The Brief History of art in Bangladesh
Bangladesh
is a land of art. Art is the way of living for the people of its
68,000 villages, where housewives are busy making Nakshikantha,
Pankha(hand fan), pillow covers, handkerchiefs, wall hangings,
TepaPutul (doll), Nakshipitha (decorated food item), bedcovers, and
much more. Even the walls of the houses are painted and decorated in
vibrant colors. And then there is the Alpana art, or ritual painting –
motifs painted on the floors of the homes.
Urban Bangladesh thrives on art too, with its colorful trucks, buses, auto-rickshaws, and especially the art done on cycle-rickshaws that has gained quite a lot of attention in the recent times.
One could go on and on about how vast the scope of art is in Bangladesh . In fact, each and every object that is used in daily life represents the art of Bangladesh . However, this article will focus on art that is practiced and applied within an academic scope in the urban society of Bangladesh .
The first sources of fine arts belonging to Bengal or Bangladesh are still unexplored, although during one of its golden eras, the Paal paintings (Puthichitra), from around the eleventh century, reflected great aesthetic finesse. This finesse, in fact, is the most trademark of Bengali art. It is also evident in aristocratic glory that shines through the engraved terra-cotta work done on different architecture like Tombs, Temples or Mosques during the reign of Buddhists as well the during the Mughal Empire.
Apart from terracotta, other forms of art such as the designs done on fabrics like Muslin and Jamdani, paintings on SARA, POTCHITRA and NOKSHIKATHA as well as various forms of embroidery have been handed down through thousand of years of artistic evolution in Bangladesh .
The British Empire , as it played a vital role on everything of this region, also influenced its art. At the beginning of the twentieth century, Havel and Abanindranath Tagore invented a new style that was a combination of Mughal miniature art and Chinese-Japanese styles. This new style became popular and was widely referred to as Oriental art or the Bengal school. Those who followed this school of art, in fact, did so as an act of rebellion against the European concepts in styles. And hence, art also began to raise its voice for independence during this time.
The most widespread manifestation of the eternal essence of folk art can be seen in the Kalighata Pots and in printed pictures, where one can observe the artist's endeavor to reveal their power by adding a variety of dimensions to those pictures. At one point, folk forms were also combined with other, especially European art forms. For instance, three different exposures(combination-synthesis-analysis) consisting of the European style, the new Bengal school and folk forms are found in the master works by Nandlal, Jamini Roy and Vinodbihari. Later on in the scene, we can see Gagan Tagore do paintings with a modern European twist. Rabindranath Tagore followed suit and created many masterpieces, which ultimately enriched as well as popularized the European concepts of fine art in Bengal .
Now Calcutta , before 1947, was the nerve center of art in the sub continent, while Dhaka , no matter how culturally aware it was during that time, was a city that did not practice it. In reality, its pursuit of art was limited to cinema hoardings, backdrop scenes at theatres and portraits of the members of the aristocracy. Nevertheless, the common citizens continued to be a part of the art of the region with their sense of creativity that had stayed alive through thousands of years of nurturing. The very example of this is seen when in 1947, the artists Zainul-Kamrul-Shafiuddin-Anwarul, against strong opposition from a not-so-educated class of people, founded an art school that transformed Dhaka into an established and important center for practicing fine arts. And ever since then, Dhaka has remained in the major league of cities in Asia that have an influence on fine arts.
After 1947, the practice of art - that of the ordinary citizen and that of the institution got divided into three major streams. The mainstream of art or the stream dependent on gallery-room viewings was quite isolated from the contemporary cry of the time, meaning that it did not adequately depict the condition of the country then. As this stream employed the techniques of a very artificial or shallow form of artistic purity, it gradually died out during the mid-eighties.
The second stream took care of book-cover designing and illustration. It was an entirely artist-dependent stream, that is, it relied on how artists wanted to use their personal techniques to delineate the subject matter in literature. Eventually, this category achieved quite a bit of popularity among artists, critics, and even among the general population in terms of its success in portraying public sentiments.
Finally, the third branch, which is based on political movements, is sadly like a lamp that is gradually burning out. This group includes posters, banners, graffiti, and cartoons/caricatures. And despite being such an important dimension of modern art, it is fast getting buried under the dust of neglect. Further, one could also blame the country's ongoing political instability for its slow death.
In contrast, the West continues to enjoy the glorification of its own art forms through the constant and thorough criticism that they receive. Expressionism, Surrealism, Dadaism, action paintings, and the concept of 'Happenings', especially in the works of V. Van Gogh have become immortal in the history of great art. Now in relation to this, the name of Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin also comes to mind. His 'Famine-43' series, its subject being the famine that occurred in Bangladesh in1943, are remnants of the shock and agony that terrorized the nation during that time. Fortunately, Zainul Abedin has not been deprived of the renown that is due to him and his works are among the most notable ones in history.
The years from 1947 through 1950 prepared the ground for Bangladeshi fine art. After Pakistan was declared an autonomous state in 1947, Zainul, Kamrul, Safiuddin, and Anwarul Haque came to Dhaka from Calcutta , followed by Mohammad Kibria, Syed Shafiqul Hossain and Khaja Shafique in 1950. Thus the Institute of Fine Arts in Dhaka was established in 1948 and the academic practice of fine arts began with the foundation of this Institute.
As this happened, there was growing participation and support from the then young and contemporary intellectuals of the region. The significance of their contribution can be understood if we look at what took place after the Dhaka Fine Art Institute was set up.
The first art exhibition in Bangladesh was held in Dhaka in December, 1947, featuring Zainul Abedin's series drawings on famine. The viewing was organized at the F.H. Muslim Hall, Dhaka University . But unfortunately, the exhibit, launched with the help of the then banned Communist Party, could be kept open for only a day. So Ajit Guha and Amiyo Chakravarti, influenced by the exhibition, wrote positive articles in The Daily Azad in order to give currency to the exhibit and the Institute.
Thankfully Mr. Habibullah Bahar, then a minister, advised and supported Zainul Abedin, who, in cooperation of Quamrul Hasan and Aminul Islam, painted one hundreds posters titled "Separation of India and establishment of Pakistan". This poster exhibition was arranged on August 14, 1948 at the governor's residence. Finally, on the recommendation of the chairman of Pakistan Public Service Commission and the world famous artist and critic Shahed Sohrawardi, along with the enthusiastic support of the then D.P.I. head and distinguished scientist Dr. Qudrat-E-Khuda, the Government of Pakistan approved to construct the fine arts institute in Dhaka . It was through the relentless toils of Zainul Abedin, Quamrul Hasan, Shafiuddin Ahmed and Anwarul Haque that shaped this institution as an important cultural center of Bengal . After September 15, 1948 , the day this institute began its expeditions, many young people came forward to help strengthen it through their thoughts and their writings. To name a few, they were poet and novelist Alauddin Al Azad, poet Hashan Hafizur Rahman, scientist and writer Abdullah Al Muti Sharfuddin, dramatist Munir Choudhury, Shardar Fazlul Karim, Enayet Karim, Abdul Gani Hazari, Syed Ali Ahsan, Sanowar Murshed and Artist Aminul Islam.
