'Shilpaguru' Shafiuddin Ahmed's 6th death anniversary today
Today marks the 6th death anniversary of Shilpaguru Shafiuddin Ahmed, one of the pioneering figures of fine art movement in what is now Bangladesh. Kala Bhavana of Visva Bharati University played a pioneering role in the flourishing of printmaking in British India while Shafiuddin Ahmed, an illustrious alumnus of Shantiniketan, started the journey of the discipline in erstwhile East Pakistan in 1948.
Shafiuddin Ahmed's artistic themes include rural life, landscapes, memories of 1971, Language Movement, flood and environmental disasters. His immense contribution to contemporary Bangladeshi art over six decades has earned him international acclaim. Through his lifetime practice and perseverance, he made our world of printmaking reach an international height. As reserved and reflective by nature he deliberates much time over a single piece of work, experimenting and searching for perfection.
Artists, printmakers, teachers, family members and personalities from various art organisations and galleries will pay homage to Shilpaguru through placing floral wreaths at his grave nearing Central Mosque of University of Dhaka at 10 am today.
A recipient of Ekushey Padak (1978) and Shadhinata Padak (1996), Shafiuddin Ahmed was born in 1922 in Calcutta (now Kolkata), India. He was a student of Calcutta Government School of Art and graduated from the institute in 1942. After the partition (1947), Shafiuddin left Calcutta for Dhaka, and got involved in a movement to set up the first art institute in the then East Pakistan. He was a friend and colleague of Zainul Abedin, one of the founders of Dacca Art College, now called the Faculty of Fine Art, University of Dhaka.
Comments