Aishwarya Raihan

DAS 2023 was a blast that left us with more appreciation and appetite for art. Two years will go by soon and before we know it, DAS will be back in 2025 hopefully, with a bigger burst of emotions, skills, and creativity.   

February is the month of spring, love, books, and flowers. Along with Ekushey Boi Mela, this month also sees the return of the biggest arena of art and culture—Dhaka Art Summit (DAS) 2023.

Day one of Dhaka Art Summit (DAS) 2023 kicked-off at the National Art Gallery of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy on February 3, 2023. 

The opening ceremony for Hasura Akther Rumky’s first solo exhibition, ‘Self and Others’, took place at Alliance Francaise de Dhaka (AFD) on Friday, January 27.

The female physique has always been an object of love, passion, desire, and lust regardless of race, caste, place, and time. Human world and its growth revolves around the womb. However, the body of a woman is also a reflection of male domination and violence. And the wounds it receives, visible or not, can tell horrifying stories. Dilara Begum Jolly’s solo exhibition ‘In/visible’ is a depiction of female bodies and the injuries inflicted upon them.

The opening ceremony of ‘Bengal Stream: The Vibrant Architecture Scene of Bangladesh’ was held at Bengal Shilpalay December 10, 2022. M.A Mannan, Honorable Minister of Planning, Government of Bangladesh inaugurated the exhibition as the Chief Guest. Nathalie Chuard, Ambassador of Switzerland to Bangladesh, and Honorable Member of Parliament, Mr. Asaduzzaman Noor, were also present as Special Guests at the event.

Photography is so much more than just a click of the camera. Like paintings, photography has contributed to the world of visual arts in a diversified way. Speaking of photography, we had the privilege of talking to the fashion photographer of Bangladesh in 2022, Sheikh Suraiya Rehnuma, the founder of LenZKraft.

‘Airport Style’ is a rising clothier brand run by young entrepreneurs who have recently made a name in the fashion industry of Bangladesh. We had the opportunity to talk to the founders, Ashiq Seraj and Imayan Vignarajah, on their three-year journey.

Delicate like butterfly wings, And yet as strong as boulders Her mind is a divine place, Eternal peace on her shoulders. 

"Morph(in)", a visual art exhibition by Reesham Shahab Tirtho, Ata Mojlish, Abir Shome, and Kazi Tahsin Agaz Apurbo was inaugurated at Dwip Gallery, Lalmatia on December 02, 2022. The four artists took the initiative to showcase their artworks following a certain concept and "Morph(in)" is the result of their artistry.

The first piece of AMS is ‘Lost in Translation’ by visual artist Azizee Fawmi Khan. In search of the soul of a lost city, the artist traveled to Panam Nagar, collected some of its snippets—including the local folktales—and found a connection with the drama ‘Neel Darpan’ by Dinabandhu Mitra.

Abstraction has always been an intriguing medium of expression. In recent years, abstract art has made its way to the general spectators, outside of just artists and patrons. As one of the most popular elements of modern-art, abstraction brings forth unknown and unseen emotions and thought-processes. “Dreams Ascendant”, Saifuddin Ahmed’s first solo exhibition, shows a dominance of this particular style. The inauguration of the exhibition took place at Gallery Shilpangan, Lalmatia on December 4. Artist and cartoonist Shishir Bhattacharjee, and Professor Nisar Hossain, Dean of the Faculty of Fine Art at University of Dhaka were present at the opening ceremony.

The inauguration of “My Blue Stories”—the solo painting exhibition of Russian artist, Sofya Yechina—took place at Gallery Chitrak on October 24. Dr Hasan Mahmud, Honourable Minister of Information was present as the chief guest of the event. Also present at event, were His Excellency (HE) Alexander Vikentyevich Mantytskiy, Russian Ambassador to Bangladesh, as the special guest, and pioneer cartoonist Prof Rafiqun Nabi as the chairperson. “My Blue Stories” has been curated by art critic Aminur Rahman.

A realm with a big black door, I badly want to explore; A signage with a flower of gold, Worn out but not too old,

Watercolour is one of the simplest yet challenging mediums of painting. Once you start a piece, it’s a race against time as one must know how to time the layers of paints. Thus it requires the utmost precision to produce a watercolour painting. ‘The Journey’ by artist Arafat Hosen is a marvelous exhibition containing his watercolour pieces.

Embroidery is one of the oldest art forms in the history of mankind. The most well-known embroidery of Bangladesh is Nakshi Kantha, done with the threads drawn from saree borders. These used to be cherished gifts in families, the motifs and patterns reflected religious and cultural beliefs, and comprised of flowers, foliage, birds, fish, and animals.

“Hidden Beauty”, Khurshid Saleem's 80th exhibition, will run at Gallery Chitrak till October 22..

The inauguration of ‘Doob 2.0- a miniaturesque art exhibition’ took place at the EMK Center, Dhanmondi 27, on September 24, 2022. Initiated by Azizee Fawmi Khan, Doob 2.0 is an attempt to point out the changes in our biodiversity caused by gradual urbanisation.

In collaboration with the German Embassy, Kala Kendra inaugurated “Transient”, Aneek Mustafa Anwar’s first solo photography exhibition, on September 23, 2022. The ceremony was graced by the presence of His Excellency Achim Troster, the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany. Photographer and Principal of Counter Foto- A Center for Visual Arts, Saiful Huq Omi also attended the event as a guest. Curated by Wakilur Rahman, the exhibition started off after the valuable speeches from the guests.

The inauguration ceremony for “Ephemeral Reflection” took place in Arcadia Arts, a contemporary art gallery in Banani on September 23.