‘9+ONE: Interdimensional Journeys’: a spiritual journey in guise of art

The inauguration of "9+ONE: Interdimensional Journeys" took place at Edge Gallery, Gulshan-2 on June 16, 2023. The event is a group art exhibition displaying the observation and multidisciplinary expressions of 18 emerging artists of Bangladesh. These young people explored the nine physical dimensions plus time, and the possibilities of journeys inside one's mind. This led to their unusual styles of playful and existential notes that carry human connection to earthly matters.

Edge Gallery at Bay's Edgewater is adorned with beautiful art pieces carrying the versatility of the young artists of our country. The artworks that caught my eyes are done by sisters Auntora Mehrukh Azad and Ananya Mehpar Azad, with hot pink and red-orange backdrops.

Ananya's paintings show a goddess and a tiger of Bengal. Auntora's paintings depicted contrasting images of the struggles of our village-folk during floods and the privileged people enjoying an infinity pool.

Apu Rajbongshi's "Mathshonyaya" is a piece where utensils are extruded from a rectangular slab. There are five more of these slabs that the artist has manipulated into their sculptural art. Sharad Das's "Urban Dream-14" portrays a person screaming amidst several mikes. na SuborMorsheda's patchwork-like piece "Upolobdhi" is a woodcut on paper – a combination of simple colors, and forms of humans and flowers that give a down-to earth vibe.

Anisuzzaman Faroque's "Hanging Moon-2" is a simple sculpture with an ethereal beauty and grace. Hridita Anisha's gouache paintings "Dreaming Ma", "Suspended", and "Fear of Monotony" reminded me of the impressionistic paintings of Europe. "Massive Cow (Nocturn)" by Rakibul Anwar is a thought-provoking painting.

In search of a sisterhood, Azizee Fawmi Khan has painted the people close to her and this resulted in the series "Congnitive Hue". "Cognitive Hue-8" is a group of portraits of three women and the folk motifs juxtaposed together to create an abstract narrative,of how they navigate through life. "Mundane Olive" belongs to Azizee too which is inspired from her mother and the kind of housebound life she and her contemporaries lived. Their sisterhood is what helped them to lead their adult lives. Reflecting a vibe of old photographs, in this painting, the women themselves turn into lovely motifs.

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Celebrating the best of art

The whole gallery contains paintings, sculptures, and photographs that are not only a delight to the eyes but also, any person can learn and understand a lot about contemporary art of Bangladesh.

Edge Gallery will run this exhibition till July 8, 2023.