ISLAMABAD, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- Renowned Pakistani painter and short story writer Tassaduq Sohail has passed away at the age of 87 in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi on Tuesday, local Urdu TV channel Geo reported.
Sohail was in critical condition after he was shifted to a private hospital in Karachi from the country's capital city of Islamabad on Sept. 19.
The well-known contemporary painter was born in Jalandhar, India, in 1930 and later migrated to Pakistan's eastern city of Lahore. His family then moved to Karachi in 1952.
In Karachi, he found a rich Urdu literary circle and joined them where he was termed as "Qissa-go," the Urdu phrase for a story-teller, for his talent of tale-narrating.
The acclaimed artist moved to London in 1961 and started painting which became his passion and he joined evening classes at the St. Martin School of Art. Since then the art became his career.
His first exhibition was held in London in 1978 and regarding the total number of exhibitions, he stated, "They must be in thousands. These include watercolours, pastels, pen and ink and whatnot, but I have kept no record."
In the year of 2007, his paintings arrived at Bonhams, one of the world's oldest and largest art auction houses, which gave him stature of an international artist.
Sohail moved back to Karachi after having spent 40 years in London.
