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biography
“For me, "Art" represents personal expression, self-realization, and interpretation of the surrounding world, while "Design" is a disciplined approach to problem-solving, overcoming challenges, and removing obstacles in the physical realm. I perceive design as purposeful, systematic, and creative activity, and I believe that being a designer requires embodying the spirit of an artist. In this era characterized by globalized and fragmented disciplines, I argue that designers should learn how to connect and disconnect their designerly identities and desires in order to effectively engage with diverse fields. Ultimately, I seek solutions and envision possibilities by embracing this approach.”
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Who is muqeem khan?
Recipient of the esteemed "Pride of Pakistan" award, Dr. Muqeem Khan—also recognised as Dr. Muqeem Mursaleen—lives a double life. In addition to being a licenced herbalist, he is an accomplished digital artist. He is the first Pakistani employed in Hollywood visual effects in 1996, bringing digital elements to life in films such as Final Fantasy, Flubber, George of the Jungle, Armageddon and Deep Rising. In addition to working in the field of digital and emerging technologies, he (also known as Dr. Muqeem Mursaleen) became a registered herbalist and pulse reader, carrying on his family's Unani medicine (ancient Greek system of medicine) tradition. He turned his father's business into a private limited company and called it "Hakeem Mursaleen Pvt. Ltd." as an entrepreneur. This transdisciplinary quality creates a link between cutting-edge technology and traditional healing practices.
Early work
Dr. Muqeem Khan was born in 1968 In Karachi. He was the son of renowned pulse reader and herbalist Hakeem Mursaleen, who immigrated from Delhi, India. He got the name "Muqeem" in honour of a well-known Indian herbalist and hakeem. His father's calligraphic work and the work from his artist uncles inundated his perspective with arts and design from the time he was a small child. At that time, his father's older brothers were very skilled and well-known calligraphers and visualizers. Early in life, Muqeem studied calligraphy and, through a customary apprenticeship, employed bamboo pens and wood slate, two native writing instruments. He began employing digital tools for his calligraphic wants and ambitions later in his design school.
He also began experimenting with different materials and their tactile qualities. Understanding their individual and comparative behaviour on a canvas or any other surface attracted him. There he learned that these materials may be made into useful items if they are given a focus and care. Additionally, the artist must go through multiple stages in the production and transformation of raw materials and appreciate the additive, subtractive, and iterative processes.
For him, colour has always been the most crucial component of creation. He began experimenting with gouache, oil, and watercolour paints on different surfaces. In design, colour is a symphony for the eyes, not merely paint on a pallet. It's a song that directs the user's trip and subtly conveys the message the design wishes to convey. It's the blush of dawn on a serene blue. When used carefully, these colours can occasionally produce the appearance of transparency and even trick the sight into thinking there are three dimensional forms and shapes.
Visual Effects (VFX ) & Animation
In Jeorge of the Jungle, his first project with the Walt Disney Company, he gained experience in creating dynamics and the interaction between the digital elephant and the ground. Then he went on to work on other films like Armageddon, Flubber, Final Fantasy, and Deep Rising, which all pushed the envelope of cinematic reality and made it harder to distinguish between what was constructed and what was filmed. By conjuring up storms, explosions, and morphing landscapes, they challenge our perception of the natural world. These fabricated phenomena become a paradox: wholly artificial yet striving for an unsettling truth, forcing us to question the essence of what we see on screen and contemplate the ever-growing power of illusion.
PhD studies
In his PhD studies, he propose a novel model for accessing and safeguarding indigenous methodologies, particularly non-codified or traditional knowledge like pulse diagnosis and body posters in indigenous martial arts. He applied the ideas of AI-based gamification and data manipulation for young children in his case studies. He firmly believe that Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH), such as language, poetry, dances, festive events, and indigenous methodologies like folklore remedies and their pharmacopeia, serve as the keys to unlocking our community's hidden treasures. He further believe that by innovatively utilizing new methods with emerging digital realm, AI, data management, a philosophical mindset, and consistently infusing contemporary knowledge, the identity of any cultural paradigm can be preserved and perpetuated.
