Art Divvy Exhibitions develops large-scale shows of contemporary South Asian art and culture in public spaces. In 2019, Foundation Art Divvy, with the Pakistan National Council of the Arts, presented Naiza Khan: Manora Field Notes, the inaugural Pavilion of Pakistan at the 58th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. The Foundation organised and curated Sagar Theatre on Queen’s Road at the Plaza Theatre, Lahore, (2020) and I, too, am a part of this history at Fakir Khana Museum (FKM), Lahore (2018), both collateral events to the Lahore Biennale. Before this, the Foundation exhibited Aisha Khalid & Imran Qureshi: Two Wings to Fly, Not One at the National Art Gallery, PNCA, Islamabad (2017), the first museum exhibition in Pakistan of these leading contemporary artists.
In 2020, the Foundation expanded into film by launching Divvy Film Festival, an annual festival hosting independent films by South Asian filmmakers which is now in its third year and across three major cities. Each evening of the Divvy Film Festival is curated carefully to create an experience for the audience. The films we screen cover a multitude of themes that tap into universally shared experiences and memories. In order to encourage more scholarship on and easy access to contemporary South Asian art practices, Foundation Art Divvy has established Art Divvy Conversations, a series of online recorded conversations with practitioners across South Asia. The objective is to preserve artistic practices and build an accessible primary research archive. The series includes approximately 100 conversations and counting.
Our Team
Zahra Khan - Creative Director is a curator who works with a focus on South Asian art and culture. In her role as Creative Director of Foundation Art Divvy, she led and curated the first official Pavilion of Pakistan at the Venice Biennale 2019, Manora Field Notes. Through Art Divvy, Khan continues to support contemporary artists and filmmakers from South Asia and build the organisation’s presence on the international art scene.
Khan previously worked in art galleries and institutions including Ronald Feldman Fine Arts in New York and Sotheby’s and Blain|Southern in London. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia and holds a Masters from SOAS, London.
Asma Khan - Board Director is the Founder and Director of Satrang Art Gallery at the Serena Hotel in Islamabad and the SerenArts Programme, two unique enterprises dedicated to showcasing Pakistani art and heritage. She is a Director for Foundation Art Divvy, an organisation established to support and develop large-scale public exhibitions of contemporary Pakistani art. Asma is a member of the Board of Governors of the Pakistan National Council of the Arts, the country’s leading arts institution.
Over the last 20 years, Asma has actively led support for The Citizens Foundation, a charity that provides quality education to the underprivileged across Pakistan. She has also been the long-term Chair of the Islamabad Supporters of TCF over this period of time.
Zahra Jadoon - Divvy Film Festival Coordinator (b. 1997) is an Art Educator and a Visual Artist from Abbottabad. She graduated with honors from the prestigious National College of Arts, Rawalpindi in 2019 majoring in Sculpture. Right after graduating Jadoon started working as an Assistant Curator at the Satrang Gallery in Serena Hotel, Islamabad from 2019 to 2021.
Her work incorporates the idea of how women are perceived in society nowadays which she portrays by making the bare skin of a human in her paintings and by the use of latex in her sculptures. She has also conducted workshops in different disciplines of art, alongside which she also worked as a freelance artist and one of the core members of the Harfun studio.
She is currently the assistant to Creative Director at Foundation Art Divvy and lives and works in Islamabad, Pakistan.
Emaan Pirzada - Exhibition Coordinator (b. Hyderabad, Sindh) She graduated from the National College of Arts, Rawalpindi in 2021 with honours in Fine Arts (Miniature Painting).
Pirzada’s work has been part of numerous prestigious exhibitions and festivals held in Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, South Korea and Ras Al Khaimah UAE. Notably, she had the honour of representing Pakistan in the ‘Painting Old Buildings’ project in Cairo, Egypt (2019). She dedicated her post-graduation period to volunteer work at MEF International Schools in Istanbul, Turkey. Shortly after, she worked as an Assistant Curator (2021-2022) at Satrang Gallery, Serena Hotels, Islamabad. Recently, she received sponsorship by the French Embassy Islamabad for a residency called ‘DRAW International’ (Centre for Drawing Research) in Caylus, France.
