergent Art Space Artist Profile – Published online.
• Project Catalogue: "Word Belongs to You" – Published by Sanat Art Gallery. (2016)
• Project Catalogue: "Everything is Embedded in History" – Published by Lahore Biennale. (2015)

• Meta and Other Verses , by Quddus Mirza – Published by The News on Sunday. (August 24, 2024)
• Brief Narratives, Short Lives , by Quddus Mirza – Published by The News on Sunday. (June 18, 2023)
• A Breakthrough Cross-Disciplinary Exhibition , by Sousan Qadeer – Published by The News on Sunday. (December 17, 2023)
• Telling Tales of Tomorrow , by Quddus Mirza – Published by The News on Sunday. (May 12, 2024)
• Art Review: The Singer Not the Song, A Matrix of Hues and Reflections, by Nayha Jehangir Khan – Published by Youlin Magazine. (April 16, 2021)
• History in Wonderland, by Quddus Mirza – Published by The News on Sunday. (May 20, 2018)
• Art Review: ‘The Past as Present’ at Sanat Gallery Karachi, by Nimra Khan – Published by Youlin Magazine. (May 10, 2018)
• Exploring Possibilities: The Languages of Mediums – Published by Express Tribune. (January 24, 2017)
• Somewhere We Belong — Six Artists Exhibit Work Exploring Sense of Ownership, by Umer Sheikh – Published by The News. (June 29, 2016)
• What Belongs to You Underway, by Peerzada Salman – Published by DAWN. (June 30, 2016)
• Amalgamate, by Rabia S. Akhtar – Published by ArtNow. (2016)

• Email Address: ammar.faiz@bnu.edu.pk