(b Rawalpindi, 1926; d Karachi, Oct 5, 1979).
Pakistani painter. Parvez started his career in Lahore, winning first prize in a 1952 exhibition at Punjab University. Most of his early works were still-lifes. His Cubist style was transformed into a non-figurative one during a London sojourn (1955–65). Whether by accident or design, Parvez’s paintings acquired a strong resemblance to the work of British painter Alan Davie; his 1968 exhibition at the Gallery International, New York, was billed (rightly or wrongly) as a homage to Davie.
Parvez’s volatile personality was mirrored in his art, which is active, explosive and colourful. By the 1970s Parvez’s colourful fragments, organic forms, circles and splashes had been transformed into looser, more refined aggregates of squiggles, dots and dabs. These playful forms emerged as bouquets overflowing from an assortment of containers, most notably wine bottles and beer cans, a contentious imagery in Pakistan. Among the few Pakistani painters to be lauded in London and to earn a living by the sale of his art, Parvez was among the most productive and influential Pakistani painters of his generation. Many of his best works have been collected by the artist–collector ...