Based in Islamabad, Pirzada serves as a Coordinator at Foundation Art Divvy, further contributing to the growth and promotion of South Asian art and culture
Narmeen Tariq - Research Associate (b. 2000) is a visual artist. Graduating with honours from the esteemed National College of Arts, specializing in sculpture.
Embarking on her professional journey, Narmeen delved into the realm of freelance artistry, collaborating on various projects with US-based companies, showcasing her versatility and creativity on an international platform.
Narmeen’s artistic narrative revolves around themes of personality development and the intricate interplay between society and relationships. Through her unique medium of thousands of thumbtacks on abstract human figures in nets, she explores the vulnerability of human experience. Net symbolizes the receptiveness to life’s experiences until gradually forming a protective shield.
Has been part of the Divvy Film Festival team as an internee for the past three years, Currently serving as the Research Associate for the Art Divvy Conversation Series, she continues to contribute her insights and passion for the arts.
Nayha Jehangir Khan - Coordinator - Divvy Knowledge Center a Visual Arts BFA graduate from York University, Canada in 2010, brings a wealth of experience in community arts, mental health advocacy, and art writing. With a decade of cultural programming under her belt, Nayha has curated transformative experiences that blend artistic expression with community engagement. Her journey into art therapy began years ago, culminating in expertise that she seamlessly integrates into her work today. As an art writer, Nayha has contributed to prestigious publications such as Youlin Magazine, Friday Times, The News On Sunday, and Art Now Magazine, offering insightful critiques and cultural explorations. Currently, she excels as a Creative Content Manager, leveraging her diverse background to craft compelling narratives that resonate with audiences. Through various roles, Nayha continues to merge her passions, using her experiences to shape community building for organizations.
Our Advisors
Anam Abbas is a Canadian/Pakistani filmmaker. As a producer and DOP her first feature "Showgirls of Pakistan", premiered in competition at IDFA 2020 and was released globally by VICE in 2021. Anam's first feature documentary as a Director, award winning "This Stained Dawn", premiered in International Competition at the 2021 Sheffield Doc Fest. Her first fiction feature, "In Flames", Directed by Zarrar Kahn, had its World Premiere at Director's Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival 2023, followed by TIFF, Busan, Sitges, Helsinki, SXSW Sydney and Red Sea FF. She won the CMPA Emerging producer award 2023.
Anam is one of the founders of the Documentary Association of Pakistan.
Ayla MajidFounder & CEO | Planetive Pakistan | Planetive Middle East is the Founder & CEO at Planetive Pakistan, and Planetive Middle East. She is a leading energy transition strategist, decarbonisation investor and M&A expert with emerging market focus. Ayla has over two decades of investments and financial advisory experience across sectors including: large infrastructure, energy and digital innovation. With high level governance and leadership experience, Ayla sits on the boards of energy, pharmaceutical and engineering companies. Ayla is an international speaker on the future of energy, climate finance, clean tech, decarbonisation, and sustainable infrastructure.
Academically, Ayla holds MBA from Lahore University of Management Sciences, LLB from University of London, and ACCA. She is alumnus of Harvard Kennedy School; University of Oxford, and National Technological University Singapore. Most recently, Ayla attended a module on "Global Energy Transition" at The Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment at Princeton University.
Ayla is a member of: the Global Future Council on Energy Transition of the World Economic Forum, and the Mobilizing Investment for Clean Energy in Emerging Economies Global Taskforce of the WEF.
Ayla is a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum; and Eisenhower Global Fellow 2021.
Sofyan Sultan studied at Brown University, SOAS, and University College London. He is a co-founder of Soch Videos and director of Green & White (Private) Limited. He is currently serving as the President of the Debating Society of Pakistan.
