Moving murals: truck art brings pride to Pakistan
The international attention has made Pakistani truck art something to be extra proud of.
KARACHI (Reuters) - Amid the hustle and bustle of the roads in Pakistan’s port city of Karachi, trucks decorated with brightly-coloured murals tower over the roaring traffic.
It’s a kaleidoscope of moving art reflecting local pride as well as social and political trends, from portraits of leaders to snow-capped mountain peaks. The country’s "truck art", as it is known, has become a global phenomenon, inspiring gallery exhibitions abroad.
Haider Ali, 39, is one of the artists behind the national display. He paints trucks with his team at one of a number of workshops located on the side of a dusty road in the Karachi neighbourhood of Yousuf Goth.
Years worth of commissioned work has seen Ali produce a collection of truck art of historical significance, he says, as the requests he gets so often reflect the trends of the time.
"Paintings of (former Pakistani Prime Minister) Benazir Bhutto became a huge trend when she was assassinated, and the people who chose to get her picture painted were not only the people who liked her as a leader, but also those who didn’t even vote for her," he said. "After that, a lot of pictures of Imran Khan started being painted," he added, referring to Pakistan’s current prime minister and former cricket star.
And it’s not just at a national level, Ali said; "Our message also carries the message of love and peace internationally. Look, Princess Diana was not from our country, but people... got her picture painted."
Ali is a second-generation truck artist, whose childhood was spent playing at the truck-painting workshop where his father, uncles and brothers spent much of their day. He first picked up a brush at the age of six, painting whatever was in reach.
"My father kept guiding me, and since I was not taking much interest in my studies, I ended up joining this profession," he said. Now as boss of the workshop, truck owners come to Ali to brighten up their rides.
Truck art has become one of Pakistan’s best known cultural exports. Ali himself has had his work exhibited overseas, in the U.S., Europe, Canada and other parts of Asia.
Though Pakistanis might have gotten used to seeing the elaborate truck art displays, some say the international attention has made it something to be extra proud of.
"Now the entire world can see the beautiful Pakistani vehicles plying the roads," said truck owner Abdul Qadir, before driving off with his newly-decorated truck. "In the rest of the world, the vehicles are only covered with metal sheets."
The colour is not just limited to Karachi -- it extends out along the roads leading to other cities, as the trucks take their goods cross-country. "People feel really happy after seeing trucks like this," said a resident of Lahore, Humayun Ali, after stopping on the roadside to examine the detail on a decorated truck.
Truckers say having a decorated truck can revive an ageing, decades-old vehicle, and even attract more business, making it an increasingly competitive trend. It’s not cheap though, and could set them back anything from 50,000 rupees ($360) to 1.5 million rupees ($10,700), depending on the grandeur.
Ali says his dream is to build a museum to display his work and show it’s historical value, but it is a long road ahead as he lacks the resources at present. For now, though, he’s content with his success; "God gave me an opportunity to show the world the colourful face of Pakistan through this art. And I showed it to the world."
