::: Star Weekend Magazine :::

Art

Photo: Courtesy

Fascinated by the Simplicity of Life

Fayza Haq

Photo: Courtesy

Zohir, 35, amazed his viewers with his splendid and inimitable paintings on the Sunderbans in the recent past at Chitrak. Jovial, self-effacing, he speaks softly and carefully on his paintings, sipping evening coffee at Dhanmandi. He quotes from songs, which he can sing ad-lib in his gentle, husky voice, elaborating on his inspirations for his paintings of numerous mediums. Modern artists have taken their inspiration from music, books, flora, fauna, and what have you, in their overwhelming metropolis existence. Zohir is no exception. With his quicksilver wit and repartee, he elaborates on his styles and themes.

Zohir, who expresses his thoughts, feelings, memories and emotions in paints, rather than anything else, did his Masters (Painting) in '90 from the Institute of Fine Arts, University of Dhaka, having painted since his childhood. He juxtaposes man against nature, specialising in nature, in the different seasons of the year. "Man is a gem placed in nature and so that he too is reflected in my work. The birds, bees, flowers, ferns and fauna are netted in my work, along with other animals, and fish. When presenting man, his environment is included in my focus. If you simply place cows besides the paddy fields and streams , along with the beaten gold sky, this creates an idyll. A quickly sketched-in farmers, fishermen and their wives adds more interest and lustre."

His feelings are far from merely pictorial. He includes the joie de vivre of his childhood in his uncle's home in Bikrampur. The scintillating vermilion creepers and hedges on the sides of the pond with their gray waves, have been incorporated in his work. Even the emerald slime by the pond lend fascination and inspiration. In his eternally optimistic vision, he feels that the problems faced in city life, with the traffic jams and load-shedding too have a beauty of their own, if one should seek for final peace and harmony. "There are variations in beauty. It is the vision that lends the difference. I'm a contented man with a happy outlook," Zohir says.

Photo: Courtesy

Asked to elaborate on his style and theme, he elaborates," I'm influenced by the watercolour of Rafiqun Nabi. I don't copy, but my forms and washes and inspired by his works. I admire Shaheed Kabir (of Spain fame), along with that of my compatriot, Ahmed Nazir. In landscapes, in particular, I am fascinated by the works of Shamsuddoha, Sheikh Afzal and Alokesh Ghosh". From the western world, his pick of painters include Andrew Wyeth ( who does landscapes in water-colour), based in New York. Miro has also had enormous impact on his choice of colour, line and space.

“One of my revered and treasured teachers remains Safiuddin”, says Zohir. “My other teachers such as Farida Zaman, Naima Haque and Kanak Champa Chakma also egged me on along with many others.”

“Water colour is more sensitive than any medium of fine arts. Whatever you do at one go that is the result. In water colour you cannot overlap colours. One must contain the flavours through the rolling and dripping water.”

Zohir is a serious painter whose favourite painter is Rafiqun Nabi, in his view “one of the best painters in Bangladesh.”

The artist says his first artistic influences came from his mother who was an expert at embroidery and nakshikantha and even won prizes for her work at exhibitions. Her work too had human forms along with boats, birds, animals etc.

Influenced and inspired by his mother, wife and of course countless teachers and mentors, Zohir is an emotional artist whose paintings speak to the audience in the most intimate way.