An artist and educator in Lahore

Salima Hashmi is an artist, educator, curator and writer whose career has been closely connected with Lahore. Beaconhouse National University’s profile records her long period teaching at the National College of Arts and four years as its principal, from 1994 to 1998. She later became founding dean of the Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts and Design at Beaconhouse. The profile also records art education in Lahore, at Bath Academy of Art and at the Rhode Island School of Design. These institutions connect her practice with teaching and artistic exchange across places.[1]

Exhibitions and curating

Hashmi’s work has included curating exhibitions as well as making art. Asia Society presented Hanging Fire: Contemporary Art from Pakistan in New York in 2009, an exhibition curated by Hashmi. Beaconhouse’s biography lists that project alongside later exhibitions and writing. A curator selects and organises works and develops an argument through their presentation; the participating artists’ practices remain distinct from one another. An exhibition record can help readers identify the artists, works and dates involved, while reviews and catalogues provide further perspectives on the choices made in presenting contemporary art.[2]

Performance and writing

For the Lahore Biennale in 2018, Hashmi presented a satirical performance titled How Not to Do A Biennale. The Lahore Biennale Foundation explains that it drew on a character from a 1970s Pakistan Television series written and performed by Shoaib Hashmi. Its profile also lists her writing on Pakistani art, including Unveiling the Visible and The Eye Still Seeks. The performance, books and teaching demonstrate different parts of a career; they should be understood in their particular settings rather than reduced to a single style or role. Exhibition descriptions are useful starting points for viewing or studying individual works.[3]

Sources & notes

Source records include access dates and, where known, limits on what was examined. Checks used AI assistance; independent human or specialist review has not been completed.

  1. Beaconhouse National University. Professor Salima Hashmi ↗Written source · Source date: publication date not established · Locator: Education and teaching career. Accessed 2026-11-03.Institutional record, collection description, or interview inspected.Return to An artist and educator in Lahore, paragraph 1 ↑
  2. Asia Society. Hanging Fire: Contemporary Art from Pakistan, press release ↗Written source · Source date: 2009 · Locator: Exhibition and curator. Accessed 2026-11-03.Institutional record, collection description, or interview inspected.Return to Exhibitions and curating, paragraph 1 ↑
  3. Lahore Biennale Foundation. Salima Hashmi ↗Written source · Source date: 2018 · Locator: Performance and publications. Accessed 2026-11-03.Institutional record, collection description, or interview inspected.Return to Performance and writing, paragraph 1 ↑
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Record PH-PEO-0257 · English edition · human review not performed