Laiba Baig, a professional artist, has accused Muniba Mazari, a wheel-chair bound artist and a public speaker, of plagiarising her art. She took to social media to reveal that the UN Goodwill Ambassador copied her artwork.
Baig called Mazari, a “fraud and a liar”, saying that she copied her artwork and paintings, which she had done a long time ago. When she contacted Mazari and confronted her about it, she denied copying anything, saying that since she is using an altogether different medium, it did not constitute plagiarism. Laiba added:
“Telling an artist ” no difference ” between [the] form of paints where the entire content is same ..[.]
it’s like writing a Same story in two different languages and saying it’s different..[.] only gained popularity because of her accident!!”.
Laiba Baig, as proof of her claim, shared a screenshot of pictures of her artwork and Mazari’s artwork that she posted almost five years ago.
“U[you can] see the date I’ve posted !! My blood obviously was boiling as my art is very dear to me and it’s really unethical to copy a professional artist work but I didn’t get deeper into it and name shame use media support because obviously she was bechari who tried painting after accident and I wud try to bring her down wud [make] me look terrible.. so I didn’t do much !!”, shared Baig.
The picture was posted by Laiba on her Facebook profile on 17th September 2013.
“I stopped using that theme then”, Baig shared, “but by then everyone in the art market and my collectors knew my style.” “She talks good,” added Laiba.
Laiba exhibited her work in 2012, under the theme of ‘Modernism featuring Traditionalism’. She displayed her work at Commune Artists Colony Gallery. In most of her works, her subjects were women, and her work was based on the current deterioration and indifference towards culture.
In 2013, Baig came across Mazari’s painting and realized that she copied her theme.
Baig says she didn’t take any action against Mazari because the accused was going through trauma after the accident and was in the process of getting her life back together.
“She was starting her new life after the accident … I would’ve become a witch to pull a ‘bechari’ down by accusing her … all that aunties start-up, ‘na bechari aik hi kaam karsakhti hai’ painting and people are not letting her do that and what not … So, I didn’t do much and ch he’s my theme … and even now I am not coming up with anything it’s just I saw the topic so thought to share how genuine she is in other matters too apart from husband !!”, shared Baig.
One of the Forbes 30 under 30, Mazari has been surrounded by controversies after her former husband approached a court against his ex-wife for “blaming and bashing him for all her afflictions”.
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/pakistan/muniba-mazaris-ex-husband-sues-her-for-defamation/
