Sanki King
King in 2015
Born
Abdullah Ahmed Khan

1990 (age 33–34)
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
NationalityPakistani
Known forGraffiti, Public art, Stenciling, Parkour, Bboying
Websitesankikingofficial.com

Abdullah Ahmed Khan (Urdu: عبداللہ احمد خان, born 1990)[1] professionally known as Sanki (Urdu: سنکی /sʌnkiː/ ⓘ) or Sanki King is a Pakistani graffiti, calligraffiti and street artist, occasionally painting live as part of his exhibits, and collaborating with fashion designers featuring his artwork. He has also works in sneaker art, sticker art, b-boying and parkour in Pakistan.[1][2][3][4][5]

Early life

Sanki was born in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and raised in Karachi, Pakistan. His father worked at the Islamic Development Bank.[4] Both his art teachers and father encouraged him to pursue art.[2][6] He was also interested in BMX, boxing and floor gymnastics.[4][7]

Career

While playing Counter-Strike as a teenager, another player described him as ‘Sanki’[2] (eccentric, slightly mad) and he adopted it as his moniker. The artist claims it also means 'deep thinker'.[7] In 2008, Sanki started his career as a professional performing artist after being photographed by Tapu Javeri while freerunning in a park in Karachi, later performing at the launch of Style 360. From 2011, he became a professional artist, selling artwork and painting commissioned murals, and in March 2012 started his own personal studio where he works as of May 2015.[7]

Graffiti

Sanki next to his painting in a cafe in Zamzama, Karachi, June 2011
First art sticker created by Sanki King which features the founder of Pakistan, Mohammad Ali Jinnah

“[I] don’t want to be a second Banksy, I want to be the first Sanki!”.

—King on being called the "Banksy of Pakistan"[2]

Sanki did "live graffiti art" for the first time in Pakistan in July 2012 and in the same month launched his Sticker Art Movement through designs which feature Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan.[1] In December 2012, he was chosen as the judge for a nationwide graffiti competition spread across seven cities.[8] Some of his well-known works include Love Karachi on a bus and another, titled Flying Kiss which he painted outside the Arts Council of Pakistan in 2013. He painted the tallest graffiti in Pakistan in 2014 at the Valika Cricket Ground, University of Karachi.[5] His creations can be seen in the areas Nazimabad, North Nazimabad, Zamzama and Clifton outside the Sanat Gallery, painted at the opening of his very first solo exhibition, "You should know him by now", on the 4th of June 2016.[9][10]

King is the only Pakistani artist to have been invited to graffiti crews Beyond Mankind Krew (BMK, founded 1991, Queens, New York City) and Experienced Vandals (Ex-Vandals, founded 1979, Brooklyn). Ex-Vandals is one of the first graffiti crews in the world.[4][11] Sanki's work is featured in Nicholas Ganz’s book, Street Messages, published in April 2015.[7][11][12] In 2017, he collaborated with Mumbai-based artist Zeenat Kulavoor for Urdu calligraphic conversation project Pehle Aap.[13][14][15][16] He also participated in Karachi Biennale 2017 with his work Mind Palace.[17][18][19][20]

An original piece of abstract art by King was included in a group exhibition at Louvre Abu Dhabi from February to June 2021. [21]

Custom-painting and fashion

Sanki King is known for his graffiti art designs for sneakers, using paint, marker pens and stencils.[1] He now runs his own company making custom-painted sneakers and apparel, as well as organizing dance and graffiti workshops.[11]

In 2014, Sanki worked for the first time with a local designer brand Zeb-Tan. He collaborated with The House of Arsalan Iqbal for the collection ‘Desirably Distressed’, which came out in March 2015. He said, “In 2012, I painted a shutter in Arsalan Iqbal’s store. Since Iqbal travels a lot, he finds graffiti very inspiring. Then in May 2014 we worked on a collaborative venture for the next 10 months” [12][22] Another collection of footwear and jewellery incorporating his designs "Devolution Chic" was showcased a month later at the 8th PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week 2015.[23][24]

B-boying and parkour

In 2008, King began a b-boying crew in Karachi who organized as Unknown Crew (UC) in 2010. They have performed for Jaag TV (previously known as CNBC Pakistan), HP Inc, Caltex, Play TV, Lux Style Awards and a number of music videos.[2][5][11]

