Salima Hashmi

Salima Hashmi, the daughter of the Urdu poet, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, is an internationally renowned artist, curator, contemporary art historian and activist. She taught at the National College of Arts, Lahore for thirty years, four of them as Principal. She is also a Founding Dean of the School of Art and Design at Beaconhouse National University, Lahore, where she is now Professor Emerita.

Salima has curated and produced catalogues for several exhibitions and written extensively on the arts in numerous publications. Among her publications are Unveiling the Visible – Lives and Works of Women Artists of Pakistan and Memories, Myths, Mutations – Contemporary Art of India and Pakistan (co-authored with Yashodhara Dalmia). Her edited works include Two Loves – Faiz’s Letters from Jail and The Eye Still Seeks – Contemporary Art of Pakistan.

During the 1970s, Salima appeared in a series of highly popular television shows like Akkar Bakkar and Such Gup. She is a council member of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan.

Manmeet K. Walia

Manmeet K. Walia is a curator and writer from New Delhi, India, with an ongoing practice focusing on young South Asian voices. After practising journalism for over half-a-decade, she transitioned to working in the Arts. Walia’s curatorial projects include The Library Project, supported by the University of the Arts London (2023), Woven Expression, Chelsea Space, London (2023), and Lines (By)Lines, New Delhi (2022), amongst others.
Walia’s repertoire of public programmes includes working with the Royal Academy of Arts, London, Chelsea Space, London, Faiz Festival, Lahore, and SAPAN, Boston amongst others. She views her curatorial practice as an expressive form of art that allows her to address social issues through experiential discourse.