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Professor
Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts & Design (MDSVAD)
Prof. Quddus Mirza, a celebrated painter, critic, and curator, pioneered Pakistani art on global platforms. The first Pakistani at the Royal College of Art, he has exhibited worldwide, curated landmark shows, and shaped generations of artists. His works are in major collections, and he writes for leading international publications.
Prof. Quddus Mirza is a distinguished painter, art critic, and independent curator. He serves as a Professor at the Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts and Design, Beaconhouse National University (BNU), Lahore. Previously, he was the Head of the Fine Arts Department at the National College of Arts (NCA), Lahore, where he earned his BFA before completing an MA in Painting from the prestigious Royal College of Art, London, in 1991. Notably, he was the first Pakistani artist accepted into the Painting School at the Royal College of Art.
After returning to Pakistan, Mirza dedicated himself to art education, shaping multiple generations of artists. As a practicing painter, his work has been exhibited in over 45 significant group exhibitions worldwide, alongside 16 solo exhibitions in Pakistan and the UK. He also represented Pakistan at the Asian Art Biennale in Dhaka. Known for his distinctive style, innovative themes, and expressive imagery, his works are part of esteemed collections, including the British Museum, the Royal College of Art Collection, the National Art Gallery in Islamabad, and numerous private collections across Pakistan, India, the UK, the USA, Germany, Sweden, Nicaragua, Italy, and Spain.
Mirza has also made a mark as an art curator, overseeing notable exhibitions such as Celebrating Art and Love at the National Art Gallery, Islamabad; Exotic Bodies (2002), based on miniature paintings from the Victoria and Albert Museum, exhibited at the Preston Museum in the UK; and Beyond Borders: Art from Pakistan (2005), showcased at the National Gallery of Modern Art in Mumbai—one of the largest exhibitions of Pakistani art ever held outside Pakistan.
He is frequently invited to conferences, seminars, talk shows, and literary festivals in Pakistan, the UK, India, the UAE, Kazakhstan, Turkey, and the USA, where he delivers talks, presents papers, and participates in discussions on art and culture, with a particular focus on Pakistani art.
As a leading art critic, Mirza writes a weekly column for The News, along with regular contributions to Art India (Letter from Pakistan), Depart (Bangladesh), and other major publications, including Dawn, Herald, The Friday Times, Himal (Nepal), Libas, Contemporary (UK), and Flash Art (Italy). He co-authored 50 Years of Visual Arts in Pakistan and has written extensively on Pakistani art in international catalogues and publications. He is also the editor of the online art magazine Art Now Pakistan.
Main Campus 13 KM Off Thokar Niazbeg -
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