![]() For Imagined Archives each artist was asked to reference the history, archives and memory of the house as they produced their respective works. Shah feels that a strong curatorial premise which would involve artists whose practice was also already evolving along these lines would be the best way to commence this ongoing project. The intention behind this show, she says, is to draw in a wider audience in order to highlight the unique histories associated with the site. Shah is particular about focusing on objects as she recounts how “it is the survival of objects that gives us insights to lives lived here”. The discourse surrounding memory and shared histories is also reflected in the title of the exhibition, Imagined Archives, curated by Fatma Shah at the ancestral home of her in-laws located at 11 Temple Road, Lahore.įatma Shah debunks the idea of melancholia alone as anachronistic when considering the past and is passionate as she discusses how her motivation with regards to the history of 11 Temple Road, in particular, lies not in focusing on victimhood or tragedy but survival and resilience. It is fitting then that a space which was already a repository of memory for many of its former inhabitants was recently transformed into a gallery space to exhibit the works of ten young artists and, perhaps, to ask these same questions. ![]() In a city like Lahore where partition and stories of migration are still embedded in the memories of many of its inhabitants, this definition of “a sense of place” is more complex it is ensconced in a dual sense of longing that is often undercut by a determination to forge ahead and build a new future. What constitutes or makes a place unique (place distinctiveness) and place continuity (how relationships are linked and maintained in relation to space) 4 are two key features that contribute to developing a sense of place in heritage. The built environment of these spaces contributes much more to the fabric of the city than we think to its former inhabitants, such as Mehta who visited to relive a poignant fragmentary memory, or even to the generations that have followed, it is a receptacle of collective memory, lineage and fabled ancestry. It is a pity that ancestral homes with their rich and varied histories, such as in the case of 11 Temple Road, are often sidelined or lost in the annals of time. Hassan went on to make history not only in politics but also as a campaigner for peace in the subcontinent. While Mehta went on to make a name for himself in literature, Dr. He served as Finance Minister in the Bhutto Administration and after retiring from politics became a founding member of the Human Rights Commissions of Pakistan. Mubashir Hasan co-founded the Pakistan People’s Party, a democratic socialist political party, along with Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Amolak Ram Mehta was a senior public health official in the government of India and his rather colourful life has been captured in the first of twelve volumes titled “Daddyji.” 2 Dr. He lost his sight at the age of three despite his handicap and with the encouragement of his father, Amolak Ram Mehta, he went on to receive an MA from Harvard University and published short stories, hundreds of articles, biographies and autobiographies.ĭr. On the eve of partition, the family migrated to this home from Panipat. ![]() Amolak Ram Mehta, visited his father’s home in Lahore at 11 Temple Road not, as assumed, “to reclaim property, but to reclaim his childhood” 1 the house was then allotted to the two sisters of Dr. F.S Aijazuddin recounts how acclaimed author Ved Mehta, son of Dr.
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