Of live models and muted colours

Jamal Ahmed at work in his studio

Asked why he stuck to realism while most painters today have gone in for abstraction, Jamal says, 'When I returned from Japan, I began with abstraction in 1986. However, I felt that this art form was difficult for the viewers to accept readily, and that abstraction abounded aplenty in the country, following the trends of Mohammed Kibria and Aminul Islam. I wanted to be different and I got great pleasure in realism. There is an element of modernism in my works, however, such as in this painting, if the stork didn't exist, it would have been a pure abstract piece.'

Jamal goes in for muted colours such as brown and blue, As he says,'I don't much care for bright, scintillating colours. In the works of great artists like Rembrandt, it is muted tints and tones that have been used. I deal with the ordinary things in life such as beggars, migratory birds, overloaded cargo boats. What I like best is the study of the nude models. I use dark-skinned models as I find the colour easy to work with, and bronze skinned models are easy to get. I'm also fascinated by birds as pigeons and doves are found everywhere such as in London or Paris, and they stand for peace.'

Talking about how he works, Jamal says, 'When I work with live models, I make them pose for an hour at a time and let them rest in between. I may not be in a mood to work consistently and so I may let off my model for a day and work on a painting for about a week. Sometimes I use a photograph as in the case of a horse, as it is difficult to get them live in our country. I do preliminary sketches as in Buriganga, which is 28 feet long and is found in the Heritage Restaurant. In between I listen to music such as baul songs and western music such as Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, and Cindy Lauper.'

Touching on the artists who have influenced him, Jamal says, 'I've been greatly moved by the texture work of Anthony Tapis from Spain. From our country, I've always had great admiration for the line work by Zainul Abedin and the abstracts of Mohammed Kibria which evoke nature through the tints and lines. I love Shahid Kabir's paintings as they are so vibrant. I like Shahabuddin's capturing of movements too.'

Asked about the difference in his time and today, Jamal says, 'We used to do a lot of outdoor landscape but today students bring home digital pictures and work from them. The students today fail to capture the intrinsic feelings of being outdoors.'

Rafiqun Nabi, speaking about Jamal having a gallery named after him, said that this was a new experience for Bangladesh. This, he said, 'requires a lot of courage.' Nabi added, 'The gallery contains his usual paintings in which one can easily recognise the subjects, which are based in Bangladesh. Technically he is very creative and experimental.'

Jamal's seven awards include three from USA and the gold medal in the 11th National Art Exhibition at Shilpakala Academy in 1994. At the age of 48, he has had 48 solos and taken part in 30 group shows.