Arts-&-Culture
With ‘Nasek Nasek’, 10th Dhaka Lit Fest comes to a close
The 10th edition of Dhaka Lit Fest, which took place over four days featuring a wide range of the world's top authors, filmmakers, singers, and artists, has been concluded at the Bangla Academy with a reaffirmation of its dedication to promoting Bangladeshi literature, culture, and arts.
The festival concluded on Sunday with an enthralling closing ceremony, featuring performances by Coke Studio Bangla artistes Animes Roy, Ritu Raj, Pantha Kanai, Boga Taleb, Momotaz, Rubayat Rehman and its other artistes. With ‘Nasek Nasek’, the debut track of Coke Studio in Bangladesh, the 10th edition of the literary festival bids its adieu.
Read more: Episodes of her Gaze: Maksuda Iqbal Nipa's resplendent art collective launched at DLF
The formal closing act was conducted at the Abdul Karim Sahitya Bisharad (AKSB) auditorium before that, and it started with a dynamic dance and recital performance by Jatrik named "Women Rise" about women's emancipation.
The adversity and persistence against women in the Indian subcontinent were portrayed through the performance of classical and modern dance forms, choreographed by Naila Azad Nupur with recitals by DLF director-producer Sadaf Saaz and Nupur herself.
Booker Prize-winning Indian author Gitanjalee Shree, eminent Somalian novelist Nuruddin Farah, Dhaka Tribune editor Zafar Sobhan, City Bank managing director and CEO Mashrur Arefin, and Dhaka Lit Fest director and producer Sadaf Saaz spoke at the closing ceremony, sharing their remarks bidding adieus and expressing their gratitude to everyone.
BSA extends 19th Asian Art Biennale for one week
Responding to the demand of avid art lovers, the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) has extended the 19th Asian Art Biennale Bangladesh 2022 for one week.
The biennale will now welcome its visitors till January 13.
The closing ceremony of the exhibition was held at BSA's National Theatre Hall Saturday.
Presided over by BSA Director General Liaquat Ali Lucky, the event was joined by Speaker of the Parliament Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury as chief guest. State Minister for Cultural Affairs KM Khalid, Cultural Affairs Secretary Md Abul Monsur, and eminent artists Shahabuddin Ahmed and Monirul Islam were also present.
Many enthusiastic art admirers and visitors were seen on the BSA premises yesterday on the Asian Art Biennale's last day.
Both Khalid and Liaquat said they received multiple requests for an extension of the exhibition, but had to announce its conclusion.
However, the next editions of this flagship event of the BSA will be held for two months, they added.
"Despite the fact that the 19th Asian Art Biennale officially drew to a close, we decided to extend it for another week due to the demand of our art enthusiasts. The galleries will be accessible to the public until January 13. However, it will not be extended further, as we have other exciting projects in our schedule," BSA Public Relations Officer Hasan Mahmud told UNB Sunday.
On December 8, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the month-long art extravaganza online. The exhibition is showcasing 649 pieces of art created by 493 artists from 114 nations, including 149 Bangladeshi artists.
Research-based art exhibition 'River Delta' begins at AFD
Research-based art exhibition "River Delta" has begun at La Galerie of the Alliance Française de Dhaka (AFD).
River and Delta Research Center Chairman Mohammad Azaz attended the opening ceremony as the special guest Friday.
River Delta is the first phase of an ongoing five-year study on Bangladesh's rivers. The exhibition is curated by Juel A Rob.
Artists Apu Raj Bongshi, Mohosin Kabir, Shimul Datta, Najmun Nahar Keya, Promotesh Das Pulak and Mohammad Hasanur Rahman are participating in the exhibition.
Since Bangladesh is a riverine country, a large part of its food chain, trade, communication, and livelihood are river centric. Many communities are directly connected to rivers. The ebb and flow of the rivers weave the stories of many communities, including fishermen, river gipsies, washermen, salt cultivators, sailors, and shrimpers.
However, after the passage of 51 years, Bangladesh has started to take precautions regarding the proper maintenance of water resources, said the AFD.
So, it is very important to create awareness at all levels of society, to have constructive discussions, discharge civic and state responsibilities, and to prepare for the next step by studying different types of case studies, it added.
"In that case, it is very important to understand the internal or international political context. Many issues, including complexities within the country, river encroachment; protection of river environment, aquatic life and fauna diversity, international power politics, protection of potable water bodies, ocean and river governance, are involved here," the AFD said.
