Raj Kumar Maheshwari
Artist
Brief info
Raj was born in 1984 in Tando Muhammad Khan, a town near the deserted planes of Sindh, Pakistan.
The desert is famous for its traditional textiles and he saw textile craftsman around him since very early
age, even his mother used to be a fine embroider. Textiles and art being his first inspiration, he started
learning drawing as an amateur student of Babar Azeemi (a well-known artist), alongside his school
education and later on joined National College of Arts to get a textile design degree in 2007. Later on
while teaching at the Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design, Jamshoro, Sindh, Kumar realized that
textile design was not good enough for him to convey what he wanted to as a way of expression. So he
joined NCA once again for Masters in Visual Art in 2014.
Belonging to a society where religious contradictions are at their peak, Kumar started working in a
unique direction. He started executing his ideas regarding religious practices in form of prayer mates and
prayer beads with materials like Dice and terracotta. His MA thesis show was his first art exhibition.
Recently he has showcased his even more strong works in 4A Center for Contemporary Asian Art,
Sydeny, which then moved to Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts, Perth, Australia. Kumar’s work is
now in various National and International private art collections. He lives and works in, Jamshoro,
Pakistan.
