Laila Shahzada

Laila Shahzada
Born	1926
Died	20 July 1994 at age 68
Occupation	Painter Artist
Years active	1960-1994
Known for	Paintings about the culture of Indus Valley Civilization in Pakistan

Laila Shahzada (Urdu: لیلیٰ شہزادہ‎) (1926–1994) was an abstract painter artist who lived and worked in Karachi, Pakistan.

Laila was born in Littlehampton, England in 1926. After completing her basic education in England, she decided to become a painter-artist and trained under the artist, Nagi, in Karachi. She held her first solo exhibition at the Arts Council, Karachi in 1960. Using artifacts of Indus Valley Civilization in Pakistan as models, she made a series of paintings reflecting the culture of this ancient civilization. These paintings were shown at an exhibit at Karachi in 1976. In 1986, she participated in a group show at the Shorouks International Gallery, Regent Street, London. A total of 60 to 70 paintings were done by her before she died in an accident on 20 July 1994.

Laila married twice in her life. She had a son and a daughter from the first marriage, Sohail and Shahien. After separation from her first husband, she was given custody of their son and the first husband got custody of their daughter. She remarried and had another son, Zahir, in the second marriage but could never emotionally get over the loss of her daughter, Shahien. Later, she did a painting titled 'Mother and child'. Some friends and art critics said that the painting was a reflection of her own pain as a mother.

"Laila Shahzada was a sensitive, disturbed and powerful artist whose brush had immense flow and impact", said Naeem Tahir, director-general of the Pakistan National Council of Arts in 2005 in an interview to a major Karachi newspaper.

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