Zubeida Agha

Early life Zubeida Agha was born in 1922 in Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan. After graduating from Kinnaird College for Women University, Lahore, she worked with painter B. C. Sanyal from 1944 to 1946. At this time, she also became well-acquainted with the works of Picasso. She was also influenced by the works of Mario Perlingeri, an Italian prisoner of war in India at that time. The Society of Fine Arts awarded her first prize for modern painting in 1946. She joined Saint Martin's School of Art, London in 1950, later moving on to Ecole des Beaux Arts, Paris in 1951. In 1961, she was appointed executive director of the Contemporary Art Gallery in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, receiving the President's Pride of Performance award in 1965. In November 2002, a large exhibit of Zubeida Agha's paintings was held at Shakir Ali Museum, Lahore.

Postage stamp On 14 August 2006, Pakistan Post issued a Rs. 40 sheetlet of stamps to posthumously honour 10 Pakistani painters. Besides Zubeida Agha, the other nine painters were: Laila Shahzada, Askari Mian Irani, Sadequain, Ali Imam, Shakir Ali, Anna Molka Ahmed, Zahoor ul Akhlaq, Ahmed Pervez and Bashir Mirza.

Her work is on permanent display at the National Art Gallery of Pakistan National Council of the Arts in Islamabad, Pakistan. National Art Gallery is displaying some works of Pakistani legends of visual art on permanent basis to serve as inspiration and to educate the coming generations.