BASHA

Artist (b. Pakistan)
Salt Lake City, Utah

Founder of Absgraff®, an abstract graffiti and calligraffiti visual language.

Biographical Note

BASHA is an American artist and founder of Absgraff®, a visual language merging graffiti-derived abstraction, calligraffiti, symbolism, and disciplined structure. Active since the mid-1990s, his practice encompasses painting, murals, installations, education, and cross-disciplinary collaboration. He is also the founder and executive director of Art Over Destruction (AOD), a nonprofit organization focused on youth arts, creative resilience, and mental health.

Education & Training

1995–Present
Independent practice and study in graffiti, letterform abstraction, and visual systems
Salt Lake City; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; San Francisco

Professional Experience

2006–Present
Founder and Artist — BASHA Worldwide / Absgraff®
Salt Lake City, UT

2012–Present
Founder and Executive Director — Art Over Destruction (AOD), 501(c)(3)
Salt Lake City, UT

2013–2016
Art Educator — Salt Lake Youth Services; Art Over Destruction (AOD)
Salt Lake City, UT

2013
Art Educator — Art Over Destruction (AOD) International Program
Beijing, China

Lectures & Educational Engagements

2016
Cornish College of the Arts, Seattle, WA
Artist lecture on Absgraff®, abstraction, graffiti lineage

2013
Art Over Destruction China Residency, Beijing, China
Lectures and workshops on abstract graffiti and visual language

2012
Magna High School, Magna, UT
Artist lecture and student engagement on graffiti history and abstraction

Grants & Awards

Utah Arts & Museums — Artist and Project Grants (multiple awards, 2018–2025)
Utah Governor’s Office — State Grant
Salt Lake Arts Council — Artist Grant
Absgraff® Gallery — Project Grant
Art Over Destruction (AOD) — Youth Arts Development Grant

Exhibitions

Solo Exhibitions

2025
Quiet Monarch — Absgraff Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2024
Velocity Saints — Absgraff Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2023
Concrete Saint — Absgraff Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2022
Concrete Profit — 801 Art Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2021
Saint Augustine — 801 Art Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2020
Escape the Chaos — 801 Art Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2019
Anna Relax — Abstract 11 Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2009
The Melrose Method — BYN Gallery, Los Angeles, CA

2008
BASHA x 801 Made — Aperture Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

Group Exhibitions & Special Projects

2018
Six Stories Above Sugar House — Redman Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2017
Absgraff® by BASHA — Fort Collins, CO
Salt Lines — Phillips Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2016
The First Ascent — Park City Fine Art Gallery, Park City, UT

2015
BASHA x Coronation (fashion collaboration) — Newport Beach, CA
Tracks & Paint — Mod Gallery, Seattle, WA

2014
Urban Origins — Urban Arts Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2012
Art Over Destruction (AOD) Launch Lecture — Salt Lake Community College, Salt Lake City, UT

2011
Emergence — Art Access, Salt Lake City, UT
Relax Arts — Salt Lake City, UT

2010
LTW: Emergence — Salt Lake City, UT

2009
ITX: Emergence — Salt Lake City, UT

2008
801 Made — Aperture Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT

2007
Mural collaboration with Mohammed Ali — Soul City Arts, Birmingham, United Kingdom

2006
Early works acquired by private collectors — Zurich, Switzerland

Public Service

2012
Six original works donated to the Teen Recovery Wing
Primary Children’s Hospital, Salt Lake City, UT

Publications & Media

Books

Michael K. Corbin, Art for the People (2011)
Michael K. Corbin, Art of Everyday Joe (2008)

Selected Press

15 Bytes — Artist Feature (2021)
Salt Lake Magazine — Interview / Feature
Cornish College of the Arts — Absgraff® Feature (2016)
Art Crimes: Utah 2 — Early Graffiti Archive (2007)

Magazines

Under Pressure, Issue 15 — Philadelphia (2010)
Full Spectrum Graffiti Magazine — Vancouver, BC (2004)
Deseret News — Young Entrepreneur Feature (1996)

Collections

Public Collections

Primary Children’s Hospital — Teen Recovery Wing
Salt Lake City, UT

Private Collections (Selected)

United States; Canada; Switzerland; United Kingdom; United Arab Emirates; Qatar; Saudi Arabia; Brazil; France; Spain; Italy; Germany; Norway; Sweden; Iceland; Japan; Australia; New Zealand; Kenya; Argentina; Mexico; Malaysia; China; Pakistan; Russia

Notable collectors include Michael K. Corbin and long-term private collectors in Park City, Tokyo, and Dubai.

Affiliations

Phillips Gallery
Art Access
Urban Arts Gallery

Utah Governor’s Office
Art Over Destruction (501(c)(3))
Absgraff®

University of Utah
Salt Lake Community College
Cornish College of the Arts

Primary Children’s Hospital
Ronald McDonald House

Authentication & Provenance

Select works bear the BASHA wax seal.
All works are signed, dated, and catalogued.
NFC-chip authentication and Absgraff® provenance documentation available upon request.