The Influence of Colonialism and Racism on Pakistan’s Visual Culture

Abstract

Pakistan’s visual art has been shaped because of the colonial practices of racism and discrimination based on skin color. As European colonizers governed, they decreased the use of pre-existing art forms in non-Western regions and set up European styles as the highest in their society. Berger states how people’s ideas about color, race, and identity in art were influenced by historical, cultural, and political views. As a result of foreign occupation, Pakistani art was influenced to follow an artistic style important in European culture. Western cultural and beauty standards were elevated to be better than others after the growth in artistic thinking in Pakistan. Prejudiced ways of depicting people from other races in art during the colonial period formed the basis of current-day biases in Pakistani visual culture. The analysis looks at how colonialism affected Pakistani racial and color identity through the Western viewpoints included in Berger’s theory of how men obtain political power through imagery. The project tries to understand whether Western influences continue to matter in Pakistani culture, seen from the angles of race and color and identity.

Keywords: Colonial, Racism, Discrimination, European Culture, Prejudice, Race, Identity.