A homage to creativity: A display of 14 artists

Love by Biren Shome & Fishing boats by Syed Enayet Hossain

In Abdus Shakoor's work we find the folk motif and raw colours that best tell the folk tales of the villages. In Story of Noder Chand we find women's faces in blue and purple with a backdrop of deep pink containing a bird done in dots and zigzag lines. A man in black and white is included in the composition. As we move on to Abu Taher, we discover energetic splashes of colours. There is a mixture of strong vibrant hues such as burnt sienna and burnt umber mixed with dashes of royal blue and sea green.

We come across more futuristic work in Samarjit Roy Chowdhury's paintings that speak of folk festivals. Within the rectangles of blue, orange and black are floating figures of humans, birds, flowers, fish and buntings, done in delicate black lines and touched with splashes of bright colours. The figures have an air of playfulness, washed in waves of blue and yellow. The Japanese calligraphy effect dominates the brush strokes of Pranesh Mondol. With white flowers bursting as the symbol of hope in the mucky green, a red sun peeps behind the black bars.

The elements of friendship, peace and beauty are focused in Biren Shome's acrylic, Love. Here we see the sharp features of a woman clad in a green sari and red blouse, holding on to a snow-white dove on her hands. The beautiful human form, with elegant features, is enveloped by the beauty of nature -- with trees, leaves and the blue moon standing out against the green backdrop. The impact of crumbled scraps of paper is found in Swapan Chowdhury's cubistic work. Fish, flowers, kites and folk faces are found swirling within the cubes of yellow, red and brown and white. Dots, lines and swirls complete the composition. Many of the paintings appeared abstract but artists like Swapan Chowdhury commented, "Paintings are not illustrations. They are like the pages of an artist's diary. I consider my paintings as realistic although they may appear abstract to many."

A lot of green and blue have gone into Chandra Shekhar Dey's creations. In the centre of the canvas is the drama and tension in shades of green set off by the blue. The elements of water and breeze have been well captured by the detailed streaks and swirls of jade and emerald. The story of lost love, loneliness and suffering is found in Syed Enayet Hossain's oil on canvas Devdas. We find the lips of desire, eyes closed with despair, the glass of absinthe. Clouds of white and black create the confusions of the mind.

Rezaul Karim's figures in Dream on Panam city-1 and 2 have sculptural qualities. The man appears to be full of longing while the woman seems delicate and fragile. Parapets, arches, doorways from the past form the backdrop of the forgotten city. Rafi Haque's Memories is a collage of colours in space, with each section of the painting having its own story in the colour harmony. Like most other entries of the renowned city artists, this too is mind-boggling. Anwarul Haque, another artist added "I have brought in ancient symbols to project universal values such as the head of Buddha standing for peace."

"The turnout at the exhibition has been satisfactory." said Elthem Kabir, the chairperson of Society for Promotion of Bangladesh Art (SPBA).