Abstract
The term Deconstruction by the French theoretician Jacques Derrida has gained enormous attraction in the field of literary criticism. This revolutionary theory has challenged many clichéd ideals in criticism, be it literary or artistic criticism, in the twentieth century. Like literature, Deconstruction confronts the already established rules and standards associated with the meaning, understanding and discussion of and about art. Application of theory of Deconstruction on the western art is relatively a new concept adopted precisely in the latter half of twentieth century. Art produced by South Asian artists, has gone through many established sets of rules, that have been highlighted by many local and foreign critics and historians, time and again. However, application of theory of Deconstruction on a painting by a Pakistani artist is something new in art criticism. This study investigates and explores one of the famous figurative paintings, Talism-e Hoshruba, (magic that can blow senses away) by Ustad Allah Bakhsh. This study looks on to this artwork in connection with binary opposites as proposed by Derrida, and might have been practiced, intentionally or unintentionally, by the painter. This painting was rendered in 1935, and this investigation aims not only at the visual connotations implied in the painting, but also tries to unfold the ideological and cultural approach of the artist, concerning mythological beliefs of his surroundings.
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