Episodes of her Gaze: Maksuda Iqbal Nipa's resplendent art collective launched at DLF
Unveiling the kaleidoscopic world of vibrantly crafted abstract paintings by renowned painter Maksuda Iqbal Nipa, Cosmos Books on Friday launched 'Episodes of her Gaze' at the 10th Dhaka Literature Festival (DLF).
The maiden publication of Nipa's majestic artworks published from Cosmos Books, the book was unveiled by Nabila Rahman, Digital Transformation Strategist of UNB, at the Cosmos Books stall at DLF, at Bangla Academy in the capital
Expressing her gratitude to Cosmos Books for publishing her maiden art collective, Maksuda Iqbal Nipa said that she is honoured about her book being a part of this year's DLF, as it returned from a three-years hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The concept of the book reflects my contemporary artworks, which I began during my days back in Japan where I studied my Master's. This book features 200 artworks from several of my exhibitions, and it was jointly created with artist and art writer Javed Jalil," Nipa told UNB.
"Although this publication was previously launched at the National Musuem during my solo exhibition and later at the Dhaka Art Summit, this is the first time my art collective is being exhibited in DLF through this publication," she added.
Read: ‘Nobo Opens a Door’: Engaging storytelling enthrals children at DLF
The book is edited by Catherine Grace Gardener and Mubin Shadman Khan, while the layout and design was made by ARK Reepon. Photographs of her artworks for the book was contributed by Nipa's husband, and renowned artist in his own right, Mohammad Iqbal, as well as ARK Reepon, Hossain Shahid Echo, Mizanur Rahman Khoka, Rezaul Haque, Rasel Chowdhury, and Sourav Chowdhury.
The book also contains a foreword by the late Australian cinematographer Dr Jim Frazier, a pioneer behind the camera who worked with Sir David Attenborough in his heyday. The multiple award-winning naturalist fell in love with Nipa's works during the time he spent in Bangladesh in 2015-16.
A masterful painter with a vivid knowledge of abstract paintings and known for her vibrant abstractions that are frequently illustrated on enormous canvases, Maksuda Iqbal Nipa earned her BFA (Drawing and Painting) in 1996 from the Faculty of Fine Art, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, and in 2002 she enrolled in a Post-Graduate Research Course (Oil Painting) at the Aichi University of Education, Japan. Nipa graduated from the Aichi University of Education in 2004 with a Master of Education in Fine Arts (Painting). Nipa's artistic style drastically shifted during her time in Japan from representational to her own brand of abstraction.
A proponent of the French maxim "Art for art's sake," Nipa’s journey with her creations has always been independent, and adamant to not serve any didactic, moral, utilitarian or political purposes. The artworks of Nipa are abstract, emotive, visual diaries of the hardships she endures on a daily basis as a woman and a person.
She was inspired to craft her artworks by her longing for harmony and her wish to flee the oppression she encounters; she experimented and created oil paintings on big canvases while discovering what it meant to be liberated from oppression. She subsequently continued to develop her pieces over time until they had no structure or shape.
Read: “More than meets the eye”: Dr Kenneth Robbins on Habshi rule in Bengal and Africa-India connection in the Middle Ages
Nipa's journey as a woman and artist is about toiling with spaces of birth, prolonged states of contemplation and obscured flights of silent fancies. Her pictorial parameters are gardens of the seen, unseen and the absorption of moments as the eyes take in the trillions of information. But her link is more to the sensory unconscious mating of environments where she dwells in an escape, seeking bliss.
The zone of her imaginative contemplation is the words hidden behind veils of curiosity and doubt.
In her visual plates, the anxiety of merging the ethereal and objective and the contest between directions, takes her into a perusal of pictorial repetition and planes of separation. There is an inclination of losing the self into a private monologue of layers, as a conversation between thoughts, memory and time. She rectifies her subjectivity into circles penetrating various formations of expression.
Her certain obsessions and journeys are silenced and trapped within the visuals as layers pressing the other, keeping an essence of the previous times. Her use of scratchy strokes of anxiety creating tactile sensitivity, subdued dense lines of obscurity relating unfathomable space of vision. The pigments from underneath and within are parallel and vertical cross-hatchings of gestural activity between visual elements. They are chromatic gradation of light sensations.
As an artist, Nipa's inner mood and reminiscence of the hidden self is a quest which she meditates through silent overtones of restless urges and modes which slowly live with the existing self- glancing diary of canvases.
In her illustrious career, Nipa has held numerous solo and group shows at home and abroad, including the National Museum of Bangladesh, the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France, the Toyota Municipal Art Museum in Toyota, Japan, the Las Vegas Art Museum, USA, the Youngone Corporation in Seoul, Korea, etc. She has been honoured by Bangladesh Mahila Parishad (Bangladesh Women’s Association) for outstanding contributions to her respective field. Nipa has received numerous awards and grants from Japan, China, and Bangladesh.
