Contributors
Corey Mesler
Corey Mesler has been published in numerous anthologies and journals including Poetry, Gargoyle, Five Points, Good Poems American Places, and New Stories from the South. He has published nine novels, four short story collections, six full-length poetry collections, and a dozen chapbooks. He’s been nominated for the Pushcart many times, and three of his poems were chosen for Garrison Keillor’s Writer’s Almanac. He also wrote the screenplay for We Go On, which won The Memphis Film Prize in 2017. With his wife he runs a 145 year-old bookstore in Memphis. He can be found at https://coreymesler.wordpress.
Fatima ijaz
Fatima Ijaz, is currently teaching English and Speech Communication at IBA, Karachi. She is an English graduate from Hartwick College, N.Y and York University, TO. She also holds a Master in English Linguistics from Eastern Michigan University. She won first prize at the Mclaughlin Poetry Contest in Toronto, 2007. Her work was featured in a poetry and art collaboration for #NomeansNo at the Music Mela, Islamabad’18 and at Art Baithak, KU in March’19. Her work has been published in The Write Launch, Rigorous, Abramelin, Zau, Whirlwind, Praxis and others.
Afia Qamar
Afia Qamar is an avid poet, writer and a thinker. She graduated in English Literature from GCU Lahore. Currently she is an English teacher in a private school by the day and writes by the night. Her poetry was featured in YAR Magazine and she has won multiple poetry competitions throughout the years.
Sabeen Ahsan
Sabeen Ahsan is a visual artist based in Lahore. Ahsan studied fine art at the National College of Arts, Lahore, from 2014 to 2017, where she was a miniature painting major.
Immediately after graduation, Ahsan got the opportunity to explore her practice in Karachi at the Taaza Tareen Vasl Residency which culminated with an exhibit at the TDF ghar in April of 2018. She has also been a part of House a performance art residency based in Lahore as well as TasweerGhars annual residency in 2018.
She is currently the resident artist in collaboration with Mantiq of the Mantis for 2019 and has exhibited her work at numerous shows in Pakistan. She has also contributed to the online publication ArtNow and alongside her practice she works to create awareness about environmental concerns as well as recognizing her responsibility in her community as an educator through child advocacy through the arts.
Zahrah Ehsan
Zahrah Ehsan is a visual artist from Pakistan currently based in Finland studying MA in Visual Cultures, Curating and Contemporary Arts from AaltoUniversity School of Arts, Design and Architecture, Finland. She received herBFA with Honours in 2012, with a concentration in Painting from the NationalCollege of Arts, Lahore. Her training at NCA has allowed her to expand the boundaries of her practice through experimentation in Painting, installation, photography and performance. She has furthered her practice by exhibiting in galleries across Pakistan and internationally, as well as participating in an international residency at the Vermont Studio Center, USA. Zahrah returned to her alma mater after graduation, where she designed and taught a number of studio and theory based courses including Painting and Drawing, Fine Art Seminar.
Zahrah has been experimental with her work having scavenged for possible materials from industry, popular culture, and utility incorporating it into her paintings that is mostly a critique on the gendered body, social conformity,notions of socially constructed and enabled childhood.
Ishmal Rizwan
Ishmal Rizwan is a multidisciplinary art student from Lahore, Pakistan. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor in Fine Arts from the National College of Arts, Lahore and will graduate by the end of 2019. She also has experience in Mime based and traditional theatre and has performed and directed several plays for NCA and commercially, and won awards for best actor. Prior to NCA, Ishmal has acquired a diploma in Fine Art and English Literature from Somerville College at the Oxford University, and secured A*s in Art, both in O and A levels, at Lahore Grammar School. Ishmal has participated in several modelling gigs, been featured in other major artists’ artworks and music videos and has been a stylist for several shoots.
Rida Khalid Bhutta
Rida Khalid Bhutta is a poet, a writer, an avid reader, a thinker, a believer and a doer. She is a published editor and poet across the U.S. for the book “Memories of a Lacerated Heart,” also available on Amazon. She is an English Literature graduate with a minor in Psychology and Philosophy. She was an O’levels and IB lecturer for Literature and Language and has headed Communications, Dramatics, Declamation and Public Speaking Programs at some of the leading private schools and universities within the city.
Amna Suheyl
Amna Suheyl is a printmaker and visual artist resident in Lahore.
Meher hasan
Meher Hasan is a poet, writer, part-time model and a student at LUMS in Lahore.
Tajwar Munir
Tajwar Munir is a photographer and student whose work has been featured in Goodtimes magazine, Pakistan Today, and the Aleph Review amongst others. He has shot numerous fashion editorials as well as conceptual shoots.
