Commitment, or the life of an artist

Zainul Abediner Sharajiban
Hashem Khan
Somoy Prakashan

Hashem Khan is known as a reputed painter in our country. He is also the author of quite a few informative books. Most of the books are related to art and painting. Zainul Abediner Sharajiban is one such work, where we are brought in touch with Zainul Abedin's life and the circles within which it moved. The book, in addition to focusing on the artist's life, looks at Zainul Abedin as a teacher, organiser, patriot, curator and above all a good human being.
Zainul exercised mastery over a wide range of subjects. He held opinions on topics such as the environment, patriotism and non-communalism. He was an ardent and realistic painter. His canvas was a perfect reflection of the Bengali way of life. With his touch of artistry these objects came to life in varied manifestations of ecstasy, hilarity, joy, adoration, anguish, liveliness, conscience and courage.
In 1943 occurred a devastating famine. During that period, Zainul carefully depicted the sufferings of the people through his sketches. These sketches still haunt us and take us back to the days when crows, dogs and men shared food in the dustbins. He always portrayed our critical times on canvas. His themes were famine, the socio-economic structure, political instability, rural charms, natural beauty, tribal life and other contemporary issues. As media, oil, water, pen, ink, pencil and pastel are used in his works Zainul Abedin was born on 18 November1914 in Kishoreganj. He studied painting at the Government School of Art in Calcutta from 1933 to 1938, and then taught there until 1947. His work first attracted public attention in 1943 when he produced a powerful series of drawings of the Bengal famine. After the partition of India in 1947 he worked as chief designer in the Pakistan government's Information and Publications Division, and also became principal of the Institute of Fine Arts in Dhaka, which he helped to found in 1948 and where he remained until 1967. From 1951 to 1952 he visited Europe and other continents for exhibiting his work at several locations, worked at the Slade School of Art in London, and represented Pakistan at the UNESCO art conference in Venice in 1952. An exhibition of his work in Lahore in 1953 became the starting-point for a series of exhibitions aimed at promoting contemporary Pakistani art. In 19561957 he travelled to Japan, USA, Canada, Mexico and Europe on a Rockefeller Foundation fellowship and in 1960 he visited Russia. He mainly presented our culture, heritage, rural life, folk culture and our tribal society. Following the emergence of Bangladesh in 1971, he was regarded as the founding figure of modern Bangladeshi art. His works have embraced a variety of styles from the realistic sketches of the Bengal famine to semi-abstract and abstract paintings. Examples are preserved in a number of collections, including the Zainul Abedin Sangrahashala in Mymensingh, the Academy of Fine Arts in Calcutta and the Lahore Museum.
In 1974, Zainul Abedin was honoured along with Kazi Motahar Hossain and Professor Abdur Razzak. In same year, he was rewarded D.Lit. from Delhi University. Zainul Abedin suffered from lung cancer in 1976. His treatment continued here and abroad. But he did not recuperate. He died on 7 May of the same year.
Such publications on Zainul are rare. The book is well edited. It is a matter of great joy that such a book has been published in our country. It ought to be a collector's delight. There is much variety in the book. The pictures are bright and the captions help the readers to know about the snaps.
By reading the book, you can easily get a clear concept of Zainul Abedin and his way of life. The writer has tried to collate all the significant images of the maestro in the book.
Takir Hossain is a journalist and regularly reviews books.