About

Khalil Chishtee (b. 1964, Lahore, Pakistan) is a New York-based multidisciplinary visual artist with an extensive global profile, renowned for pushing the boundaries of contemporary sculpture, installation, and site-specific art. Holding a Master of Arts in Studio Art from California State University, Sacramento, Chishtee also shaped a generation of creative talent during his decade-long tenure on the faculty at the prestigious National College of Arts in Lahore.  

At the core of Chishtee’s practice is a sustained inquiry into the architecture of human perception—tracing the silent boundary between what commands our awareness and what we systematically render invisible. Refusing to let art collapse into mere ornamentation, escapism, or indoctrination, he approaches it as a site of active consciousness. Through deliberate shifts in material and concept, Chishtee unsettles the familiar and renders the discarded visible, creating reflective spaces that invite viewers to pause, cultivate presence, and reconsider how we inhabit the world together. 

Chishtee has built an expansive global footprint, with works that have captivated audiences across premier international stages—including landmark appearances at the 56th International Art Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia (2015), the Mumbai Art Fair (2024), From Waste to Art, Baku, Azerbaijan (2014, 2024), and recurring features at the India Art Fair (2017–2025). His extensive exhibition profile also encompasses major institutional presentations, such as Tossed: Art from Discarded, Found & Re-purposed Materials at Middlebury College Museum of Art, VT (2023); Lucid Dreams and Distant Visions: South Asian Art in the Diaspora at Asia Society Museum, New York (2017); Here Today..., marking the 50th Anniversary of the IUCN Red List, London (2014); Art Festival Watou, Belgium (2014); and Brain Drain at Art14 London (2014).