The fine arts institute set the artists abuzz. Zainul abedin was by then a popular and dynamic personality in the all-Indian artistic arena for his revolutionary famine series, which was a combination of the British academic style and the Eastern two-dimensional style. Plus, he also did regular illustrations for the monthly magazine – Desh . In fact, many other artists in this period, such as Quamrul Hasan and Kazi Abul Kashem, were attached with publishers and illustrated books using distinctive techniques. Later, Zainul Abedin gave up illustrating. Meanwhile, Qumrul Hasan was on the lookout for the art-critics around Calcutta in order to expand his views on the Eastern style or the Oriental wash method used in the paintings. Shafiuddin Ahmed, on the other hand, was quickly gaining fame for his realistic paintings on the Shantal Pargana, done in oil and engraved on wood. Anwarul Haque was busy painting his award winning landscapes in watercolors, which were based on nature paintings done by Khaja Shafique and followed the style of the Calcutta art school. Basically, until 1951, the major characteristic of the fervent practice of fine art in our region was to develop and acquire new styles by combining the British academic style with Bengali folk art.
Modernity hit the fine arts scene here right at that moment. And the practice of institutional or urban art was set in motion. If we take a sub-continental bird's eye view, we can observe modern art being introduced during the late forties. Before this, many artists who had already started working on Bangladesh-based fine arts were preparing to receive modernity and making it a part of the sub-continental art. It was they who introduced 'Modernity' into Bangladeshi art.
By 1953, after the fine arts institute was set up, the artists of the very first group had graduated. They united the ‘40's style with modern western methods, and thus began the practice of all-Indian modern fine arts that attained a distinct form in Calcutta . The noted artist, Mohammed Kibria, graduated from Calcutta Art School and joined as a teacher at the Dhaka fine arts Institute. At the same time, many students of the first and second batch visited Calcutta . Replicas of the paintings of Rabindranath Tagore, Gagonendranath Tagore, Jamini Roy, and Zainul Abedin as well as copies of the paintings done by European artists were published in " Probashi " and other magazines of the like. This set the stage for the modernization of Bengali art through the first generation students of the institute. Other things also catalyzed the process – interactions of both the teachers and students of the institute with contemporary literary giants, scientists and political activists, mostly of the banned East Bengal Communist Party, and of course, the unfaltering artistic temperament of the people of East Bengal .
Bangladeshi art by then was also exploring the Language Movement (1948 -1952) when the teachers and students of the institute involved themselves in it. As a result, banners, festoons, and cartoon sketches about the movement were put up everywhere. Since most of these were instantly pulled down and destroyed, critics claim to have lost the opportunity to assess their artistic value. Some drawings by Murtaza Bashir, however, have remained and are considered as being of great worth.
Then, all at once, various Dhaka-based literary activities and book cover designing became popular practices of the artists. Consequently, graphics design and illustration entailed. At the primary stage, the artists of the forties, mainly Zainul, Quamrul and Kazi Abul Quashem were most active, while the young artists joined the stream after 1950.
In 1951, Zainul combined cubist and folk art to paint " Painar Maa " (Paina's mother). And this became the first modern artwork to be done in East Bengal . In fact until 1959, this was the only mainstream method for practicing fine art around this region.
Later, between 1956 and 1965, when Aminul Islam (Florence), Murtaza Bashir (Florence), Abdur Razzak (USA), Kazi Abdul Bashet (Chicago), Rasheed Choudhury (Paris), Hamidur Rahman (UK), and Novera Ahmed (UK) returned from abroad after completing their studies, they identified the vital problem in the art of our country, i.e., the stamp of European modernity on our art. Their colleagues who had stayed back in Bangladesh , namely Quaium Choudhury, Devdash Chakravarty, and Syed Jahangir, also nodded in agreement. In the meantime, Zainul, Shafiuddin, Kibria also completed different courses in Japan and Europe and returned home. What happened after that was that the teachers and students of the institute got divided in the practice of modern art in Bangladesh . Thus, there emerged three distinct styles - abstract, cubist form, and the combination of cubist and folk forms.
From then on, people started to paint objective abstract forms that were a rendition of the socio-economic condition of that time. This sort of depiction of everyday life in East Pakistan actually added momentum to the popularity of this new style. But the sad part was that it was almost impossible to market art forms that involved any animal or human figure. Besides, our artists refused to work on existing Pakistani art, for instance, on Arabic calligraphy and other forms of Islamic art. This kind of rebellion fueled the Pakistani artists who, on the other hand, found it extremely lucrative to emphasize their anti-Bangladesh sentiments through their art. Nevertheless, the artists of Bengal still acquired and used the contemporary Euro-American objective abstract style with gusto. Even if it did not give them enough economic security, it at least gave them concrete strength to fight against the Pakistani ideology.
The fifties kept the artists busy in education and research. And so in the sixties, the art of this region achieved a certain distinction in aesthetic quality, both at home and abroad. After Zainul, Quamrul Hasan blossomed as the grand master of Bengali art during the late forties. He, like Zainul, also mixed cubism with Bengali folk forms to delineate the society as it was then. In fact, the past and the present of Bengal are clearly represented in his paintings. Moreover, he was a fine illustrator who did covers for a wide spectrum of books such as those on politics, folk tales, and rhymes. His glory reached immortality in 1971, when he did the poster of the monstrous Yahia Khan named "AE JANOARDER HOTTA KORTE HABE" or the poster in 1988 named "DESH EKHON BISHWO BEHAYAR KHOPPARE". We also know him for his " Kherokhata ", a painted history of Bengal from 1947 through 1988.
Then there was Anwarul Haque during the forties - an anxious searching artist. Mainly, he was dedicated to bringing out something new in every painting that he did. Another prominent artist of the fifties with a similar style was Shafiuddin Ahmed, who very soon shifted towards more abstract forms of art. The print media of the country is immensely indebted to him for his work. We can also recall Kazi Abul Quashem, the first Muslim painter of the modern subcontinent until Quamrul Hasan arrived in the scene. As an illustrator, his contribution to art both in Calcutta as well as in Dhaka can not be overlooked. Quashem was a pioneer in childrens' books illustration from mid forties to sixties. His Caricatures on the Language Movement, the division of India , the formation of Pakistan , Hindu-Muslim riots, etc. were the main attractions of the newspapers of that time.
