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He draws upon vernacular culture, oral traditions, knowledge absorbed from his parents, and literary and musical
inheritances carried by folk legends and cultural ancestors. Without granting contemporary Western theory sole interpretive authority, Shafi turns to regional philosophies to reconsider care, imagination, and coexistence amid the lingering effects of colonial rule.
His workcarries a distinct language of vulnerability, subtle humor, and emotional precision, reflecting on solitude, relationships, and the search for tenderness within constrained social structures.
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Mohsin Shafi is a South Asian visual essayist,
whose interdisciplinary practice emerges from the restless pulse of South Asia -
its silences, contradictions, and intimate histories - unfolding through moving image, installation, performance, sound, text, sculpture, drawing, and mixed-media collage.
Recent presentations include Kunsthalle Krems, Krems
(2025–26); Queer Museum Vienna, Vienna (2024);
and Bundeskunsthalle, Bonn (2026).
Residencies include AIR Niederösterreich, Krems (2024);
1646 Experimental Art Space, The Hague (2021); a
nd Atelier Mondial, Basel (2019). His recent projects. In Pakistan include the solo exhibition The Anatomy of Becoming at one of the country’s leading contemporary art venues, Canvas Gallery
in Karachi, and Museum of Repairing Reminiscences, a year -
long participatory museum experiment he envisioned and developed with Vasl Artists’ Association and The Repair Atelier.
He holds degrees in design and fine arts from the National College of Arts inLahore, one of South Asia’s oldest art institutions.
He holds degrees in design and fine arts from the National College of Arts in Lahore,
one of South Asia’s oldest art institutions.