Loud Thinking

Archive for August, 2011

Opinions of leading art scholars, writers & critics about the art works of internationally acknowledged Pakistani painter S.M.Mansoor (s.m.mansoor@hotmail.com)

“Here, in other words, is a corpus of work, which even as it may charm the eye, equally provides a cultural anchor to ‘modern miniatures’. Why of course, and yet such as are not merely decorative delights. Elephants, flying kites, horse mounted personages, maidens dancing in the vestments of another day, and much else besides, offer a profile of once living attitudes. These attitudes covered a wide range of culture, inner and outer. Via the genus, we certainly become conscious as to how mankind’s life attitudes can be at once subtle, shifting and varying. Mansoor expresses these same with objectivity. In this way he is not merely expressing himself, but attempting to catch culture in process.”

Keshav Malik, Bombay

In Mansoor’s miniatures the tradition serves as a stimulant. Thus, giving the artist a power to realize the modern vision and create in the language of his ancestors with a refreshing and spontaneous fragrance of his own times. Elements of abstraction with modern visual vocabulary in these miniatures make them distinct from the conventional miniature art in sub-continent.

Prem Singh New Dehli

Mansoor is an artist of his time but a `one off,’ unique man of great diversity. His work is an exhilarating visual experience; there is great variety in the artist’s choice of subject. In the work of Mansoor it is a joyful sharing of optimism with No elitist overtones.

Marjorie Husain, Karachi

Mansoor’s art rejects deterministic attitude. He had eliminated all the conventions of traditional miniature painting. There is a growing sense of experimental and innovation. He uses the modern sometimes abstract many times semi abstract language and molded it to express his ideas.

Dr.Shahida Manzoor, Lahore

With innovative experimentation Mansoor certainly seems to be going somewhere. Where he eventually lands up is dependant upon his sustainability and his ability to choose the single path that will satisfy his urge for adventure and assimilate his undoubted ability to use colours textures and icons from his rich traditional heritage.

Dr. .Musarrat Hasan, Lahore

Mansoor shows a deep sense and lust for experimentation, observation and scrutiny. And with this deep sense of perception he juxtaposes traditional elements with modern element. He mixes traditional techniques with modern vocabulary. No doubt Mansoor is a master, an expert and a king of modern miniature painting art in Pakistan.

Dr. Shaukat Mahmood

Luck is not everything.

A B C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J    K    L  M  N   O   P   Q  R  S   T   U   V  W  X   Y   Z

Is equal to 1  2   3  4   5  6  7   8  9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

Then,

Hard Work

 H+A+R+D+W+O+ R+K

 8+1+18+4+23+ 15+18+11 = 98%

Knowledge

 K+N+O+W+L+E+ D+G+E

 11+14+15+23 +12+5+4+7+5 = 96%

Love

 L+O+V+E

 12+15+22+5 = 54%

Luck

 L+U+C+K

 12+21+3+11 = 47%

Most of us think this is the most important ?

Then what makes 100% ?

Is it Money ? .. NO !

 M+O+N+E+Y

 13+15+14+5+25 = 72%

Leadership ? …. NO ! ! !

 L+E+A+D+E+R+ S+H+I+P

 12+5+1+4+5+18+ 19+9+1 6 = 89%

Every problem has a solution, only if we perhaps change our attitude.

To go to the top,

 To that 100% ,

 

What we really need to go further… A bit more…

 

ATTITUDE

 A+T+T+I+T+U+ D+E

 1+20+20+9+ 20+21+4+5 = 100%

 

It is OUR ATTITUDE towards Life and Work that makes OUR Life 100% ! ! !

 Have the Right Attitude in Life!!

 

                                                Compiled by Farooq Ahmad

Law of Queue: If you change queues, the one you have left will start to move faster than the one you are in now.

Law of Telephone: When you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy tone.

Law of Mechanical Repair: After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch.

Law of the Workshop: Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least
accessible corner.

Law of the Alibi: If you tell the boss you were late for work because
you had a flat tire, the next morning you will have a flat tire.

Bath Theorem: When the body is immersed in water, the telephone rings.

Law of Encounters: The probability of meeting someone you know increases when you are with someone you don’t want to be seen with.

Law of the Result: When you try to prove to someone that a machine won’t work, it will.

Law of Biomechanics: The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.

Theatre Rule: People with the seats at the furthest from the aisle
arrive last.

Law of Coffee: As soon as you sit down for a cup of hot coffee, your boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.

Law of Proposal: After you accept a proposal you will get a better one!
                                                            Compiled by Rafiq Ahmad Khan

“Without an open-minded mind, you can never be a great
success.”

— Martha Stewart

This is interesting.
After reading this, you’ll never look at a banana in the same way again.
Bananas contain three natural sugars – sucrose, fructose and glucose combined with fiber. A banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy. Research has proven that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout.
No wonder the banana is the number one fruit with the world’s leading athletes. But energy isn’t the only way a banana can help us keep fit. It can also help overcome or prevent a substantial number of illnesses and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet.

Depression: According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

PMS: Forget the pills – eat a banana. The vitamin B 6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.

Anemia: High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia.

Blood Pressure: This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it perfect to beat blood pressure. So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit’s ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.

Brain Power: 200 students at a Twickenham (Middlesex) school were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break, and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.

Constipation: High in fiber, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.

Hangovers: One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system .

Heartburn: Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.

Morning Sickness: Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.

Mosquito bites: Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.

Nerves: Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system.
 

Overweight and at work? Studies at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at work leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and crisps. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs. The report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods every two hours to keep levels steady.

Ulcers: The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronicler cases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.
 

Temperature control: Many other cultures see bananas as a “cooling” fruit that can lower both the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand , for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with a cool temperature.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): Bananas can help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood enhancer tryptophan. 
Smoking &Tobacco Use: Bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking. The B 6, B 12 they contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.

Stress: Potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalize the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body’s water balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be rebalanced with the help of a high-potassium banana snack. 
Strokes: According to research in The New England Journal of Medicine, eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%!

Warts: Those keen on natural alternatives swear that if you want to kill off a wart, take a piece of banana skin and place it on the wart, with the yellow side out. Carefully hold the skin in place with a plaster or surgical tape!

The deadly terrorism violence in Karachi has reached the stage where even to think that any civilian government can control the situation will be a folly. Now restoration of permanent peace will not be an easy task even if civilian government calls the armed forces to help Karachi back to normalcy.

However, Karachi can not and must not be left at the mercy of warmongers & terrorists  who are hell bent in their nefarious designs to make this part of Pakistan another case for the world community to interfere with an excuse they made in the case of Libya.

The situation in Karachi is not grave rather it is ultra grave. The solidarity of the country is not just threatened, it is under a direct attack.

As such, the government is urgently advised to immediately order a full fledged military operation or impose limited martial law, whichever is allowed under the constitutation (without wasting a moment) in the selected areas of Karachi, which are badly affected in the ongoing lawlessness. In this regard, the military authorities may be given a fixed time frame to achieve peace, like they did in Swat, by getting rid of all such criminals, responsible for the current lawlessness and also to make the city an arms free area.