The artist called Kibria of the late forties wished to work on cubism in the beginning. His style, which initially was pure abstract, changed in the sixties. Poetic moods are the inherent characteristics of his paintings. Well known for his innovativeness in the use of colors, Kibria is the most influential painter of modern fine arts in Bangladesh . The other remarkable artists of that time are Khaja Shafique, Syed Shafiqul Amin, Syed Shafiqul Hossain and S.M. Sultan.
Aminul Islam was the Founder Student of Dhaka Fine Arts institute. Being mainly an experimental artist, he was the first one to do murals in Bangladesh , especially mosaic murals. Even though he couples cubism with abstract styles, the European concept of purity is profoundly seen in all his works.
Here one must mention Murtaza Bashir of the fifties generation, who, to put it simply, was a painstakingly industrious artist. In fact, there have never been any questions of purity in his work. His works made an obvious attempt to search new dimensions in style, concepts and even subjects. Of his many works, the most important one is the series of paintings named '' Deyal '' that showed the true picture of the regressive administration of Aiyub Khan. This was the first compilation of purified abstract and metaphysical styles in the fine arts of this country. And the exhibit that promoted it was said to have been solely responsible for spreading the practice of abstract art in Bangladesh . People even compared his work to that of Picasso's. Bashir's aim was always to create art that was an experiment with the different elements and techniques of the art heritages of different regions.
However, Novera Ahmed, in truth, appears to be the first modernized personality in the art and culture of Bangladesh . Our art-admirers and critics first discovered the most quintessential quality of modern art in her sculptures. And that was the use of primitive forms. She compiles folk forms and mixes them with the sculptures and architecture of the Stone Ages. This can be clearly seen in the structural technique of the Ekusher Shahid Minar , the memorial dedicated to the martyrs killed in the Language Movement of February 1952. In her attempt to render the architectural structure of the temples and observatories of Stone Age into the symbol of motherhood, Novera converted the struggles of Bengal into an international struggle of humanity.
In relation to the Shahid Minar , let us not miss out Hamidur Rahman, its other architect and an avant-garde artist of modern wall painting (Fresco) in Bangladesh . Stylistic drawings mark the important quality of his works.
There is also Rashid Choudhury, who re-creates the rural and folk ways of living in Bengal on his canvas using cubist surrealistic forms. He is the one to introduce the method of tapestry and craft in our country. Not only that, but he has also established the Chittagong Fine Arts College and the department of fine arts at Chittagong University . Only he could figure out the importance of setting up another center for the practice of fine arts in the country.
The paintings of Kazi Abdul Bashet repesent geometric textures with sculptural and lyrical tones. His non-objective paintings are comparable to those of Wileam DeCooning, Mark Rothko, and Jacson Polok's.
Meanwhile, it is easy to notice the succinct effort to identify the relationship between object and emptiness in the works of Abdur Razzak. Defragmentations of Civil society are represented in Debdas Chakrabarti’s painting. Nitun Kundu is important for his Abstraction Geometric presentation.
Aesthetics of Illustration or Graphic Design in Bangladesh developed by in one hand, he is Quaium Choudhury. In this field his contribution are legend from 1953 to present (2012). In the history of world art Quaium Choudhury is an extra ordinary person; quantity or aesthetical value of his Illustrations or Graphic Designs can’t be compared with any others. His painting are Illustrative as Pop Art Movement & with sensation of music as Kandinsky.
Here, it is a must to mention Abu Taher, a painter of the sixties, whose paintings involve abstract metamorphoses done in colors that reflect the inner power of human life. Then there are Kazi Abdur Rouf and Shahtab Wahid, who died prematurely. Their paintings are noted for the “poetic chime” that they created using a combination of cubism and folk styles.
The painters of the sixties merely enriched the abstract concept of the fifties through detailed methods and techniques. They developed a sort of pictorial language in figure drawings using the style similar to Fobism. However, they valued personal insight or point of view more than the techniques for searching aesthetic purity in objects. For instance, Mahmudul Haque used the abstract style that was introduced by Kibria. He is one of the finest graphic artists of Bangladesh in terms of his etchings done in aquatint. In fact, this is what makes his work abundant in poetic romanticism.
Coming to Monirul Islam, he has been received very warmly in the international arena for his ingenious techniques and keenness in etching in aquatint media. Works of this painter, especially the abstract ones done while living in Spain , are again full of romanticism and nostalgia. Another artist living in Spain , Shahid Kabir, is, on the other hand, a painter whose motivation is Lalon . Also a teacher of fine arts, his works are rich in expressionism and realism, and revolve around the concept of youthfulness and new ideas. In this sense, he can be considered to be the promoter of neon-realism. Meanwhile Giashuddin, who lives in Japan , was so deeply inspired by the lyrics of Rabindranath Tagore that he painted calm, melancholy pictures of Bengal in watercolors. He is considered to be a distinguished artist of East Asia .
In the beginning, Abdus Sattar had eagerly tried to create modern paintings in watercolor using the Eastern method. Later, this artist earned international fame for his works of graphic art in abstract style. There is also Golam Sarowar, whose landscapes of Dhaka city done in fountain pen mirror the outstanding skills of a fine artist.
Shamsul Islam Nizami is a painter in the abstract style. Another painter employing the same style is Abul Bark Alvy, whose works are largely romantic in nature. He is in fact in the forefront in the field of book illustrations in Bangladesh . The culture and environment of Bangladesh has been most marvelously depicted in his special book illustrations for children.
Then we have Rafiqun Nabi, who is a comfortable player with most media. Nabi has gained enormous fame for his stylistic and subject-focused paintings. His illustrations feature a strong sense of masculinity through the use of variety of lines. In truth, he is the first artist who identified the differences between illustration and other fundamental artworks. His cartoon-caricature and write-ups entitled Tokai is a documentary of the contemporary socio-economic fiasco.
The biggest credibility of Bangladeshi Art is Hashem Khan is to create magic as an illustrator of childrens' books. He has been a pivotal figure in the evolution of many contemporary art concepts in Bangladesh . For instance, many school books carry fine illustrations done by Khan, who has carried the artistic traditions practiced by pioneers like Quaium Choudhury.
