LAHORE: (Sunday, February 15, 2026): Punjab University College of Art and Design Department of Fine Arts organized a memorial reference titled “In Commemoration of Iqbal Hussain; The Social Realist” to honor the life and artistic legacy of the eminent Pakistani painter Iqbal Hussain. The event was attended by College Principal Prof Dr Samina Naseem, In-charge of the Fine Arts Department Mr Ali Azmat, faculty members, artists, critics, historians, and students. Mr. Nadeem Alam presented a research paper titled “Iqbal Hussain: The Narrator of the Unseen and Unspoken,” highlighting the artist’s role as a visual chronicler of marginalized lives and his contribution to socially aware art in Pakistan. This was followed by a paper in Punjabi by Dr. Anila Zulfiqar, who discussed the artist’s journey from childhood to his professional career, shedding light on his personal struggles and artistic development. Renowned author and art collector Mr. Athar Tahir shared personal memories and experiences, reflecting on Hussain’s personality and creative temperament. Art historian and academician Dr Kanwal Khalid, artist and NCA colleague Mr. R. M. Naeem, and Dr. Marcella Sirhandi, Prof Emerita of Art History at Oklahoma State University and a pioneering scholar of modern and contemporary South Asian art, also addressed the audience and discussed the significance of Hussain’s work within both local and international art histories. A special recorded message from renowned artist and academician Mr. Kaleem Khan from Quetta was also played, in which he remembered Iqbal Hussain as an inspiring teacher, a compassionate artist, and a pianist in his leisure time.