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     Volume 6 Issue 20 | May 25, 2007 |


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Art

Anadi Kumar Boiragi's Quest for Self-Entity as an exhibition is a very personal walk though his life. In these troubled times soul searching is a common pastime often pondered over but never fully expressed, this is the first of many deviations Boiragi takes from the trodden path. Like the failing grade on a report card the results of the average man's soul search remains unpublished, whispered about in dark corridors but never openly discussed. Boiragi steps out of the silence and in his quest for self-entity and he comes bearing gifts, Twenty-nine of them to be precise. 29 full expressions of his search which he has opened up to the world, his deeply personal journey is now open to all, for every failing grade there is one that passed with flying colours and the whispers are replaced with applause.

Enjoying Freedom-1
Enjoying Freedom-2
Enjoying Freedom-3
Enjoying Freedom-4

The Exhibition from Within

His style has changed and morphed over the years, while there was a penchant for figurative work before the deeper he delved into his spirituality the more profound his work became.
Mythical Composition 01
Mythical Composition-2
Mythical Composition 03

Nader Rahman

Boiragi's first exhibition for eight years has taken more time then he would have liked, he says “my last solo exhibition was back in 1999 since then I have wanted to exhibit more, but I could never find the time. In fact I was even supposed to have one in 2003 but for some unavoidable reasons it never took place.” But the time has done him well as his style has changed and morphed over the years, while there was a penchant for figurative work before the deeper he delved into his spirituality the more profound his work became. Another reason for the impetus behind the exhibition was his wife friend and confidant Rotna, he says “she was one of the inspirations behind the exhibition, she kept supporting me throughout and this is as much her exhibition as it is mine.”

Urban Life-1

Some of the best examples come from his Mythical Composition series, while Mythical Composition-1 is the starter, a sort of prelude to the grater things that will follow. Number 2 is far more intense with a deep but radiant orange dominating the painting. The mixed media of the painting allows him the leverage of adding a black strip behind the dangling necklaces. Interestingly enough the necklaces are reflections of each other one in the overpowering orange with another in the stunning black. But by far the best of the mini-series is Mythical Composition-3 there the orange has nothing holding it back, it breathes and pulsates within its placid frame. Of that distinct shade of orange Boiragi says “orange was personally important to me, it is a clear representation of Baul and spirituality, in fact I wanted live music everyday to compliment my exhibition, but that could not be arranged.”

His exhibition runs from the 18th to the 31st of May at the Alliance Francaise, but one feels the space given to him was not adequate for the exhibition. There is a sense of being overwhelmed by the sheer number of paintings together in one long, narrow corridor. But even that takes little away from his artistic autopsy. To the complaints of a lack of space he says “I had originally thought that I would get the larger exhibition space but it was not to be, I made do what I had, but even than I had to leave out all my larger work which I hoped would get an audience.”

Urban Life-2

There is another mini series titled Enjoying Freedom from 1 to 4. While numbers 1 and 2 seem almost lyrical to the eye, 3 and 4 come off far bleaker but still teaming with life. The use of birds here is especially important, he uses them as visible expressions of the enjoyment of freedom, their wings unleash them from the burden of reality and essentially the futility of it all. While the reckless abandon of 3 and 4 are nowhere to be seen the use of the circle comes up again and again in his work. The circle, and being trapped within it seems to embody a Sisyphusian view of life. Numbers 3 and 4 break away from the spheres and seem the most uninhibited work in the exhibition, while the fact that they are some of the most recent may have something to do with it. But in the end the birds and the circles are revolving entities, they appear again and again in his work. Boiragi says “the bird is representative of freedom, I needed to depict them in a certain way” but sometimes even they (the birds) must live within the curved walls of the absurd or as we commonly know it, the sphere

Another engaging mini series is his urban life series where city life is shown at its chaotic

Urban Life-3

best. There are common threads to all three in the series, the chaotic texture, dark colours used extensively on small canvases along with the silent witnesses of the crows. They appear insignificant yet free, a kind of caged freedom that most aspire to, not daring to let it all go. There are also lines and lines of telephone wires, only adding to the frenzy. While the concept of hectic city life has been done to death, it has never been quite like this. The canvases are small and detailed without being overbearing, but the dark colours speak volumes. They are extensively used and create the ambience of suffocating urban toil. The paintings are powerful but not overbearing.

At the end of the day Boiragi's quest for self-entity took him from the spiritual to freedom and mixed media's with his urban landscapes. His quest is far from over and an exhibition every eight years will not help his cause. For most people the journey is the best part of travelling, while for Boiragi the tales of his travels within his own landscape define his travels. His soul searching was private but the results were for the world. Boiragi's exhibition is a master class in self-definition, while he would humbly say he attempted self definition most would suggest he succeeded.


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