Pranesh Mandal and Shamarjit Roy Choudhury are also two remarkable painters of our time who followed a similar trend. The paintings of Pranesh Mandal are naturalistic exposures while Shamarjit followed the abstract track. Apart from them, Abdur Rouf Sarkar, Ashem Ansari and Nasir Biswas have also created some wonderful paintings and illustrations.
After the disappearance of Novera Ahmed, the contribution of Anwarul Haque is extremely important in giving a new life to the practice of sculpture in our country. Specifically, he is the pioneer in practicing and establishing wood-cut sculptures, the most common element of art in Bangladesh .
Fine arts in Bangladesh has been subject to two movements – the mass movement of 1969 and the liberation war of 1971. After a struggle of nine month's, the two contrasting emotions of loss and independence are clear in the newly made paintings and sculptures. The younger artists of the seventies created paintings of joy and glory, not unlike the artists of the fifties and sixties, who went through a similar experience. Abdullah Khalid constructed an open-sky sculpture named Aparajeyo Bangla , the symbol of all the movements and the independence of Bangladesh . Then Shahabuddin Ahmed painted the glorious tales of the freedom fight of our country. His hard, speedy strokes on the canvas raise the true emotions of the struggle back to life.
At the same time, we see Hamiduzzaman creating huge number of environmental sculptures based on the liberation war. These are not only true artistic explorations of the freedom fight but are also an attempt to expand the practice of making sculptures in Bangladesh . His other sculptures capture the geometric revelation of sentiments.
The seventies are very prominent times for Bangladeshi fine arts. The artists of the fifties and the sixties were bound to create abstract works while living in a closed society.
However, the painters of the seventies felt no such boundary. Although the artists of the sixties pined for freedom from their social ‘imprisonment' through stylistic works, these illustration-based artworks ended up revealing only powerlessness. The young painters of seventies came over that self-devouring pessimism which was obvious in the abstract works of fifties. These paintings were in fact overwhelming with emotions of joy and independence. Important artists who followed this trend are A K M Alamgir and Maruf Ahmed.
Hashi Chakravarty, Tandra Das, Naima Haque, Farida Zaman, Nurun Nahar Papa, Zakia Aziz, Biren Shom, Hamiduzzaman Khan, Mansurul Karim, Chandrashekhar Dey, Mominul Reza and Ranajit Das highlighted social consciousness in their abstract art.
In the paintings of Mansurul Karim, our heritage comes through in an abstract and poetic compulsion. Hashi Chakravarty picked up social truths through the expert use of colors, stylistic drawings and with geometric divisions on her canvas. However, in the paintings of Ranjit Das, the contemporary period makes an arrival through a tour into the history of fine arts. For example, to expose the social position of women in our country, he brings up famous paintings and characters from Leonardo Da Vinci and other European masters as an element of his painting. Hangers or clips become the crucial symbols of contemporary reality in the paintings of Mominul Reza, while Kalidas Karmakar presents the all Indian (Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim and folk) heritage through complex lines and a variety of techniques in his prints (Etching & Colography). Always, his works explore the surreal and the supernatural.
Abdus Shakur conceives and uses all the significant signs of the fifties through the seventies. In the beginning, Tarun Ghosh created his paintings based on the social consciousness that he experienced, but afterwards he re-introduced our folk heritage in abstract style. He is an inventor of new styles even in the posters and illustrations that he designed.
The most remarkable painters of the seventies are Mizanur Rahman, Shawpon Choudhury, Kazi Raqib, Masuda Kazi, Dipa Haq, Anwarul Haq Piaru, Mohammad Mohshin. If we look at the trends then, we can divide the artwork of the seventies into four trends:
• The paintings on Bangladeshi liberation war glorifying the fight itself. It was mainly the freedom fighters who were the creators of these works.
• Surrealistic paintings based on post-war social conditions.
• Abstract paintings.
• Experimental works.
Now if we look at the paintings and the trends of this age, we see a large number of female painters. The most wonderful thing is that it was they who were instrumental in the nourishment and practice of the experimental trends of the seventies. The specialty of these painters is apparent in their unconventional use of media. One can say that they deliberately avoided using conventional media and instead, invented their own adventurous techniques.
Another striking incident took place in the fine arts scenario of the seventies. This was the re-appearance of S.M. Sultan, the painter from the forties. He returned with a bang after a long period of 20 years (from 1956 to 1977) with an exhibition by the Bangladesh Shilpokala Academy. He is more and more an artist of Bengal with his vast and gigantic paintings of that time considering the subject selection and using media. A comment of Mr. Ahmad Shafa on Sultan's works is quotable:
.... these paintings has come and born amidst the farmer society of Bengal in Nineteen Hundred Seventy seven directly, disconnecting from the conscious circle of Renaissance age without any kind of intervention. Bengali Mushalmaner Mon.
The paintings of SM Sultan are such a degree and a level in modern art of Bangladesh that the solution between the prominent condition of locality and the international contradiction is possible by considering and analyzing those. One can call him a true artist of Bengal because of the sheer size of his paintings and also because of the subjects and the media that he chose.
Many talented painters of the seventies were also efficient as illustrators. For instance, Biren Shom, when he illustrated books on poetry, paid most attention to the subtlety of the poems in it. Then there is Kazi Hasan Habib who passed away before his time. Habib tried to combine the art and poetry of Bangladesh .
Of all these, Shishir Bhattecharjee is one who is proudly bold. His drawings undertake a scrupulous control over aesthetic deviation through the expression of social, economical and political matters of the time. When his contemporaries took the shelter of stylistic drawings and abstract styles, Shishir became idolized through his keen and subtle caricatures published in the major national dailies. This has made him the most popular artist of the eighties and the nineties. Coupled with the intellectual messages in his highly satirical drawings are his fine techniques that successfully lead his works towards an aesthetic chastity comparable to Ranan R. Lurie. In fact, one of the most important of Bhattecharjee's caricatures - TUI RAZAKAR is considered to be a political “utility” of the liberation era.
To end the summary of the history Bengali art, it is a must to mention some artists who paint mythological characters in folk styles in order to portray their social conditions. To name some, they are Dhali Al Mamun, Nilufar Chaman, Dilara Begum Joly and Nishar Hossain. Finally, there is Nazly Laila Manshur who represents social reality by combining realism and surrealism, a style that signals a new trend in aesthetics.
by Najib Tareque
translated from Bangla by Ahmed Badall & Mithila Mahfuz
first published: 1998, www.netbizinc.com, second edition: 2008, www.jolrong.com
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http://issuu.com/najib.tareque/docs/kobiter_chitraion_prosonge
Aminul
Islam was the Founder Student of Dhaka Fine Arts institute. Being
mainly an experimental artist, he was the first one to do murals in
Bangladesh , especially mosaic murals. Even though he couples cubism
with abstract styles, the European concept of purity is profoundly seen
in all his works.
