[ BIOGRAPHY & PERSPECTIVE ]

ABOUT THE ARTIST

SANKI KING STUDIO, CREATIVE ESSENCE

Portrait of Sanki King in his studio
SANKI KINGFINE ARTIST
[ BIOGRAPHY ]

“Born in Jeddah in 1990 & growing up in Karachi, Sanki got inspired by the American graffiti & hip hop culture of the 80’s & 90’s through the internet and at home he was inspired by his father, who spoke 19 languages & regularly wrote the Qur’an by hand which sparked his interest in learning different languages & traditional Arabic & Persian calligraphy. At 15, he further delved into rapping, DJing, breakdancing, parkour & along with graffiti in several languages, experimented with portraiture, sneaker art, custom clothing & stencil art; later developing a strong practice in Calligraffiti."

"Since early 2010, he has produced monumental graffiti & calligraffiti murals around Pakistan, works in 8 languages & in his own hieroglyphic writing system, associating elements of traditional calligraphy with the techniques of street art...”

Biography of Sanki King, Louvre Abu Dhabi

[ PERSPECTIVE ]

ARTIST STATEMENT

I. THE SYMBOLIC LEXICON

Through graffiti, multilingual mark making, and my own invented hieroglyphic script, I’ve developed a visual language that bridges classical calligraphy and graffiti with symbolism. My invented language draws from memory, childhood, and the realm of dream. It’s inspired by natural forms, human emotion, symbolic storytelling, and the visual logic of both Eastern and Western writing systems. I began painting these symbols not out of rebellion, but from creative necessity, after exhausting what traditional scripts could offer me. What began as phonetic replacements for letters evolved into a growing vocabulary of symbols representing actions, moods, atmospheres, and inner states. This is a language that’s meant to be experienced, not decoded, it activates curiosity, not translation.

II. THE SINGLE EYE (TRADEMARK)

The single eye, my trademark, appears at the center of my mandalas and has a constant presence across nearly all of my works. It represents my biological eye, my third eye, and my conscious presence in the world. It’s how I create an eye to eye connection with the viewer, no matter who they are or where they are. The eye is my way of being everywhere at once. As my work spreads physically and digitally across the world, the eye allows me to be present inside each space it enters. It’s not decoration. It’s surveillance. It’s awareness. It’s power.

III. IDENTITY & SYNTHESIS

At its core, my work is an ongoing excavation of identity, expressed through self portraits, mandalas, performances, and immersive environments. My recurring themes, solitude, doubt, rage, memory, longing, are embodied in a visual language that blends autobiography with archetype, inviting the viewer into spaces of shared emotional resonance.

I have worked across eight languages, including Urdu, Arabic, English, and my personal script, fusing them into densely layered compositions on canvas, walls, clothing, and performance. This intersection is rare, especially for a South Asian Muslim artist, and challenges global narratives around graffiti, identity, and language. My presence in institutions such as the Louvre Abu Dhabi, curated in collaboration with the Centre Pompidou and led by Didier Ottinger, one of France’s foremost curators, marks a shift in how cultural rebellion and heritage can coexist. My work is a cartography of synthesis: connecting ancient scripts to future codes and offering a language beyond division, rooted, rebellious, and universal.

[ MUSEUM COLLECTION ]

IN THE LOUVRE ABU DHABI COLLECTION

Here I Am (ink on paper, 22.9 x 22.9 cm, LAD 2023.002) entered the Louvre Abu Dhabi Collection in 2023. Sanki King is the first, and currently the only, Pakistani contemporary artist to have both exhibited at the Louvre Abu Dhabi and in the Louvre Abu Dhabi collection.

“From Paul Klee to Keith Haring, many artists dreamt of inventing a unique poetic language, comprehensible to all. Sanki King is one of them. In the exhibition "Abstraction and Calligraphy" at Louvre Abu Dhabi, the hanging of his works alongside those by Miro, Masson and Kandinsky, reveals his endeavor to create a language common to everyone, as if to ward off the fate of the Tower of Babel.”
Marie SarréAssociate Curator, Centre Pompidou; Assistant Curator of Abstraction and Calligraphy, Louvre Abu Dhabi

EXHIBITIONS

Solo shows

  • 2016
    You Should Know Him by NowSanat Initiative Gallery, Karachi
  • 2019
    Inside MeArt Chowk Gallery, Karachi

Group shows

  • 2016
    Lights, Art & ActionV.M Art Gallery, Karachi
  • 2017
    The GIFixibitSoul Patch Studio, Mumbai
  • 2017
    The Urdu ExhibitG5A Foundation for Contemporary Culture, Mumbai
  • 2020
    Lal Jadoo (Performance)Akhtar House, Karachi
  • 2022
    Zenana MardanaFrere Hall, Karachi
  • 2022
    Jagah Hai (Performance)Amin Gulgee Gallery, Karachi
  • 2024
    Ink, Earth and Visions: Echoes of Climate ChangeSambara Gallery, Karachi

Museum shows

  • 2021
    Abstraction & Calligraphy: Towards a Universal LanguageLouvre Abu Dhabi Museum

NOMINATIONS

  • Abraaj Art Prize 2017

AWARDS

  • UAE Golden Visa in the category of Geniuses of Talent / Special Talent in Arts & Culture
[ OVER THE YEARS ]

THE JOURNEY