Personal life

Sanki King lives and works in Karachi.[11]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Qamar, Saadia (July 30, 2012), Sanki King’s graffiti knows no boundaries, The Express Tribune.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Nasir Ahmad, Fouzia (December 22, 2013), Don't call me Banksy, DAWN.
  3. ↑ Mustefa, Zab (July 22, 2012), Street Smart, Cover story, The Express Tribune.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Ahmed, Talha (January 22, 2014)'SANKI' COLORS IT ALL: THE FIRST GRAFFITI ARTIST OF PAKISTAN, Youlin Magazine.
  5. 1 2 3 Varma, Nandini (May 25, 2014), Graffiti artist brings hip hop to the streets, Campus Diaries.
  6. ↑ Husain, Marjorie (June 12, 2016), Portfolio: The writing on the wall, DAWN.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Subzwari, Shanzay (May, 2015), Sanki King: The Graffiti Artist Mastermind, ArtNow Magazine.
  8. ↑ Staff Reporter (December 23, 2012), Tetra Pak Graffiti Competition, The Nation.
  9. ↑ A Correspondent(June 9, 2016) Word on the street: Bringing graffiti art into mainstream, The Express Tribune.
  10. ↑ Khan, Nimra (June 10, 2016), Pakistan's First Serious Graffiti Artist Sanki King Enters The Art World With His First Exhibit, DAWN.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 A Correspondent (June 30, 2015), Multi-talented Pakistani Street Artist 'Sanki King' excels nationally and achieves international recognition as well!, House of Pakistan.
  12. 1 2 Qamar, Saadia (April 17, 2015), From shadowy times to vivid walls, The Express Tribune.
  13. ↑ Jahangir, Ramsha (2017-11-02). "Conversations close to the heart adorn walls in India, Pakistan". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2020-06-16.
  14. ↑ "Why is the art of Urdu calligraphy dying?". mid-day. 2017-09-14. Retrieved 2020-06-15.
  15. ↑ "Drawing their communities together". The Statesman. 2017-11-25. Retrieved 2020-06-15.
  16. ↑ "Urdu gets a shot in the arm with Design Fabric's latest project, The Urdu Exhibit". Firstpost. 23 September 2017. Retrieved 2020-06-15.
  17. ↑ "The 'SANKI KING' of Karachi's Graffiti Art | Interview - MAG THE WEEKLY". www.magtheweekly.com. Retrieved 2020-06-16.
  18. ↑ "Reel On Hai: Initiating Discourse through Public Art - Nageen Shaikh - Youlin Magazine". www.youlinmagazine.com. Retrieved 2020-06-16.
  19. ↑ "Sanki King". Karachi Biennale 2017. Retrieved 2020-06-16.
  20. ↑ Zubair, Hamna (2017-11-03). "10 provocative exhibits at the Karachi Biennale that you must see right now". Images. Retrieved 2020-06-16.
  21. ↑ "Louvre Abu Dhabi's first exhibition of the year to feature more than 80 abstract artworks". The National. 2021-02-16. Retrieved 2020-09-30.
  22. ↑ Desirably Distressed, Issue 81, page 54. March 22, 2015, Paperazzi Magazine.
  23. ↑ Press Release (April 22, 2015), PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week: Day-4 Journal, Pakistan Today.
  24. ↑ Fayyaz, Yousaf (April 21, 2015), House of Arslan Iqbal At PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week 2015, Ebuzz Today.

Sources

Books
  • Halai Khwaja & Kazim Thompson, Masuma & Ambareen (2017). Public Art: Thriving in Karachi's Urban Chaos. Karachi, Pakistan: FK SQUARED. ISBN 9789699877179.
  • Vayani, Raisa (2017). A Reel on Karachi. Karachi, Pakistan: Pakistan Cables Limited. ISBN 9789699251979.
  • Initiative, Sanat (November 2, 2016). The First 50. Karachi, Pakistan: Sanat Publications.
  • Ganz, Nicholas (April 1, 2015). Street Messages. Stockholm, Sweden: Dokument Press. ISBN 9789185639731.
  • Adz, King (May 1, 2013). The Stuff You Can't Bottle. New York, USA: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 9780500290750.
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