Urban Bangladesh thrives on art too, with its colorful trucks, buses, auto-rickshaws, and especially the art done on cycle-rickshaws that has gained quite a lot of attention in the recent times.
One could go on and on about how vast the scope of art is in Bangladesh . In fact, each and every object that is used in daily life represents the art of Bangladesh . However, this article will focus on art that is practiced and applied within an academic scope in the urban society of Bangladesh .
The first sources of fine arts belonging to Bengal or Bangladesh are still unexplored, although during one of its golden eras, the Paal paintings (Puthichitra), from around the eleventh century, reflected great aesthetic finesse. This finesse, in fact, is the most trademark of Bengali art. It is also evident in aristocratic glory that shines through the engraved terra-cotta work done on different architecture like Tombs, Temples or Mosques during the reign of Buddhists as well the during the Mughal Empire.
Apart from terracotta, other forms of art such as the designs done on fabrics like Muslin and Jamdani, paintings on SARA, POTCHITRA and NOKSHIKATHA as well as various forms of embroidery have been handed down through thousand of years of artistic evolution in Bangladesh .
The British Empire , as it played a vital role on everything of this region, also influenced its art. At the beginning of the twentieth century, Havel and Abanindranath Tagore invented a new style that was a combination of Mughal miniature art and Chinese-Japanese styles. This new style became popular and was widely referred to as Oriental art or the Bengal school. Those who followed this school of art, in fact, did so as an act of rebellion against the European concepts in styles. And hence, art also began to raise its voice for independence during this time.
The most widespread manifestation of the eternal essence of folk art can be seen in the Kalighata Pots and in printed pictures, where one can observe the artist's endeavor to reveal their power by adding a variety of dimensions to those pictures. At one point, folk forms were also combined with other, especially European art forms. For instance, three different exposures(combination-synthesis-analysis) consisting of the European style, the new Bengal school and folk forms are found in the master works by Nandlal, Jamini Roy and Vinodbihari. Later on in the scene, we can see Gagan Tagore do paintings with a modern European twist. Rabindranath Tagore followed suit and created many masterpieces, which ultimately enriched as well as popularized the European concepts of fine art in Bengal .
Now Calcutta , before 1947, was the nerve center of art in the sub continent, while Dhaka , no matter how culturally aware it was during that time, was a city that did not practice it. In reality, its pursuit of art was limited to cinema hoardings, backdrop scenes at theatres and portraits of the members of the aristocracy. Nevertheless, the common citizens continued to be a part of the art of the region with their sense of creativity that had stayed alive through thousands of years of nurturing. The very example of this is seen when in 1947, the artists Zainul-Kamrul-Shafiuddin-Anwarul, against strong opposition from a not-so-educated class of people, founded an art school that transformed Dhaka into an established and important center for practicing fine arts. And ever since then, Dhaka has remained in the major league of cities in Asia that have an influence on fine arts.
After 1947, the practice of art - that of the ordinary citizen and that of the institution got divided into three major streams. The mainstream of art or the stream dependent on gallery-room viewings was quite isolated from the contemporary cry of the time, meaning that it did not adequately depict the condition of the country then. As this stream employed the techniques of a very artificial or shallow form of artistic purity, it gradually died out during the mid-eighties.
The second stream took care of book-cover designing and illustration. It was an entirely artist-dependent stream, that is, it relied on how artists wanted to use their personal techniques to delineate the subject matter in literature. Eventually, this category achieved quite a bit of popularity among artists, critics, and even among the general population in terms of its success in portraying public sentiments.
Finally, the third branch, which is based on political movements, is sadly like a lamp that is gradually burning out. This group includes posters, banners, graffiti, and cartoons/caricatures. And despite being such an important dimension of modern art, it is fast getting buried under the dust of neglect. Further, one could also blame the country's ongoing political instability for its slow death.
In contrast, the West continues to enjoy the glorification of its own art forms through the constant and thorough criticism that they receive. Expressionism, Surrealism, Dadaism, action paintings, and the concept of 'Happenings', especially in the works of V. Van Gogh have become immortal in the history of great art. Now in relation to this, the name of Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin also comes to mind. His 'Famine-43' series, its subject being the famine that occurred in Bangladesh in1943, are remnants of the shock and agony that terrorized the nation during that time. Fortunately, Zainul Abedin has not been deprived of the renown that is due to him and his works are among the most notable ones in history.
The years from 1947 through 1950 prepared the ground for Bangladeshi fine art. After Pakistan was declared an autonomous state in 1947, Zainul, Kamrul, Safiuddin, and Anwarul Haque came to Dhaka from Calcutta , followed by Mohammad Kibria, Syed Shafiqul Hossain and Khaja Shafique in 1950. Thus the Institute of Fine Arts in Dhaka was established in 1948 and the academic practice of fine arts began with the foundation of this Institute.
As this happened, there was growing participation and support from the then young and contemporary intellectuals of the region. The significance of their contribution can be understood if we look at what took place after the Dhaka Fine Art Institute was set up.
The first art exhibition in Bangladesh was held in Dhaka in December, 1947, featuring Zainul Abedin's series drawings on famine. The viewing was organized at the F.H. Muslim Hall, Dhaka University . But unfortunately, the exhibit, launched with the help of the then banned Communist Party, could be kept open for only a day. So Ajit Guha and Amiyo Chakravarti, influenced by the exhibition, wrote positive articles in The Daily Azad in order to give currency to the exhibit and the Institute.
Thankfully Mr. Habibullah Bahar, then a minister, advised and supported Zainul Abedin, who, in cooperation of Quamrul Hasan and Aminul Islam, painted one hundreds posters titled "Separation of India and establishment of Pakistan". This poster exhibition was arranged on August 14, 1948 at the governor's residence. Finally, on the recommendation of the chairman of Pakistan Public Service Commission and the world famous artist and critic Shahed Sohrawardi, along with the enthusiastic support of the then D.P.I. head and distinguished scientist Dr. Qudrat-E-Khuda, the Government of Pakistan approved to construct the fine arts institute in Dhaka . It was through the relentless toils of Zainul Abedin, Quamrul Hasan, Shafiuddin Ahmed and Anwarul Haque that shaped this institution as an important cultural center of Bengal . After September 15, 1948 , the day this institute began its expeditions, many young people came forward to help strengthen it through their thoughts and their writings. To name a few, they were poet and novelist Alauddin Al Azad, poet Hashan Hafizur Rahman, scientist and writer Abdullah Al Muti Sharfuddin, dramatist Munir Choudhury, Shardar Fazlul Karim, Enayet Karim, Abdul Gani Hazari, Syed Ali Ahsan, Sanowar Murshed and Artist Aminul Islam.
