PESHAWAR: Painting and sculpting are parts of art and designing but making portraits from bark and straw of wheat plant, plywood and black cloth was a unique and quite different idea.

Syed Abid Shah, a local artist, is master of making pictures by using bark and straw of wheat plant, plywood and black cloth, at his home in Achar Kale Kohat Road.

He has learned the unique artwork from his uncle and has been making portraits for the last 50 years.

According to him the artwork has a history of more than 200 years and there were four artists all over the country who were adept in making this kind of picture, adding that four artists who worked in the same medium had died and now he was the only one left in this field of art .

“I am associated with this kind of work due to my passion and love for it, ” he told reporter.

Abid Shah whose artwork exhibition were held in Islamabad, China Centre and Fine art college Lahore was working on a unique picture of Saudi Crown Prince, Muhammad Bin Salman.

He said that work on the picture was started on the request of a Saudi journalist.

The picture was prepared due to my love and respect to Saudi crown prince and it was his utmost desire to personally present the picture as a token of love to crown prince Saudi Arabia, he said.

He appealed for setting up an institution or studio in Gor Gathri for promoting

this artwork, adding that it would also help introduce my work to tourists and create opportunities of generating income.

The artwork is unique and I got orders from various countries including China, Dubai, Europe and USA but due to limited resources I can’t showcase my art at national and international forums.