“Truck Art in Irish Apparel” by Qandeel Kafeel Wowed The Visitors at Kildare Culture Night
“Truck Art in Irish Apparel” is a project launched by Qandeel Kafeel at Kildare Culture Night 2024. She submitted her proposal for the project display at Culture Night in 2023 and got instant approval, resulting in its much-anticipated showcase this year.
“Truck Art in Irish Apparel” is an epitome of colour show by combining Pakistani truck art into Irish apparel, but with immense simplicity and grace.
How Qandeel Kafeel designed a masterpiece is a journey in itself.
A Celebration of Culture in Ireland
Culture Night is an event organised by the Arts Council of Ireland every year as a representation of cultures, creativity and arts from all dimensions. It provides a platform for artists and communities to display their unique heritage and the culture that is alive in their lives. They nurture and treasure as if it is their lifeline.
Culture Night provides just the right platform for cities, towns and villages from all across Ireland to exhibit rich and varied cultures to immortalise. Kildare Culture Night opened its doors for the same purpose on 20th September 2024 to hold unique arts events in collaboration with the Arts Council and local authorities.
Ireland is now more open for the promotion of international artists. Maureen Kennelly, the Director of Arts Council of Ireland said,
“We are entering a golden age for the arts in Ireland, but we must seize this moment”.
The same vision is shared by Culture Ireland’s new strategy that aims to foster partnerships by putting equality, diversity and inclusivity as priorities. The immigrant artists are therefore provided support for their art exhibitions on a wider scale, which is evident at the yearly flagship event of Arts Council Ireland.
Among these events was Kafeel’s “Truck Art in Irish Apparel”, which brought the vibrancy of Pakistani truck art to an Irish audience. The 19th Culture Night 2024 unfolded a vivid culture for the immigrant artists.
The visitors were allowed at the event free of charge. There were more than 1700 free events for everyone to enjoy.
Qandeel Kafeel: The Artist Who Did the Magic!
Qandeel Kafeel, a budding truck art artist from Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has created a unique fusion of bold truck art and Irish apparel. Her vibrant collection, titled “Truck Art in Irish Apparel” has been showcased at Kildare Culture Night 2024.
Originally from Pakistan, Qandeel Kafeel earned her Master’s degree from the Home Economics University of Peshawar. She moved to Ireland in 2017 and currently works as a secretary of art and culture for the Pakistani overseas community in Ireland.
As a visual artist, Kafeel has long been passionate about sharing her culture with her new Irish home. Her work for small-scale projects did help her one step after another, but she took her vision to new heights with “Truck Art in Irish Apparel”.
Truck Art Meets Irish Fashion
Pakistani truck art is embedded beautifully in Kafeel’s project. The Traditional Pakistani truck art is known for its intricate designs, bright colours, and lively motifs of birds, animals, and landscapes. Her vision was to merge these elements with Irish fashion, creating a coalescence of two distinct cultural expressions.
Speaking to the Irish Insider, she said, “My idea was to blend the truck art with the contemporary Irish clothing and accessories”, emphasising her goal to amalgamate Pakistani artistry with Irish styles.
Qandeel wanted to highlight the element of ‘inclusion’ as well. She told that although the project was quite challenging for her, she used colours to represent “universality and a message of inclusion”.
The three colours of her three mannequins were white, black and brown. She used simple Irish clothing and combined the beauty of truck art with it.
She explained that she used hand painting with acrylic paints, which was a lot of hard work in itself.
Throughout the evening, Kafeel donned herself in traditional Pakistani attire, engaging with visitors to familiarise them with what her project was, what it meant and why it was on display.
A Grateful Artist
Kafeel expressed her gratitude to Kildare County Council and the Arts Council of Ireland for giving her the platform to showcase her art. She was grateful for having granted permission for the display to the Irish Arts Council and arranging such events to give chance to immigrant artists like her to share their talents with a broader audience.