The fine arts institute set the artists abuzz. Zainul abedin was by then a popular and dynamic personality in the all-Indian artistic arena for his revolutionary famine series, which was a combination of the British academic style and the Eastern two-dimensional style. Plus, he also did regular illustrations for the monthly magazine – Desh . In fact, many other artists in this period, such as Quamrul Hasan and Kazi Abul Kashem, were attached with publishers and illustrated books using distinctive techniques. Later, Zainul Abedin gave up illustrating. Meanwhile, Qumrul Hasan was on the lookout for the art-critics around Calcutta in order to expand his views on the Eastern style or the Oriental wash method used in the paintings. Shafiuddin Ahmed, on the other hand, was quickly gaining fame for his realistic paintings on the Shantal Pargana, done in oil and engraved on wood. Anwarul Haque was busy painting his award winning landscapes in watercolors, which were based on nature paintings done by Khaja Shafique and followed the style of the Calcutta art school. Basically, until 1951, the major characteristic of the fervent practice of fine art in our region was to develop and acquire new styles by combining the British academic style with Bengali folk art.
Modernity hit the fine arts scene here right at that moment. And the practice of institutional or urban art was set in motion. If we take a sub-continental bird's eye view, we can observe modern art being introduced during the late forties. Before this, many artists who had already started working on Bangladesh-based fine arts were preparing to receive modernity and making it a part of the sub-continental art. It was they who introduced 'Modernity' into Bangladeshi art.
By 1953, after the fine arts institute was set up, the artists of the very first group had graduated. They united the ‘40's style with modern western methods, and thus began the practice of all-Indian modern fine arts that attained a distinct form in Calcutta . The noted artist, Mohammed Kibria, graduated from Calcutta Art School and joined as a teacher at the Dhaka fine arts Institute. At the same time, many students of the first and second batch visited Calcutta . Replicas of the paintings of Rabindranath Tagore, Gagonendranath Tagore, Jamini Roy, and Zainul Abedin as well as copies of the paintings done by European artists were published in " Probashi " and other magazines of the like. This set the stage for the modernization of Bengali art through the first generation students of the institute. Other things also catalyzed the process – interactions of both the teachers and students of the institute with contemporary literary giants, scientists and political activists, mostly of the banned East Bengal Communist Party, and of course, the unfaltering artistic temperament of the people of East Bengal .
Bangladeshi art by then was also exploring the Language Movement (1948 -1952) when the teachers and students of the institute involved themselves in it. As a result, banners, festoons, and cartoon sketches about the movement were put up everywhere. Since most of these were instantly pulled down and destroyed, critics claim to have lost the opportunity to assess their artistic value. Some drawings by Murtaza Bashir, however, have remained and are considered as being of great worth.
Then, all at once, various Dhaka-based literary activities and book cover designing became popular practices of the artists. Consequently, graphics design and illustration entailed. At the primary stage, the artists of the forties, mainly Zainul, Quamrul and Kazi Abul Quashem were most active, while the young artists joined the stream after 1950.
In 1951, Zainul combined cubist and folk art to paint " Painar Maa " (Paina's mother). And this became the first modern artwork to be done in East Bengal . In fact until 1959, this was the only mainstream method for practicing fine art around this region.
Later, between 1956 and 1965, when Aminul Islam (Florence), Murtaza Bashir (Florence), Abdur Razzak (USA), Kazi Abdul Bashet (Chicago), Rasheed Choudhury (Paris), Hamidur Rahman (UK), and Novera Ahmed (UK) returned from abroad after completing their studies, they identified the vital problem in the art of our country, i.e., the stamp of European modernity on our art. Their colleagues who had stayed back in Bangladesh , namely Quaium Choudhury, Devdash Chakravarty, and Syed Jahangir, also nodded in agreement. In the meantime, Zainul, Shafiuddin, Kibria also completed different courses in Japan and Europe and returned home. What happened after that was that the teachers and students of the institute got divided in the practice of modern art in Bangladesh . Thus, there emerged three distinct styles - abstract, cubist form, and the combination of cubist and folk forms.
From then on, people started to paint objective abstract forms that were a rendition of the socio-economic condition of that time. This sort of depiction of everyday life in East Pakistan actually added momentum to the popularity of this new style. But the sad part was that it was almost impossible to market art forms that involved any animal or human figure. Besides, our artists refused to work on existing Pakistani art, for instance, on Arabic calligraphy and other forms of Islamic art. This kind of rebellion fueled the Pakistani artists who, on the other hand, found it extremely lucrative to emphasize their anti-Bangladesh sentiments through their art. Nevertheless, the artists of Bengal still acquired and used the contemporary Euro-American objective abstract style with gusto. Even if it did not give them enough economic security, it at least gave them concrete strength to fight against the Pakistani ideology.
The fifties kept the artists busy in education and research. And so in the sixties, the art of this region achieved a certain distinction in aesthetic quality, both at home and abroad. After Zainul, Quamrul Hasan blossomed as the grand master of Bengali art during the late forties. He, like Zainul, also mixed cubism with Bengali folk forms to delineate the society as it was then. In fact, the past and the present of Bengal are clearly represented in his paintings. Moreover, he was a fine illustrator who did covers for a wide spectrum of books such as those on politics, folk tales, and rhymes. His glory reached immortality in 1971, when he did the poster of the monstrous Yahia Khan named "AE JANOARDER HOTTA KORTE HABE" or the poster in 1988 named "DESH EKHON BISHWO BEHAYAR KHOPPARE". We also know him for his " Kherokhata ", a painted history of Bengal from 1947 through 1988.
Then there was Anwarul Haque during the forties - an anxious searching artist. Mainly, he was dedicated to bringing out something new in every painting that he did. Another prominent artist of the fifties with a similar style was Shafiuddin Ahmed, who very soon shifted towards more abstract forms of art. The print media of the country is immensely indebted to him for his work. We can also recall Kazi Abul Quashem, the first Muslim painter of the modern subcontinent until Quamrul Hasan arrived in the scene. As an illustrator, his contribution to art both in Calcutta as well as in Dhaka can not be overlooked. Quashem was a pioneer in childrens' books illustration from mid forties to sixties. His Caricatures on the Language Movement, the division of India , the formation of Pakistan , Hindu-Muslim riots, etc. were the main attractions of the newspapers of that time.