In summery, his thesis and its supporting published research explore using emerging technology -- specifically virtual and augmented reality -- to represent intangible cultural heritage in a heritage setting. He proposes that engaging, interactive exhibits can transmit this knowledge to a new generation while creating a new type of intangible heritage through digitally archiving visitor interactions. He examines this through a speculative design lens, using two case studies to illustrate potential applications. Several recommendations for content creators, including ethical considerations for representing indigenous knowledge systems, are provided. Finally, the he explores the role of crowdsourcing in intangible digital heritage and the need to consider issues of digital or Electronic waste. Find his PhD thesis here if you're interested in learning more about his doctoral studies:
Teaching philosophy
Dr. Muqeem Khan taught design, animation, and emerging technologies courses at prestigious US institutions such as Virginia Commonwealth University and Northwestern University in Qatar (these are the true satellite compasses from US institutions in Qatar). I has also given a number of workshops and seminars at the same American universities and various universities around the world. Regarding e-learning, he has acquired certification in this field of acquiring knowledge in an academic context and has finished several seminars to teach online courses.
Motivated by a love of fostering creative potential, Dr. Muqeem enjoyed having the chance to teach and assess Arts and design classes, particularly, digital environments and Computer Graphics for students. The creative sector is ever-evolving and changing. His approach to teaching placed more emphasis on how students learn than what they should. Furthermore, his pedagogical approaches emphasised the cultivation of computational creative practices, 2D contect creation, 3D modelling and animation, and interface design to empower university students to experiment and employ technology as a tool for their artistic and creative expression. As a dynamic mentor/educator and forward-thinking individual in the field of design and new media arts, he continue to have close ties to current practices and conversations at the nexus of rising technologies, changing tools, and artificial intelligence. This enduring passion has contributed to his success as a teacher in thriving in cutting-edge, multidisciplinary learning environments. Students who use the digital environment as a vehicle for their creative ambitions should be guided by fundamental concepts in the arts and design to tackle visual, aesthetic, and other issues. In his teaching, he wants to keep his students' attention on the process and prioritise problem identification, research, prototyping, testing, and iteration. He always want his students to experiment with different methods and cutting-edge technologies. He also draw attention to the advantages and disadvantages of each tool. Additionally, the fundamental idea is always to improve the human environment, which is why he likes to talk about the ethical, social, and environmental ramifications of technological advancement. Dr. Muqeem’s students generate amazing work when they understand that critical thinking about how technology affects our lives is encouraged. Most of the time, he uses case studies to demonstrate to students how novel innovations are applied in a variety of areas, including healthcare, education, and entertainment, as well as real-world applications and scenarios.
For him, it's critical that his students understand and remember the guidelines from their foundational studies, where they acquired their foundational understanding of design and the arts and the digital technologies. A satisfying visual experience necessitates the application of several different disciplines. As a result, he wants them to learn about and be exposed to a variety of mediums, including literature, music, visual arts, and theatre and so forth. He talks about the components and principles that are shared by many disciplines, emphasising empathy and communication as ways that design and art may help spread concepts, feelings, and narratives. In this way, his students are inspired to comprehend the requirements of users and grow empathy for them. Dr. Muqeem makes an effort to draw attention to methods of problem-solving from a variety of disciplines and demonstrate to them how successfully and creatively design and art can be applied to solve problems. They become better acquainted with tools and their workings in this way, as well as the ways that design and art impact the advancement and aesthetics of technology. He makes an effort to convey to his students that graphical tools are comparable to stationary such as pencils, sheets, and other items on a drafting table. It makes a lot of sense to simply use these digital tools to generate content, keeping in mind that Photoshop won't make a person Leonardo Da Vinci, and that Microsoft Word won't make you Shakespeare either.
