Delving into the charms of rural Bengal

Prints by Mokhlesur Rahman.

Mokhlesur Rahman is one of the most creative printmakers of our country. After a hiatus, the artist is having a solo exhibition in New Delhi, which begins today.
Luminosity and simplicity are the characteristics of Rahman's prints. His enigmatically resonant prints are cerebral and profound. His images are pensive and implore the viewer to ponder.
Rahman is one of the very few in Bangladesh, who are working on this expensive and arduous medium. He has been working with this medium for a long time. Rahman has unfolded his creative wings and tried to create an individual path in our contemporary art scene. He has flourished in printmaking with great zeal. Though the medium is complex and time consuming, the artist could overcome these limitations with his immense efforts and devotion.
Rahman delves in romanticism and nature of rural Bengal. Lush greenery, flora, fauna, mustard fields, moonlit nights, the unique shades nature takes on in the six seasons and the unparalleled beauty of Bengal appear in his works intimately and vibrantly. Rahman works in wood, and paints on its fibre. He finds texture hidden in fibre. The fibre's uneven state helps him to create something more attractive and appealing. The artist tries to articulate his personal sufferings; liberty, adoration and despair are supremely painted on the surface of fibre. His works are marked by intelligent use of lines and texture. The lines are sometimes broken or appear as scribbles.
Shafiuddin Ahmed, Mohammad Kibria and Rafiquan Nabi are prime figures in the woodcut medium in our country. Rahman is one of the capable followers of these eminent artists.
Mokhlesur Rahman's fifth solo exhibition is being held at Dhoomimal Gallery, New Delhi. The exhibition ends on December 29.