Arif Mahmood

Photograph © Arif Mahmood

Born in Karachi, in 1960, Arif Mahmood has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Otterbein College, Ohio, USA. He began photography upon his return to Karachi in 1985, areas of interest being photojournalism, portraiture, and fashion. Five years later, he was contributing editorial work for all major publications of Pakistan. Internationally, his work has been published in Newsweek, Khaleej Times, Gulf News, Arabian Women, and Private Magazine.

Mahmood has 29 publications to his credit, including limited edition portfolios and books. He has had 15 solo exhibitions in Pakistan, the most recent one being Boys Playground at the Ghandhara Art Gallery in February 2018. Along with over 50 group shows in various cities of the country and abroad, including Hanging Fire, a show at the Asia Society Museum, New York, in 2009, and Where Three Dreams Cross, at the White Chapel Gallery, London, in 2010. His photographs are also in the permanent collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, USA.

Mahmood mostly works in the city of Karachi, where he was born. However, his photographic portfolio covers other major cities of the country, as well. He has three monographs on the city of Karachi, one on Tharparkar, Sindh, and most recently a monograph called Silent Rage, which is part of a compiled Quartet. Compiling such limited-edition books on personalized topics is a recent passion.

Presently, Mahmood is working as the Chief Operating Officer at White Star Photo Private Limited, a photographic firm based in Karachi, Pakistan.

This bio was provided by the artist. A more comprehensive profile will be forthcoming.