The artist called Kibria of the late forties wished to work on cubism in the beginning. His style, which initially was pure abstract, changed in the sixties. Poetic moods are the inherent characteristics of his paintings. Well known for his innovativeness in the use of colors, Kibria is the most influential painter of modern fine arts in Bangladesh . The other remarkable artists of that time are Khaja Shafique, Syed Shafiqul Amin, Syed Shafiqul Hossain and S.M. Sultan.
Aminul Islam was the Founder Student of Dhaka Fine Arts institute. Being mainly an experimental artist, he was the first one to do murals in Bangladesh , especially mosaic murals. Even though he couples cubism with abstract styles, the European concept of purity is profoundly seen in all his works.
Here one must mention Murtaza Bashir of the fifties generation, who, to put it simply, was a painstakingly industrious artist. In fact, there have never been any questions of purity in his work. His works made an obvious attempt to search new dimensions in style, concepts and even subjects. Of his many works, the most important one is the series of paintings named '' Deyal '' that showed the true picture of the regressive administration of Aiyub Khan. This was the first compilation of purified abstract and metaphysical styles in the fine arts of this country. And the exhibit that promoted it was said to have been solely responsible for spreading the practice of abstract art in Bangladesh . People even compared his work to that of Picasso's. Bashir's aim was always to create art that was an experiment with the different elements and techniques of the art heritages of different regions.
However, Novera Ahmed, in truth, appears to be the first modernized personality in the art and culture of Bangladesh . Our art-admirers and critics first discovered the most quintessential quality of modern art in her sculptures. And that was the use of primitive forms. She compiles folk forms and mixes them with the sculptures and architecture of the Stone Ages. This can be clearly seen in the structural technique of the Ekusher Shahid Minar , the memorial dedicated to the martyrs killed in the Language Movement of February 1952. In her attempt to render the architectural structure of the temples and observatories of Stone Age into the symbol of motherhood, Novera converted the struggles of Bengal into an international struggle of humanity.
In relation to the Shahid Minar , let us not miss out Hamidur Rahman, its other architect and an avant-garde artist of modern wall painting (Fresco) in Bangladesh . Stylistic drawings mark the important quality of his works.
There is also Rashid Choudhury, who re-creates the rural and folk ways of living in Bengal on his canvas using cubist surrealistic forms. He is the one to introduce the method of tapestry and craft in our country. Not only that, but he has also established the Chittagong Fine Arts College and the department of fine arts at Chittagong University . Only he could figure out the importance of setting up another center for the practice of fine arts in the country.
The paintings of Kazi Abdul Bashet repesent geometric textures with sculptural and lyrical tones. His non-objective paintings are comparable to those of Wileam DeCooning, Mark Rothko, and Jacson Polok's.
Meanwhile, it is easy to notice the succinct effort to identify the relationship between object and emptiness in the works of Abdur Razzak. Defragmentations of Civil society are represented in Debdas Chakrabarti’s painting. Nitun Kundu is important for his Abstraction Geometric presentation.
Aesthetics of Illustration or Graphic Design in Bangladesh developed by in one hand, he is Quaium Choudhury. In this field his contribution are legend from 1953 to present (2012). In the history of world art Quaium Choudhury is an extra ordinary person; quantity or aesthetical value of his Illustrations or Graphic Designs can’t be compared with any others. His painting are Illustrative as Pop Art Movement & with sensation of music as Kandinsky.
Here, it is a must to mention Abu Taher, a painter of the sixties, whose paintings involve abstract metamorphoses done in colors that reflect the inner power of human life. Then there are Kazi Abdur Rouf and Shahtab Wahid, who died prematurely. Their paintings are noted for the “poetic chime” that they created using a combination of cubism and folk styles.
The painters of the sixties merely enriched the abstract concept of the fifties through detailed methods and techniques. They developed a sort of pictorial language in figure drawings using the style similar to Fobism. However, they valued personal insight or point of view more than the techniques for searching aesthetic purity in objects. For instance, Mahmudul Haque used the abstract style that was introduced by Kibria. He is one of the finest graphic artists of Bangladesh in terms of his etchings done in aquatint. In fact, this is what makes his work abundant in poetic romanticism.
Coming to Monirul Islam, he has been received very warmly in the international arena for his ingenious techniques and keenness in etching in aquatint media. Works of this painter, especially the abstract ones done while living in Spain , are again full of romanticism and nostalgia. Another artist living in Spain , Shahid Kabir, is, on the other hand, a painter whose motivation is Lalon . Also a teacher of fine arts, his works are rich in expressionism and realism, and revolve around the concept of youthfulness and new ideas. In this sense, he can be considered to be the promoter of neon-realism. Meanwhile Giashuddin, who lives in Japan , was so deeply inspired by the lyrics of Rabindranath Tagore that he painted calm, melancholy pictures of Bengal in watercolors. He is considered to be a distinguished artist of East Asia .
In the beginning, Abdus Sattar had eagerly tried to create modern paintings in watercolor using the Eastern method. Later, this artist earned international fame for his works of graphic art in abstract style. There is also Golam Sarowar, whose landscapes of Dhaka city done in fountain pen mirror the outstanding skills of a fine artist.
Shamsul Islam Nizami is a painter in the abstract style. Another painter employing the same style is Abul Bark Alvy, whose works are largely romantic in nature. He is in fact in the forefront in the field of book illustrations in Bangladesh . The culture and environment of Bangladesh has been most marvelously depicted in his special book illustrations for children.
Then we have Rafiqun Nabi, who is a comfortable player with most media. Nabi has gained enormous fame for his stylistic and subject-focused paintings. His illustrations feature a strong sense of masculinity through the use of variety of lines. In truth, he is the first artist who identified the differences between illustration and other fundamental artworks. His cartoon-caricature and write-ups entitled Tokai is a documentary of the contemporary socio-economic fiasco.
The biggest credibility of Bangladeshi Art is Hashem Khan is to create magic as an illustrator of childrens' books. He has been a pivotal figure in the evolution of many contemporary art concepts in Bangladesh . For instance, many school books carry fine illustrations done by Khan, who has carried the artistic traditions practiced by pioneers like Quaium Choudhury.
Pranesh Mandal and Shamarjit Roy Choudhury are also two remarkable painters of our time who followed a similar trend. The paintings of Pranesh Mandal are naturalistic exposures while Shamarjit followed the abstract track. Apart from them, Abdur Rouf Sarkar, Ashem Ansari and Nasir Biswas have also created some wonderful paintings and illustrations.
After the disappearance of Novera Ahmed, the contribution of Anwarul Haque is extremely important in giving a new life to the practice of sculpture in our country. Specifically, he is the pioneer in practicing and establishing wood-cut sculptures, the most common element of art in Bangladesh .
