Ekushey on artists' canvas

Artist Imdad Hossain speaking at the event; (L-R) Abul Hasnat, Aminul Islam and Robiul Hossain are also seen

Quoting from the memoir of master artist Quamrul Hasan, Hasnat said that from the very beginning artists such as Aminul Islam, Murtaza Bashir, Imdad Hossain, Rashid Chowdhury and Quamrul Hassan got involved with the movement as they used to paint posters with spirited slogans. "On February 21, 1952, Murtaza Bashir, Imdad Hossain and many other artists participated in the historic event by taking the injured activists to hospital. To observe the Martyrs' Day our painters have always participated with their artistic weapons sharpened with the true spirit of Ekush," he added.

Besides organising Probhat Feri and publishing collections on Ekushey, the artists started organising painting exhibitions in the Shaheed Minar premises from 1965 onwards. In 1969 they also painted the events of 1952 in chronological order on canvas.

The spirit of Ekush captured the minds of the pioneer artists, as was evident in their creations from their creations during 1950s-1970s. Despite limitations, newspapers like the Daily Ittefaq, the Bangladesh Observer and the Daily Shangbad published supplements on Ekush during the pre-Liberation period. Quamrul Hassan, Qayyum Chowdhury, Hashem Khan, Zainul Abedin and other prominent artists lent their brushes to illustrate these newspaper supplements.

Some of these reprinted illustrations by 46 artists during the 1953 to 1971 are now on display at the auditorium of the Liberation War Museum. Looking at the illustration such as Murtaza Barhir's portrayal of a procession in which both men and women participated, or Amirul Islam's presentation of chains in black that symbolised the agony caused by the imprisoned state, one would vividly feel the spirit of that time.

Language activist artists Imdad Hossain and Aminul Islam reminisced on their experiences of 1952. Poet Rabiul Hossain also spoke at the occasion.

The discussion programme was followed by a cultural session. Recitation group Shawnan presented a compilation of poems titled Ekushey February directed by Ananya Laboni. The presentation was compiled from writings of Zahir Rayhan, Sikandar Abu Zafar, Shamsur Rahman, Syed Shamsul Haque, Al Mahmud, Alauddin Al Azad, Nirmalendu Goon and Mahbub Ul Alam Chowdhury. Members of Udichi also performed songs of Ekushey at the programme.