The inauguration of "Inward Gaze", the first solo art exhibition of Syeda Asma Akber took place at the capital's Gallery Chitrak, Dhanmondi yesterday (February 24). The event was graced by the presence of cartoonist Professor Rafiqun Nabi as the chairperson, famous artist Monirul Islam and Professor Nisar Hossain, Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of Dhaka as special guests. 

The inauguration ceremony made space for all the special personalities to convey their respective compliments to artist Syeda Asma Akber in the form of cordial speeches. Following the progression of the event, the exhibition was underway. 

The walls of Gallery Chitrak have been adorned with Syeda Asma Akter's beautiful art pieces since yesterday. The paintings are outcomes of acrylic colours on large canvases. The sizes of these paintings can easily overwhelm a spectator. The first painting on the entrance wall is "Pinnacle" consisting bold colours and dynamic shapes. 

Upon entering the gallery, the painting "Tranquility" greeted me with its eye-soothing hues. Being asked about her art journey, the artist said that she simply loves to paint and she poured her heart into her paintings. This exhibition is the result of her love for art which she initiated after her hiatus – more than 40 of her paintings which took eight years to complete are being exhibited through this art exhibition.

The most dominant characteristic of Asma's paintings is the bold use of triangles and the colours blue and yellow. The shapes and colours sometimes are chaotically sublime, sometimes peacefully symmetric. Several of the pieces contains semiabstract houses. 

Asma has also made use of spatulas to create her paintings that are no less than magical wonderlands. Some of the pieces made me feel a sudden burst of anemoia. Paintings "Sombre" and "Sublime Blue" are dreamscapes. "Verdant View" is filled with enchanted green shades. "Amalgamation of Cultures" shows the difference in houses of the north and the south of the northern hemisphere. "Moonlit Journey" and "Joyful Journeys" are all about the harmonious mingling of boats, water, and the sky. Paintings "Nightfall", "Mystic Dream", and "The Red Sky" are ethereally pretty.

"An Intimate Environment" looks as if it were a sectional perspective drawing of a building. The most vibrant and otherworldly artwork to me was "Helio" which is a painting of the sun in the sky. The strokes of Asma's spatula have created this painting as though to depict the sun just being born and the sun god Helios will soon be traveling with it.

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In short, the whole exhibition carries a vibe of sincerity, joy, and tranquility. Gallery Chitrak will run this open-for-all exhibition till March 10, 2024.