Motivated by a love of fostering creative potential, Dr. Muqeem enjoyed having the chance to teach and assess Arts and design classes, particularly, digital environments and Computer Graphics for students. The creative sector is ever-evolving and changing. His approach to teaching placed more emphasis on how students learn than what they should. Furthermore, his pedagogical approaches emphasised the cultivation of computational creative practices, 2D contect creation, 3D modelling and animation, and interface design to empower university students to experiment and employ technology as a tool for their artistic and creative expression. As a dynamic mentor/educator and forward-thinking individual in the field of design and new media arts, he continue to have close ties to current practices and conversations at the nexus of rising technologies, changing tools, and artificial intelligence. This enduring passion has contributed to his success as a teacher in thriving in cutting-edge, multidisciplinary learning environments. Students who use the digital environment as a vehicle for their creative ambitions should be guided by fundamental concepts in the arts and design to tackle visual, aesthetic, and other issues. In his teaching, he wants to keep his students' attention on the process and prioritise problem identification, research, prototyping, testing, and iteration. He always want his students to experiment with different methods and cutting-edge technologies. He also draw attention to the advantages and disadvantages of each tool. Additionally, the fundamental idea is always to improve the human environment, which is why he likes to talk about the ethical, social, and environmental ramifications of technological advancement. Dr. Muqeem’s students generate amazing work when they understand that critical thinking about how technology affects our lives is encouraged. Most of the time, he uses case studies to demonstrate to students how novel innovations are applied in a variety of areas, including healthcare, education, and entertainment, as well as real-world applications and scenarios.
For him, it's critical that his students understand and remember the guidelines from their foundational studies, where they acquired their foundational understanding of design and the arts and the digital technologies. A satisfying visual experience necessitates the application of several different disciplines. As a result, he wants them to learn about and be exposed to a variety of mediums, including literature, music, visual arts, and theatre and so forth. He talks about the components and principles that are shared by many disciplines, emphasising empathy and communication as ways that design and art may help spread concepts, feelings, and narratives. In this way, his students are inspired to comprehend the requirements of users and grow empathy for them. Dr. Muqeem makes an effort to draw attention to methods of problem-solving from a variety of disciplines and demonstrate to them how successfully and creatively design and art can be applied to solve problems. They become better acquainted with tools and their workings in this way, as well as the ways that design and art impact the advancement and aesthetics of technology. He makes an effort to convey to his students that graphical tools are comparable to stationary such as pencils, sheets, and other items on a drafting table. It makes a lot of sense to simply use these digital tools to generate content, keeping in mind that Photoshop won't make a person Leonardo Da Vinci, and that Microsoft Word won't make you Shakespeare either.
Research
Dr. Muqeem’s identity as a passionate researcher in emerging interactive technologies and computer graphics is still intact, and he want to pursue a variety of objectives in diversified fields. He has published over 12 of his research articles in juried journals and conferences all over the world. He has demonstrated the capacity to work independently to provide innovative additions to scholarly knowledge along with practical results. His YouTube channel can demonstrate his capacity to operate productively and cooperatively as a member of a successful and friendly research culture:
Dr. Muqeem Khan had been significantly involved in various indigenous cultural inquiry and scholarly work while he was a professor at Northwestern University in Qatar. He presented his augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) infrared-based artistic exhibits both inside and outside of Qatar, including at the TED and Tribeca Film Festivals and other research settings.
As a Lead Principal Investigator (LPI), he developed the "Kinesthetic Learning System for Arabic Indigenous Dances," a $1 million research fund while working as a principal investigator (LPI) for National Priorities Research Program (NPRP), a local government-supported research funding organization. His intellectual activities also included a number of additional undergraduate research projects with his students and fellow faculty members. Visit the following link to see his TED Talk, which demonstrates his creativity and innovation in using technology as a tool rather than something else to address real-world issues:
more about his work