Of quaint flora and fauna

Acrylics by Zahir Hossain Newton

Zahir Hossain Newton's acrylic work seen recently at Gallery Zoom at Alliance Francaise deals with nature. He brings in trees, leaves, grass, cacti and birds. At times he introduces the face or figure of a woman onto the paper. Apart from painting, Newton does woodcarving too, and onto the wood surface he introduces his preoccupation with nature.
"I simplify the images of nature and try to give them a form of my own, with thin carving leaves and simplistic birds. The elements of nature are sometimes seen upside down to introduce a different angle of the image I wish to focus on," says Newton. He complements the greenery with dainty, compact birds and quaint women. His "Rhythm and nature" stresses on the cadences of flora, inhabited by fauna.
The colours are laid on flat and yet they create a remarkable harmony of leaves, branches, grass and brown and red birds that are soon disappearing from our environment, specially in the cement jungles of the city. The repeated application of the fine green, brown and blue strokes soothe the eye and the mind and reaffirm the tranquillity and beauty of leaves, grass and blossoms. The cactus is included as the artist believes it to be something rare and beautiful in our country, specially the flowers.
"I had won a Berger award some years back with a painting such as this, and my teachers, such as Abdus Shakoor and Mahmudul Haque, had urged me to continue with these forms and images," says Newton. As a crafts student, with a Masters to his credit from IFA, he was taught the techniques of water-colour and acrylic as a student." Since the gallery is a small one, Newton felt that acrylic would be the best medium to set off his works.
Asked which are his favourite artists, Newton says that they are Van Gogh from Europe, MF Hussain from India, and Monirul Islam from Bangladesh. So far Newton has exhibited in India, China and Japan.
His profession is that of a designer. "If I could give more time for my free-lance work, I'm sure their quality would have improved. I hope to have another solo in October in Khulna," he says. "I have a group of my own called 'Space Visual Art', with seven artists, and we have exhibited at Bengal Gallery and New Delhi recently with success, "says Newton.
When doing his work, Newton first does a layout. After drawing, he applies the colours. He has put different colours for the birds, such as pink, blue and orange, to suggest their endless movements. The human figures are sometimes blue to suggest their tie with nature. Fine texture work, resembling pencil marks have been introduced to lend variation and interest.