A kaleidoscope of forms and faces

Kalidas says, "The small pieces are work on paper, each one of which I made myself individually so that each paper with the blue works is original. I work with guache which is water based, but strong and expensive colour. I used some mixed media elements to raise some portions. I used emboss and utilized liquid like silver on top. The series represents blue harmony and it is like my personal diary and is different from anything I've done before. My lifestyle has changed and I feel more at peace and my work reflects that lyrical quality. The large canvas with the portraits labelled 'alluvial faces' is symbolic of the faces that we see around us in the farmers and everyday labourers."

'The heart of the people are basically gentle like the soft soil of the Ganges, Padma and Meghna whose banks they inhabit and work in. Why I highlight these faces is because these people have been peaceful for centuries, even though kings and emperors have made war for their own ends'.

Asked in what way the present exhibition is different from the ones he had held before, Kalidas says, "I always change my themes and subjects as I go along. I always work in a thematic manner. This exhibit focus on fewer subjects than the ones before. I have dealt with the human faces of our country, the people I know and others that I have only seen in passing."

Touching on his work "Alluvial face-2", Kalidas says, "The red dominated canvas has numerous textures and layers of colours and top left hand side is a geometrical slot as if a window has been cut there. The expression on the face is a painful one while my finger has been used to paint the face. In all my large canvases where portraits have come in, I haven't used my brush but rather my finger as I want to feel both the colour and the emotion of the situation. Thus there is a close contact between the feeling, the colour and myself. I'll be delighted if this close contact is correctly conveyed to my viewers. Below the work, on the right hand side, is a square form which is hollow opening to the world beyond through which the peace of the blue sky creeps in. Even though the work is one that is wrapped in despair yet I'm an optimistic person and hope for better days."

He continues, "The other painting 'Alluvial faces-0'" is one of my latest creations and contains beads, semiprecious stones, talisman and calligraphy from the Koran saying 'Bismillah', along with the broken bangle or 'shakah' of the Hindu widow. Along with the faces come the form of the game of chess. Behind all this is the actual mud from Chittagong which has been pasted with soil glue from USA. The painting represents the mazes in a society which has different patterns which must be in harmony so that the society may grow and flourish."