Be it music or art or any other creative exercise, the buzz word these days is ‘fusion’ and this is exactly what was seen in an exhibition of collaborative prints showcased at the residence of the Australian high commissioner Peter Heyward and his wife Susan.

Titled ‘Hybrid 11’ the exhibition was held in association with the National College of Arts (NCA) Zaira Zaka Studio and assisted by the Australian government through the Australian Council, its arts funding and advisory body. The two artists, Damon Kowarsky and Atif Khan have collaborated previously for the first exhibition, Hybrid 1 -- which was held almost to the same day last year at the same venue.

The exhibition was viewed and commented on by many guests invited to the event, with most saying they ‘loved’ the work and a few saying it was ‘not their cup of tea!’ The black/white/grey prints were interesting and different, to say the least and the artists explained that an idea and preliminary drawings conceived in Pakistan and drawn by Atif were sent to Damon wherever he was -- or vice versa -- and then added on by the other artist according to his perception of how to complete it.

For instance, Atif had drawn some fishes and Damon has added bamboos to the drawing because he was in Bangkok! It was one of the more appealing prints on display. Atif has mostly used Moghul figures as his main theme and Damon has added objects that symbolize Australia – for instance, kangaroo heads on figures in Moghul dress, with swords in their hands, inviting comment as well as laughter by the viewers.

The artists collaborate by sending their drawings to each other by e-mail and while Damon has visited Pakistan to meet Atif and prepare the exhibitions -- in the process absorbing some of its cultural diversity -- Atif has never been to Australia but hopes he will be able to visit one day.

Welcoming his guests, High Commissioner Heyward said the exhibition was part of the ongoing programme of the high commission to showcase culture and exchange of ideas and this latest effort demonstrated that Australia and Pakistan had more things in common than was perceived. He mentioned the previous exhibition Hybrid 1 which was also held at the residence; gave a few humorous comments about the collaboration and hoped everyone would enjoy the evening. Which they did, as the atmosphere was very relaxed and hot and cold refreshments kept on coming while the prints were discussed or other topics of interest took over!