Faiqaz

About Faiqa Uppal

Faiqa Uppal standing beside her colourful figurative ballerina painting

Faiqa Qayyum Uppal is a British-Pakistani contemporary artist and art educator based in Birmingham, United Kingdom. Working primarily in watercolour and acrylic, she creates expressive paintings that explore movement, nature, cultural memory and the lives of women. Her artistic practice is shaped by the meeting of two cultures: the visual traditions of Pakistan and the experiences of building a creative life in Britain.

Her paintings move between the intimacy of flowers and gardens, the rhythm and grace of dancers, and portraits informed by history and heritage. Inspired by Mughal miniature painting, music, the human figure and the ballet works of Edgar Degas, she is interested in capturing not simply how a subject looks, but how it feels. Fluid lines, vibrant colour, spontaneous brushwork and areas deliberately left unresolved bring a sense of immediacy and movement to her work.

Artistic journey

Faiqa studied fine art at the University of the Punjab in Lahore, achieving second position in her Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1991 and first position, with a Gold Medal, in her Master of Fine Arts in 1994. Before moving to the United Kingdom in 2007, she spent more than twelve years teaching fine art at higher-education level and also worked in visual design. In Britain, she continued developing her own painting practice while teaching and mentoring aspiring artists.

Her international career has included solo and group exhibitions in the United Kingdom and Pakistan, alongside participation in projects examining women’s history, cultural identity and belonging. While her subjects range from ballerinas to florals, a common thread is her interest in emotion, freedom of expression and the subtle connections between people and their surroundings.

Movement, flowers and cultural memory

Dance is a recurring motif in Faiqa’s paintings. Ballerinas and figures influenced by traditional South Asian dance offer a way to explore gesture, energy and the freedom of movement. For Faiqa, painting a dancer becomes an imaginative act of participation: a way of expressing movement and possibility beyond the expectations that can shape women’s lives.

Her floral paintings take a quieter approach. Through luminous colour, layered surfaces and shifting forms, she reflects on the beauty and impermanence of nature. Her cultural and historical paintings similarly invite viewers to consider heritage and the stories of women whose lives and achievements deserve to be seen.

“Expression with the touch of Impression.”

That phrase, which Faiqa has used to describe her practice, captures the balance between expressive feeling and fleeting visual impressions that runs throughout her work.

Exhibitions and selected projects

  • 2025 — Belongings, Courtyard Gallery at The Core, Solihull, UK; group exhibition by Midlands International Artists.
  • 2024 — Nature’s Muse: A Floral Symphony, Muse Art Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan; solo exhibition.
  • 2024 — QUEEN: The Muslim Woman, International Museum of Muslim Cultures, Jackson, Mississippi, USA; group exhibition.
  • 2024 — Essence of Era-II, Muse Art Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan; group exhibition.
  • 2023 — Grace in Motion: A Symphony of Ballerinas, Art is Art Gallery, Worcester, UK.
  • 2023 — Perception and Reality in Bloom, Ocean Art Galleries, Lahore, Pakistan; solo exhibition.
  • 2023 — Feminist Charisma, Artciti Gallery, Karachi, Pakistan; group exhibition.
  • 2022 — Untitled (As I Have Painted All the Words), Ocean Art Galleries, Karachi, Pakistan; solo exhibition.
  • 2021 — Sentiment, Galerie Mayci, Moseley, Birmingham, UK; solo exhibition.
  • 2021 — Expression with the Touch of Impression, Hamail Art Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan; solo exhibition.
  • 2020 — Felicity, Hamail Art Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan; solo exhibition.
  • 2019 — Solo Watercolour Exhibition, Ocean Art Gallery, Lahore, Pakistan.
  • 2018 — Revolutionary Women Around the World, exhibition and discussion, Elizabeth Gaskell’s House, Manchester, UK.
  • 2018 — Solo Exhibition, All Saints Gallery, Birmingham, UK.

This is a selection of exhibitions rather than a complete exhibition history. Dates and titles reflect published artist and venue records.

Recognition and teaching

  • 1994: MFA Gold Medal and first position, University of the Punjab, Lahore.
  • 1991: BFA second position, University of the Punjab, Lahore.
  • 2006: A painting selected for the cover of a World Bank report on higher education in Pakistan.
  • 2007: Artwork selected for a CFM International calendar representing Pakistan.
  • 2017: Invited to exhibit culturally themed paintings for Pakistan’s 70th anniversary at the Pakistan Consulate in Manchester.

Alongside her exhibitions, Faiqa continues to share her knowledge through painting tuition. She teaches drawing, watercolour, acrylic and oil-painting techniques to students with different levels of experience, encouraging confidence, exploration and an individual artistic voice.

Press, publications and media

  • May 2025 — Solihull College & University Centre: “Bootcampers join forces to exhibit their art” — institutional news release on Belongings, naming Faiqa among the exhibiting artists.
  • 2024 — International Museum of Muslim Cultures: Events & Exhibitions brochure — describes QUEEN: The Muslim Woman and names Faiqa among featured artists.
  • March 2021 — Mississippi Free Press: International Women’s Day artist-talk announcement — reports a virtual conversation involving Faiqa and the International Museum of Muslim Cultures.
  • 2019 — All Saints Centre, Birmingham: Local Colour exhibition notice — lists Faiqa in a retrospective of artists who previously exhibited at the centre.
  • December 2022 — Niggah Art Magazine, Karachi: Artist-profile coverage is listed in Faiqa’s published professional biography; a direct article or scan is still to be added.

For exhibition, press, educational or artwork enquiries, please get in touch.