Art works that speak through satire

In one of his paintings is the goddess Kali in the modern form, in gray and white, with many hands, and in front of it is a tiger. Mahmud has taken a myth and transferred it into something modern. In the next painting we see a woman riding on a bicycle which represents the materialistic elements in our present time. At first the woman used the tiger for her ends and now she has the bicycle. The second painting is in gold and yellow. Another work shows a woman who is ready to get married which is symbolized by the ornaments around her. Side by side the concept of marriage is satirized by making the woman sit in an overtly sexual way, which is undeniably vulgar. "I've combined the beauty and baseness of the elements of sex in this work," Mahmud says. "In our society we stress on the beauty and tend to play down the ugliness." This painting is in blue, gray and white.

In another painting Shiv, another mythological character, has been presented with many hands and legs, while one cannot make out the details of the face. The character is surrounded by red and purple. "At one time we had deities and glorified personalities to follow but now we don't and we tend to be confused." In the next painting we come across the relationship of a woman/man and her/his dog. The dog stands both for the husband or the wife that takes the commands. In a marriage there is one person who takes the lead and gives the command, according to Mahmud. This painting is in red, orange and black and symbolizes the relationship between a man or a woman and the partner in a marriage.

Kali is presented in another painting and she has been presented in a modern way. In this the artist presents the energy of woman in particular, and people in general. This is in black and red. "In the black I bring in beauty and boldness," Mahmud says. Another painting presents a man who spends all his time. He is seen sprawled on the bed with the bed sheet comprising most of the forefront of the composition. This is in black, orange and red. In another painting the artist has a dog and he says that an animal too have importance in our lives and may have characteristics by which we remember it by. In yet another painting we see two bent figures which represents the friendship between a man and a woman. This is in black, gray, orange and red.

Asked why he had holes in the middle of his square paintings, Mahmud says, "There is no particular concept inside that except that you are compelled to look through the frame which is fixed in our mind and you look at what you want to look at. People see preconceived images in objects before them. Art provides perception of what lies beyond the confines of economics and politics. The window I provide is a limited horizon confined by our perception. Again, my work is an art, which is never finished. I have presented events in our lives with the colours of my own vision. My characters have been presented in an exaggerated and presented with a satirical turn. I want the viewers to peer into their own lives stirred on by my works."

Talking about the artists that he is inspired by Mahmud says that they include Mohammed Kibria and Monirul Islam. In prints he has tremendous admiration for Kalidas Karmakar.

Khaled Mahmud is dong his masters in Fine Arts. He has studied video work with World Vision in 1994 and photography with world Literature Centre in 2000. He has done a workshop with Chandi Lahiri from India, Shishir Bhattacharjee, and Nirmal from Nepal in 1997. He got a Zainul Award for his prints from the Institute of Fine Arts in 2003; he has participated in more than 20 joint exhibits.