aymen hashmat
Aymen Hashmat is an O-level student and poet resident in Lahore
Mariam saeed khan
Mariam Saeed Khan is an expressionist, writer, poet, journalist, footballer, humanistic storyteller of all things culture, art and literature. A novelist in the process; her poetic writings have been internationally read, liked, shared and reviewed by Paulo Coelho, Kaveh Akbar, Queen Mary London, Ahdaf Soueif, Poetry Foundation UK (liked), Button Poetry and nationally too. Her journalistic features have been read and appreciated by the creative & media industry of Pakistan and have been published in The Friday Times, Dawn, The News on Sunday, Propergaanda, Mangobaaz, Daily Times Pakistan, Express Tribune Pakistan, Rock Paper Scissors, Student’s Blog and Ink Quarterly Magazine. Her first short story was on sci-fi that was published in 2006’ for Smash Magazine. In the same year, she wrote her first poem in middle school titled, “Lady in a deep sleep”. This was dedicated to her late mother and got published in her school’s annual magazine called Mosaic 07- Beaconhouse School System Liberty. She has taken two workshops certifications from Awais Khan –Author- In the Company of Strangers & Director of The Writing Institute- on Novel Writing and Short Story Writing. Along with that, she completed a 7 weeks of Prose Writing Online certification course from Professional Writing Academy UK (PWA June’19, Course Director: Tom Bromley & Course tutor: Helen Shipman). For that, she produced two short stories that got good feedback and critique from Helen Shipman. Earlier in her career, she was interviewed for her work and writings on PTV World Weekend Show 2015; and was a featured profile for the inspiring journey in My Awesome Journey, Women Times Magazine and Dawn News TV for being a highlighted volunteer at Lahore Literary Festival 2018. She was also a highlighted alumni from her batch for her achievements (Lahore School of Economics). For the alumni batch of Lahore School of Economics 2016, she was invited and selected as a speaker along with 9 others to present entrepreneurial digital tech idea in November 2018. She was also a part of TedxLahore & Lahore Literary Festival team 2018. She is also into sports, she was the football captain and representative for girls’ team during her under graduation times at Lahore School of Economics’16. Currently, she is an active member & cyclist for Critical Mass Lahore, Cycling and Adventure Pakistan, Ghoomo Phirro, Shahid Cycling Hub.
Sarah Mumtaz
Sarah Mumtaz received her Bachelors in Printmaking in 2005 and later completed her Masters in Visual arts in 2010 from the National College of Art.During her Masters she was introduced to a completely different medium, which was performance, In 2011 her first performance ‘Everything will be ok’ was held at Zahoor- ul- Ikhlaq Gallery at National College of Arts. In 2012 she completed her first residency at Vasl International Artist Collection for performance, moving Image and Sound, Karachi. In 2014, at Taseer art gallery she performed ‘But the most beautiful thing about my burrow is the stillness’ and then the Solo ‘Love is the new Black’. Her others shows include consecutive shows from 2015-2016 with Antidote, Dubai. In 2017 a two person show ‘Unreal’ at Taseer Art Gallery, and ‘The Ink Project’ a three person show at Alliance Françoise Dubai. ‘Ijtema’ a group show at Alhamra Lahore in 2018.‘Future Debris’ Group Show at Zahoor ul Aklaaq. ‘Open House, performance at House Ltd. 2018 ‘River in the Ocean’, collateral event. Lahore Biennale. 2018 ’ Mix tape, Performance Art Show, Canvas. 2018. ‘From Hills to the Sea”, Group Show, Ghandara. 2019 ‘Collaborative work for the cover of ‘The Aleph Review’ Vol 3, a project of Broken leg Publishing. In 2019 ‘When a heart explodes’, Solo show. Rohtas 2.
Marjan Baniasadi
Marjan Baniasadi is an Iranian Visual Artist born in 1993 in Brasilia, Brazil. She currently Lives and works between Pakistan,Hungary and Iran.
Natasha malik
Natasha Malik is a graduate of NCA and the Slade school of Art at UCL. She has displayed her work at major galleries all over Pakistan.
Anjum Alix Noon
Anjum Alix Noon is an artist. Her expertise is in painting and development of concepts in artistic fields. Noon has exhibited and participated in numerous group shows, collaborative shows and recently held her solo exhibition “Take A Piece of My Heart” at Canvas Gallery Karachi. The exhibition was made up of 61 self-portraits and an interactive installation. The interactive nature of the exhibition invited the visitors to cut a piece from an artwork titled “Dopamine Flag”. Noon has collaborated with individuals from various industries ; fashion designer, textile digital printers, ceramist, and artists and has curated exhibitions for charitable causes. In 2012 she collaborated in developing materials for and with fashion designer Sadaf Malaterre. The collaboration Blackbird1 collection was on the fashion ramp at the PFDC 2012. In Oscar Wilde’s words “One should either be a work of art, or wear a work of art.”
Talia Mirza
Talia Mirza lives in Lahore, and is a poet and writer of short stories and blogs. She is also a dedicated yogi.
Nayha Jehangir Khan
Nayha Jehangi is a visual artist, art therapist and an art writer. She creates activities and programs for differently abled and typically abled children through incorporating art into her therapy sessions.
Sana Saeed
Sana Saeed is a Lahore based practicing artist. She completed her degree in visual arts from NCA in 2017. With a major in painting she also learnt calligraphy and film making to enhance her artistic expression. Growing up in a very strict literary and religious environment, Sana took fine arts as a way of rescue and as a platform to speak up her fears and concerns. She started exhibiting her work from a very early age and when she was in her 3rd year at NCA, she did her first group person show in Islamabad with gallery My Art World. In her final thesis display she was rewarded with Distinction and was also awarded the prestigious Principal’s honors award . In the Alhamrah Young Artist Exhibition 2017, she was rewarded with the ‘excellence award’. She is also a member of the Artist Residency Program at Shakir Ali Museum. Sana has displayed her work in different galleries across Pakistan, including Canvas Gallery Karachi, Artscene Gallery Karachi, O Art Space Lahore and Zahoor-ul-Ikhlaq Gallery Lahore. She had her first solo show at Taseer Art Gallery Lahore and recently her works were displayed at My Art World in a two person show and at Ejaz art gallery in a group show.
Sana Ahmed
Sana Ahmed is a researcher and poet resident in Lahore.
Nade Aly
Nade Aly is a photographer who has conducted shoots for both commercial and artistic purposes. He is the founder and editor of the zine and comic press, dounumber.