“More than meets the eye”: Dr Kenneth Robbins on Habshi rule in Bengal and Africa-India connection in the Middle Ages
Addressing the fascinating history of the Habshi dynasty in Bengal (from 1487 AD to 1493 AD), prolific international researcher, archivist and curator Dr Kenneth X Robbins on Thursday said that proper archiving of the particular period in South Asia is necessary.
“There are remarkable and important chapters in the Afro-South Asian diaspora including the activities of the African rulers in Bengal and elsewhere in South Asia. There are fascinating stories regarding religion, racism, music and so on. All this history has to be put together by historians,” Dr Robbins said as the honorary speaker at the National Professor Atwar Husain Memorial Lecture 2023, delivered at the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh on Thursday.
He said, “There are stories regarding Habshi rulers and their activities, such as Malik Andil (Sultan Saifuddin Firuz Shah) who was very generous to the people but we don’t actually know what he did. His son succeeded him who was a federal ruler, and the final ruler (Shamsuddin Muzaffar Shah) was also known as a charitable person. We know other stories regarding Africans building mosques in Bengal, bringing their culture here. This is all very interesting…these are important to the history of Bengal.”
He mentioned a book project on the documentation of Bengalis and Africans from the Indian Ocean world — co-edited by Nahar Khan, Executive Director of Cosmos Foundation; Dr Rosie Llewellyn-Jones MBE, a well-known British scholar with expertise on Lucknow and its culture; and himself. The book would contain several chapters on African elites in Bengal, important characters in Bengal, Bengalis abroad, and music featuring names such as American musician Bardu Ali with a Bengali Muslim origin.
Chairperson of National Professor Atwar Husain Trust Fund and Liberation War Museum founder-trustee Mofidul Hoque chaired the seminar.
Read more: ‘Historical and unexplored ties between Afro-South Asian communities need cultural attention’
Spardha to stage ‘4.48 Montrash’ at Mahila Samity from Jan 5 to 13
Spardha, the independent theatre collective known for its unique and fascinating productions, will stage its acclaimed “4.48 Montrash” at the Nilima Ibrahim Auditorium of Bangladesh Mahila Samity in Dhaka, starting from Thursday.
Adapted from the late British playwright and stage director Sarah Kane’s “4.48 Psychosis”, the Bangla version of the play translated by Shahman Moishan and Sharif Siraj is designed and directed by noted theatre personality Syed Jamil Ahmed.
Read more: Green University English Club stages “Macbeth”
From January 5 to 13, a total of eleven shows of the play will be staged at the venue, according to the organisers.
Storyline of the play revolves around a young female artist and her psychosis, shedding light on issues including sexual assault, torture, murder, religious intolerance and turmoil in society.
It showcases a unique poetic style as opposed to the traditional linear narrative, in order to embrace a post-dramatic architecture by crafting an amalgamation of literary techniques including soliloquies and monologues, stream-of-consciousness, everyday dialogues, and direct narratives addressed to the audiences.
Read more: Batighar stages 'Radcliffe Line' at BSA
Popular filmmaker Mostafa Sarwar Farooki was enthralled with the play in December 2020, and lauded the production for its excellence.
“A befitting production to end a depressing year! Jamil Ahmed once again didn’t fail to create magical moments, throw the right questions, and place us in front of a disturbing mirror! All the performers made me believe they hate to live this unjust and chaotic life! Mohsina Akhter (lead in the play) gave a powerful performance once again, she was so relatable!,” – Farooki wrote on Facebook at the time.
Two tiers of tickets are available for the shows – Tk 500 and Tk 1000. Students and theatre activists can watch the play at a discounted price (Tk 300) per show.
Ticket details are available on the Facebook page of Spardha and also at the event page of the play.
Curtain rises on Dhaka Lit Fest 2023 Thursday
The tenth edition of the Dhaka Lit Fest will be held at the Bangla Academy from January 5 to 8.
The fest will host many award-winning authors and internationally acclaimed speakers, including Nobel laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah; winners of the Booker and International Booker, Neustadt International, PEN/Pinter, Prix Médicis, Academy Award, Windham-Campbell Prize, Albert Medal, Waterstones Children's Book Prize, and Aga Khan Award.
