Syed Iqbal’s ‘Questioning Eyes’

Syed Iqbal is a renowned Bangladeshi artist, based in Toronto. He recently completed a series of 30 paintings called, "Questioning Eyes", in which he provided his strong impressions of the pandemic and its global impacts, using eyes as a motif.

With wearing masks becoming a mandatory practice across the world, our eyes have become the dominant mode of expression and recognition.

Syed Iqbal’s “Mind the Gap”

The pupil of the eye is a central theme in Iqbal's paintings, as he is seeing  and imagining how the world has changed and what the future holds. He asks questions such as, will the vaccine eradicate this virus? and how will the small businesses and self-employed survive?

Eyes have been a preferred subject of Rabindranath Tagore's writings. As he once said, "I have listened and I have looked, with open eyes. I have poured my soul into the World, seeking the unknown, within the known. And I sing out loud in amazement."

Iqbal, too, has poured his soul on canvas, seeking the unknown within the known, and painted his eyes in amazement.

A painting from Syed Iqbal’s ‘Questioning Eyes’

His paintings are thought provoking, with a meaning and a message. Eyes have been a dominant feature in his pre-Covid works as in his depictions of Krishna, Shiva, Ganapathi and Buddha. Iqbal knows the phrase "No Pain No Gain" well, which was the title of his exhibition in Toronto.

Iqbal is deeply moved and appreciative of the hard work by the frontline workers in hospitals and has dedicated this series to them. He says, "In the end, mankind will prevail through the actions of healthcare workers and researchers, but it must learn its lesson not to alter the balance of nature."

This series of paintings was conceptualised in Dhaka at the start of the pandemic, and completed in his studio in Toronto. A painting from this series was acquired for display at the new Grameen Eye Hospital coming up in Dhaka and a large diptych titled "Mind the Gap" has been made by the artist for a Toronto-based medical devices company called, Baylis Medical, which has manufactured and delivered ventilators for several Canadian hospitals.

The author is the founder and director of SAGA Foundation and South Asian Gallery of Art in Toronto, Canada. He is an art critic, writer, curator and collector.