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A wide gallery shot captured inside The Courtauld Gallery shows two gallery visitors—a woman with long, dark curly hair wearing an orange jacket on the left and a man in a black long-sleeved shirt on the right—standing with their backs to the camera as they closely study a massive figurative painting. The artwork, titled Ghost Ball (2023) by celebrated artist Salman Toor, dominates the frame with its signature, surreal palette of deep emerald and absinthe greens. Across the vast canvas, a series of loose, fluid, and elongated figures are depicted in various expressive, theatrical poses that suggest a dreamlike nocturnal gathering or party. The figures—some wearing whimsical caps or costumed elements, others lounging or dancing—inhabit a stylized, safe nocturnal environment that evokes themes of community, intimacy, and queer South Asian experiences. The bright gallery lighting illuminates the clean white wall surrounding the massive canvas, casting a subtle warmth on the shoulders of the spectators engrossed in the scene.
PaintingOCT 2, 2026

Salman Toor: Someone Like You at the Courtauld

Salman Toor's first European solo show has opened at the Courtauld Gallery in London.

Elia Raza

Art

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Exhibitions, artists and ideas shaping the global contemporary art world.

A high-angle, outdoor shot captures the historic red brick rooftop of the National College of Arts (NCA) in Lahore, featuring two distinct, vintage wooden cabins alongside towering Mughal-style architectural elements beneath a hazy, overcast sky. The foreground and middle ground are dominated by weathered, dark red brick structures, including a thick boundary wall that separates the immediate rooftop area from the background. Built upon this rooftop are two elongated, rustic wooden pavilions or cabins, each characterized by dark timber paneling, multiple small-paned glass windows reflecting a hint of blue from an interior object, and pitched roofs covered in classic terracotta tiles with ornate, scalloped wooden trim along the eaves. Rising majestically behind these wooden structures are several iconic, reddish-brown terracotta domes and minarets belonging to a historic architectural complex, their elegant curves and intricate spires standing out against the pale, muted grey and white sky where a flock of small birds can be seen scattered in flight. The left side of the frame features a stark, vertical red brick wall section with exposed piping, adding a raw, structural texture to the composition, while the soft, diffused daylight casts gentle shadows across the aged masonry and wooden surfaces, highlighting the rich cultural heritage and academic atmosphere of the fine arts department's outdoor space.
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Pakistan's Top Art School Just Banned Campus Filming

Kamil Daad
A wide gallery shot captured inside The Courtauld Gallery shows two gallery visitors—a woman with long, dark curly hair wearing an orange jacket on the left and a man in a black long-sleeved shirt on the right—standing with their backs to the camera as they closely study a massive figurative painting. The artwork, titled Ghost Ball (2023) by celebrated artist Salman Toor, dominates the frame with its signature, surreal palette of deep emerald and absinthe greens. Across the vast canvas, a series of loose, fluid, and elongated figures are depicted in various expressive, theatrical poses that suggest a dreamlike nocturnal gathering or party. The figures—some wearing whimsical caps or costumed elements, others lounging or dancing—inhabit a stylized, safe nocturnal environment that evokes themes of community, intimacy, and queer South Asian experiences. The bright gallery lighting illuminates the clean white wall surrounding the massive canvas, casting a subtle warmth on the shoulders of the spectators engrossed in the scene.
PaintingOCT 2, 2026

Salman Toor: Someone Like You at the Courtauld

Elia Raza
Blossoming Chestnut Trees by Vincent van Gogh is an oil painting from May 1890, depicting a dramatic street scene in Auvers-sur-Oise under a swirling, deep blue night sky dominated by towering green chestnut trees bursting with pale blossoms. On the left sits a rustic white house with a dark roof, while below the massive canopy, a group of figures with umbrellas gathers on a light-colored path near a lone walking man and a stone wall. The artwork showcases Van Gogh's signature Post-Impressionism style, characterized by thick, energetic impasto brushstrokes and a vibrant, emotionally charged color palette.
PaintingOCT 2, 2026

Van Gogh's "Blossoming Chestnut Trees" Heads to Sotheby's After Decades Out of Sight

Kamil Daad
A medium shot showcases the Pakistani-American contemporary artist Salman Toor standing with a pensive expression in the center of his studio. He is dressed casually in a black crewneck T-shirt and dark gray sweatpants, with his left arm crossed tightly over his stomach and his right hand gently propping up his chin. Flanking him on either wall are two of his distinctive figurative oil paintings rendered in his signature, atmospheric emerald-green and ochre palettes. The artwork on the left depicts a surreal scene with a kneeling figure and another figure reclined on the ground, while the large canvas on the right illustrates an intimate, stylized gathering of multiple figures seated around a dinner table under warm lighting. A couple of smaller, unfinished canvases are mounted higher up on the white wall behind him.
PaintingSEP 18, 2026

Salman Toor Named to the Inaugural TIME100 Art List

Kamil Daad
The image features a split focus between historical portraiture and a contemporary portrait: in the background, a large, gilt-framed oil painting depicts a young, aristocratic 18th-century gentleman with powdered hair, a high cravat, a dark tailcoat with bright buttons, and tan breeches, gesturing toward a dramatic, overcast landscape; standing prominently in the right foreground is an elderly Caucasian man with short, neat white hair, thin-framed glasses, and a subtle smile, dressed formally in a sharp blue suit jacket, a white collared dress shirt, and a solid red tie.
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Kamil Daad

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A landscape photograph showcases the historic Miani Mosque in Hyderabad, Sindh, Pakistan, an ancient brick structure featuring a prominent central dome and arched entryways that sits in a state of partial dilapidation amid dense wild vegetation. In the foreground, the crumbling ruins of brick walls and weathered stone graves litter the overgrown ground, leading towards a modern white, intricately carved balustrade and pavilion structure on the left side of the frame. The sky above is entirely blown out and bright white, casting a harsh, flat light over the historic site and its surrounding burial grounds.

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PaintingOCT 2, 2026

Salman Toor: Someone Like You at the Courtauld

Elia Raza

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