Pakistanis are art lovers. They like expressing their views and desires through works of painting. You don’t have to walk towards the art to feast your eyes, the art will come towards you. Ladies and Gentlemen! I introduce you to the bus/truck art of Pakistani buses!
Mohammed Rafiq has been painting Pakistan’s colourful buses for 40 years, but there’s a dark side to the industry. Like millions of his compatriots, Rafiq started work at the age of 12, missing out on education and exploited as a child labourer.
“We would put our heart into it,” said Rafiq, recalling his early days as a bus painter. “Nowadays the apprentices come and just see it as a day job,” he sighs, sitting on a plastic chair on the muddy tarmac as Pakistan’s now iconic colourful buses roll by.
How are Pakistan’s buses painted into beautiful art?
He picked up painting quickly and gained notoriety for his skill, drawing beautiful scenes on the buses that would travel across the country. “My work spread all over Pakistan. But we didn’t get much money per bus.” More than 40 years of working without any safety equipment or precautions have taken their toll.
At 69 years old, Rafiq’s lungs are now failing. “This sickness is because of the paint, the chemicals, thinners, petrol fumes,” he explains, gasping for breath. Filmed by Al Jazeera’s Hassan Ghani.
The bus/truck art has been widely appreciated globally. A W-11 tram was run in Australia, and one of the trucks was exhibited in the London Zoo.
The historical art is prevailing in the country for decades and is cherished by the citizens. All thanks to the hardworking artists of Pakistan.
Source – junkytravel, Al-Jaseera English.