Danielle Sharaf is an award-winning businesswoman, a former member of the Economic Advisory
Committee for the Prime Minister of Pakistan, a celebrated impact investor and the founder and
CEO of SWITCH-ITC; a mobile technology company, impacting lives of more than 15 million
cellphone users across emerging markets.
She’s the recipient of United Nations SDG WE Empower Award 2021, WECON Tech Entrepreneur
of the year and is also a Fortune 500 Most Powerful Women Emerging Leader. Ms. Sharaf is a
frequent advisor to the government of Pakistan on Information & Communication Technology
and also sits on the Board of Association of Startups, Gran Canaria Spain where she’s promoting
bi-lateral exchange between the entrepreneurial ecosystems of Pakistan and Spain.
Her work has been featured in Vanity Fair, BBC, CNN, National Geographic and Fortune Magazine,
spanning projects from health tech solutions for adolescent girls to bringing agri-tech, ed-tech
and mobile financial services to the underserved.
Ms. Sharaf is one of the most influential voices of - Women in Tech in Pakistan.
Our Consultants
Mamoona Riaz - Consultant is a visual artist, art educator and a creative practitioner with professional experience ranging over many fields. She received her BFA degree from National College of Arts with Honors and the prestigious Haji Sharif Prize and her M.A/M.Phill degree in Art Education from Beaconhouse National University with the prized UMISAA (Unesco Madanjeet Singh Institute of South Asian Arts) scholarship. She is also a finalist of the highly coveted Sovereign Asian Art Prize for 2021.
Over the period she has worked in the curatorial capacities with Satrang Gallery and the NCA art gallery and is also currently serving as a consultant for Foundation Art Divvy. She also serves as Art Editor for an international publishing literary journal Papercuts. Riaz continues to serve her alma mater and has been teaching at NCA as a professor of Miniature Painting and other courses designed specifically for new learning and pedagogical practices after her M.Phill in Art Ed. She is also a founding member of Divan-e-Aam, an art collective focusing on art and sustainability, alongside works on various side projects and commissions.
With her professional portfolio she is also focused on her art practice and has been continuously working and exhibiting her work at important national and international platforms, moreover her work is in permanent collection of eminent national and international art collectors.
Noor Fatima - Consultant is a visual artist with immense involvement in promotion of art and culture through curation, art therapy, art practice etc, with a wide range of experience over various creative branches. She graduated from the National College of the Arts in 2017 with a major in sculpture. Her career can only be describes as diverse and this has allowed her to explore different aspects about art and employ a wide variety of techniques to her approach.
Right after graduation she was involved in numerous sculpture commissioned projects for various important organizations and institutes including Bahria Town, Lok Virsa Heritage Museum, Army boards in Taxila, Mona, Islamabad, Abbotabad and Lahore. After that she started working as an assistant curator at the prestigious Satrang Gallery in Islamabad which led to many more exciting curation based jobs and projects.
She is currently working at the Pakistan National Council of the Arts as an art curator and has curated a wide variety of notable shows under her belt. Fatima is the co-founder of 'Lavender Beings' a wellness organization primarily focused on yoga, meditation and creative arts therapy. Alongside this she curates independent shows Nationally and Internationally. With her professional portfolio she is also focused on her art practice and exhibitions.
Abdullah Shahid - Consultant is a Pakistani director, producer, screenwriter and actor.
In 2019, he graduated with honours from Pomona College, California where he studied film theory and theatre and was the recipient of the prestigious Scott Winslow Award in Media Studies as well as The Virginia Princehouse Allen Prize in Drama for his contribution to the film and theatre departments. His thesis film has screened in film festivals across the world. He has since performed in a show he co-devised at the Hollywood Fringe Festival.
His short film, Catfish, premiered at the Oscar qualifying Tasveer Film Festival in Seattle and is currently playing on TasveerTV. He has spent two years as an IB DP Film Instructor in Lahore, Pakistan and is currently a MFA Film Candidate at New York University's Grad Film program. He is in pre-production for his new short film, to be shot in Pakistan in January 2025.
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