Read more: 32 bands to take the stage of Dhaka Rock Fest 3.0 on December 27,28
This year's line-up also features Nuruddin Farah, Amitav Ghosh, Hanif Kureishi, Pankaj Mishra, Tilda Swinton, Jon Lee Anderson, Onjali Rauf, Sarah Churchwell, Geetanjali Shree, Daisy Rockwell, Esther Freud, Alexandra Pringle, Dame Sarah Gilbert, Marina Mahathir, Joy Goswami, Anisul Hoque, Mashrur Arefin, Kamal Chowdhury, Muhammad Zafar Iqbal, Marina Tabassum, Syed Manzoorul Islam, Imdadul Haq Milan, Kaiser Haq, Shaheen Akhtar, Amitabh Reza, Azmeri Haque Badhon and more.
Over 500 speakers, performers, and thinkers representing five continents will participate in the four-day event with over 175 sessions.
Along with a diverse mix of conversations and dialogues, and sessions on science and technology, there will also be activities for children, and young adults, film screenings, and theatrical, music, and cultural performances at the fest.
Read more: Ganga-Jamuna Cultural Festival 2022 draws to a close
Dhaka Tribune and Bangla Tribune are the event's title sponsors, City Bank platinum sponsor, and British Council is the strategic partner.
Online registration for the fest is now open. Tickets are available for Tk200 and Tk500, and entry will be free for children under 12.
Majestic Silks of Bangladesh Exhibition by Maheen Khan: Fashion in silk gets the heritage touch
Showcasing the rich history of Bangladesh's illustrious silk industry as well as efforts to support and promote local designs, a three-day exclusive solo fashion exhibition titled ‘Majestic Silks of Bangladesh Exhibition by Maheen Khan’, is currently underway at the Nordic Club, Gulshan in the capital.
The solo design exhibition began on Tuesday (December 27, 2022), featuring some of the unique designs of eminent Bangladeshi fashion designer Maheen Khan, the founding president of the Fashion Design Council of Bangladesh (FDCB) and the founding managing director of Mayasir, a trend-setting brand that emphasizes the nation's traditional embroidery.
Sharing her motifs and visions with UNB regarding her major solo exhibition in a long time, Maheen Khan said that this event is proudly showcasing some of the exclusive, handmade crafts as a befitting tribute to the country’s majestic silks.
Read more: BGMEA, Fashion Design Council to promote khadi globally
For People and Planet: New cookbook with insights into carbon footprint of each dish
Crab cakes made with fonio, an ancient West African grain, or Ratatouille prepared with "imperfect" produce to reduce food waste, are only a couple of the over 70 recipes included in a recently launched cookbook with climate-friendly and delicious recipes.
The Cookbook in Support of the United Nations: For People and Planet" is divided into chapters that include food systems, biodiversity, sustainable consumption and production, climate, as well as food waste, providing recipes, yes, but also insights into the carbon footprint of each dish.
Renowned chefs such as UN World Food Programme (WFP) Goodwill Ambassador Chef Manal Al Alem, and Chef José Andres, as well as indigenous home cooks and farmers from around the world, have contributed to the book.
The book is the brainchild of Kitchen Connection, an organisation that for a decade has been bridging together culinary arts, sustainability and education, and driving the discussions on the need for a food systems transformation.
"We found that those in the highest-emitting countries in the world emit through our food choices about 3 kilograms of CO2 emissions per meal. The recipes in this book have 58.6 percent less carbon compared to an average meal from high-emitting regions of the world," Kitchen Connection founder and New York University Professor Earlene Cruz, told UN News.
The cookbook also highlights and follows the World Health Organization's macronutrient guidelines, making the recipes not only healthy for the planet, but also for everyone.
But most of all, it puts a spotlight on how important people's food choices are and how they can impact their immediate environment, no matter where they cook.
Cruz said: "Whether we're in cities, in suburban or rural areas, or somewhere as remote as Antarctica, consideration of our food choices and how they impact our immediate environment is paramount."
Read more: Activists target Salt Bae’s upscale London steakhouse
Group art exhibition begins at Zainul Gallery in Dhaka University
A group exhibition named “Japan & Bangladesh – A Group Art Exhibition” has begun at the Zainul Gallery, the University of Dhaka.
The exhibition is jointly organized by Embassy of Japan in Bangladesh, the Department of Drawing and Painting, the University of Dhaka and sponsored by bKash Ltd.
DU Vice Chancellor Professor Dr. Md. Aktaruzzaman, Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy of Japan in Bangladesh MACHIDA Tatsuya inaugurated the exhibition.
Read more: Bangladesh’s Victory Day celebrated in Dubai with ‘Bijoy Art Exhibition’