Moklesur draws inspiration from nature

An art work by Moklesur Rahman on display

Rahman uses bold and buoyant colours, with dramatic sweeps of overwhelming lines that couch and impregnate the hues. Flamboyant and fastidious, he presents the harmony and joie de vivre of his country with care and candour, bringing in chiaroscuro of light and shade and the unheard music of silence of nature. He includes the golden paddy fields, the rows of violet, emerald and mauve streams, the rhapsody of birds, bees; the cattle in the pasture and the endless labouring farmers and fishermen are included in the weave of his remarkable vision. In his abstract- impressionist style of juxtaposing of his lines and hues, he invokes a universal appeal.

He brings in tranquillity and harmony in his lyrical forms by the use of his multiple blocks of wood. He employs pre-coloured hand-made paper, along with the use of jet-black ink. With his fine vision and intellect, he experiments with multi-layered transparent colours, which he uses with subtlety and discretion.

Rahman has been influenced by Safiuddin Ahmed, Mohammed Kibria, along with Abul Barq Alvi and Rafiqun Nabi. The US artist Karen Kunc, who conducted a workshop at the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy in 1995, also inspired and encouraged him.

Rahman has taken part in 11 foreign group displays in France, Japan, India and Bangladesh. He has participated in 18 other local joint exhibits. He has won two awards: the Grand Prize of the 10th Asian Biennale, Bangladesh, and Honorable Mention Award at Saju Gallery (both in 2001).