Behind the Scene

From Mymensingh

Natural Inspirations

Aminul Islam

Bipul, a promising young artist with a keen interest in portraying nature art, has convened a gallery of fine arts at his residence in Sherpur. The gallery is the first of its kind in Mymensingh region. Bipul calls his gallery 'Ro-sienna', after a particular colours used for painting.

Born in Sarderpara of Jamalpur district town on 1974, Tariqul Rahman Bipul graduated from Fine Arts Institute of Dhaka University this year. His fascination with nature started from an early age, perhaps due to the abundant natural beauty of Sherpur itself. A permanent resident at Raghunath Bazar in Sherpur district town, Bipul hopes to be able to expand his gallery in the future.

Bipul is fond of painting vivid, colourful landscapes of his Sherpur. He is also interested in all sorts of art media. He has worked extensively in different art forms: interior design, fashion design, drawing, painting, sculpture, and handicrafts.

In his works, he likes to play with both the real and the surreal. His ideas have been praised by many who have come to visit his gallery. Of his exhibits, the Komodo Dragon sculpture is especially noteworthy a piece he worked on for 27 days. The sculpture depicts a komodo dragon rushing to safety as she is being chased. Through this sculpture, the artist depicts human cruelty towards the animal kingdom.

All his creations have been accommodated in his personal gallery for the audience. The artist himself developed the floor plan. The ground floor of his two-storied building has been converted into a gallery. There is a box-cot in the middle of the room, with terracotta figures inside as well. An artificial tree with a round table under it reminds all visitors of the artist's fascination with nature.

Bipul also exhibits his talents in making ornaments made of paper and masks of different shapes. He uses puti, jhory, stone, multi-coloured Japanese mount board paper, burnish, threads, clip and other materials for his work. Bipul said that making paper ornaments that are cheap but attractive is a fresh new idea, which should appeal to women from all walks of life. The artist also said that art might be a source of earning a living for many young boys and girls of the remote district town, as such ornaments ands other items have its share of demand in Bangladesh and abroad.

Bipul has chosen his own town to do something for the people who have no access to modern arts, and has become a popular personality in Sherpur district town. According to Bipul, art is an important part of a country's identity and so arts and artists should be encouraged.