Fine arts in Bangladesh has been subject to two movements – the mass movement of 1969 and the liberation war of 1971. After a struggle of nine month's, the two contrasting emotions of loss and independence are clear in the newly made paintings and sculptures. The younger artists of the seventies created paintings of joy and glory, not unlike the artists of the fifties and sixties, who went through a similar experience. Abdullah Khalid constructed an open-sky sculpture named Aparajeyo Bangla , the symbol of all the movements and the independence of Bangladesh . Then Shahabuddin Ahmed painted the glorious tales of the freedom fight of our country. His hard, speedy strokes on the canvas raise the true emotions of the struggle back to life.
At the same time, we see Hamiduzzaman creating huge number of environmental sculptures based on the liberation war. These are not only true artistic explorations of the freedom fight but are also an attempt to expand the practice of making sculptures in Bangladesh . His other sculptures capture the geometric revelation of sentiments.
The seventies are very prominent times for Bangladeshi fine arts. The artists of the fifties and the sixties were bound to create abstract works while living in a closed society.
However, the painters of the seventies felt no such boundary. Although the artists of the sixties pined for freedom from their social ‘imprisonment' through stylistic works, these illustration-based artworks ended up revealing only powerlessness. The young painters of seventies came over that self-devouring pessimism which was obvious in the abstract works of fifties. These paintings were in fact overwhelming with emotions of joy and independence. Important artists who followed this trend are A K M Alamgir and Maruf Ahmed.
Hashi Chakravarty, Tandra Das, Naima Haque, Farida Zaman, Nurun Nahar Papa, Zakia Aziz, Biren Shom, Hamiduzzaman Khan, Mansurul Karim, Chandrashekhar Dey, Mominul Reza and Ranajit Das highlighted social consciousness in their abstract art.
In the paintings of Mansurul Karim, our heritage comes through in an abstract and poetic compulsion. Hashi Chakravarty picked up social truths through the expert use of colors, stylistic drawings and with geometric divisions on her canvas. However, in the paintings of Ranjit Das, the contemporary period makes an arrival through a tour into the history of fine arts. For example, to expose the social position of women in our country, he brings up famous paintings and characters from Leonardo Da Vinci and other European masters as an element of his painting. Hangers or clips become the crucial symbols of contemporary reality in the paintings of Mominul Reza, while Kalidas Karmakar presents the all Indian (Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim and folk) heritage through complex lines and a variety of techniques in his prints (Etching & Colography). Always, his works explore the surreal and the supernatural.
Abdus Shakur conceives and uses all the significant signs of the fifties through the seventies. In the beginning, Tarun Ghosh created his paintings based on the social consciousness that he experienced, but afterwards he re-introduced our folk heritage in abstract style. He is an inventor of new styles even in the posters and illustrations that he designed.
The most remarkable painters of the seventies are Mizanur Rahman, Shawpon Choudhury, Kazi Raqib, Masuda Kazi, Dipa Haq, Anwarul Haq Piaru, Mohammad Mohshin. If we look at the trends then, we can divide the artwork of the seventies into four trends:
• The paintings on Bangladeshi liberation war glorifying the fight itself. It was mainly the freedom fighters who were the creators of these works.
• Surrealistic paintings based on post-war social conditions.
• Abstract paintings.
• Experimental works.
Now if we look at the paintings and the trends of this age, we see a large number of female painters. The most wonderful thing is that it was they who were instrumental in the nourishment and practice of the experimental trends of the seventies. The specialty of these painters is apparent in their unconventional use of media. One can say that they deliberately avoided using conventional media and instead, invented their own adventurous techniques.
Another striking incident took place in the fine arts scenario of the seventies. This was the re-appearance of S.M. Sultan, the painter from the forties. He returned with a bang after a long period of 20 years (from 1956 to 1977) with an exhibition by the Bangladesh Shilpokala Academy. He is more and more an artist of Bengal with his vast and gigantic paintings of that time considering the subject selection and using media. A comment of Mr. Ahmad Shafa on Sultan's works is quotable:
.... these paintings has come and born amidst the farmer society of Bengal in Nineteen Hundred Seventy seven directly, disconnecting from the conscious circle of Renaissance age without any kind of intervention. Bengali Mushalmaner Mon.
The paintings of SM Sultan are such a degree and a level in modern art of Bangladesh that the solution between the prominent condition of locality and the international contradiction is possible by considering and analyzing those. One can call him a true artist of Bengal because of the sheer size of his paintings and also because of the subjects and the media that he chose.
Many talented painters of the seventies were also efficient as illustrators. For instance, Biren Shom, when he illustrated books on poetry, paid most attention to the subtlety of the poems in it. Then there is Kazi Hasan Habib who passed away before his time. Habib tried to combine the art and poetry of Bangladesh .
Of all these, Shishir Bhattecharjee is one who is proudly bold. His drawings undertake a scrupulous control over aesthetic deviation through the expression of social, economical and political matters of the time. When his contemporaries took the shelter of stylistic drawings and abstract styles, Shishir became idolized through his keen and subtle caricatures published in the major national dailies. This has made him the most popular artist of the eighties and the nineties. Coupled with the intellectual messages in his highly satirical drawings are his fine techniques that successfully lead his works towards an aesthetic chastity comparable to Ranan R. Lurie. In fact, one of the most important of Bhattecharjee's caricatures - TUI RAZAKAR is considered to be a political “utility” of the liberation era.
To end the summary of the history Bengali art, it is a must to mention some artists who paint mythological characters in folk styles in order to portray their social conditions. To name some, they are Dhali Al Mamun, Nilufar Chaman, Dilara Begum Joly and Nishar Hossain. Finally, there is Nazly Laila Manshur who represents social reality by combining realism and surrealism, a style that signals a new trend in aesthetics.
by Najib Tareque
translated from Bangla by Ahmed Badall & Mithila Mahfuz
first published: 1998, www.netbizinc.com, second edition: 2008, www.jolrong.com
More...
http://issuu.com/najib.tareque/docs/orchestra
http://issuu.com/najib.tareque/docs/bangladeshi_art_in_nigaah
http://issuu.com/najib.tareque/docs/bangladeshi_women_artist
http://issuu.com/najib.tareque/docs/kobiter_chitraion_prosonge
Aminul
Islam was the Founder Student of Dhaka Fine Arts institute. Being
mainly an experimental artist, he was the first one to do murals in
Bangladesh , especially mosaic murals. Even though he couples cubism
with abstract styles, the European concept of purity is profoundly seen
in all his works.
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