Restless time, ruthless affairs: Duet exhibition at Britto Art Space
A duet art exhibition titled Droher Kaal (State of Affairs), organised by Britto Art Trust, is underway at Britto Space, a contemporary art hub located at Green Road, Dhaka. The exhibition began on July 14 and will conclude on July 28. Promising artists Aminul Islam Ashik and Shimul Datta are displaying their symbolic and innovative sculptures addressing contemporary socio-political issues and global power practice.
The exhibition also concentrates on affairs like unplanned and chaotic urbanisation, cacophonous hydraulic horns cased by the deadly traffic jam, climatic change, environmental degradation, multifarious pollutions, corruption and morbid faces of landscape, cityscape and mindscape. Ayesha Sultana and Shimul Saha are the dual curators of the show.
According to Ayesha Sultana, Shimul Datta's sculpture titled Selfie attached to a fan motor is either shaking its head in distress to our current affairs, or serving a warning by endlessly saying no to the whole situation. The fan in the heart of the accompanying humanoid sculpture suggests cooling off the spectator, so that they can remain silent in comfort, knowing that there is not much they can do to the snowball effects of the industrial age. “The motifs of chairs repeated through the sculptures of Ashik allegorically symbolise the game of thrones or perhaps the global politics theatre to keep the masses down and under,” Shimul Saha wrote.
Shimul takes a jab at the paradox by transforming the racket into sculptural forms with three objects on a prominent wall representing the noise of Dhaka.
The artist duo feels an urge to safeguard the deadlock city Dhaka and the world at large through their artistic expressions. They feel heartbroken bearing in mind the imminent destruction of the environment, ecology and ecosystem we are in.
Both Shimul and Ashik completed their BFA and MFA from the Department of Sculpture, Faculty of Fine Art, University of Dhaka. Ashik's artistic practice includes sculpture, installation, object-making and new media art. He received the best award in sculpture in the 18th Young Artists' Exhibition and took part in Britto's Students' Residency Program 2013 in Nepal and SANDWICH Residency Program 2015 in Japan. Shimul's forte includes painting, sculpture, conceptual art, digital art and installation. He received the Honourable Mention Award in the 4th National Sculpture Exhibition 2018 and was an artist-in-residence in Sandwich Inc. Japan, Tokyo Wonder Site and participated in many exhibitions and workshops in Bangladesh, Japan and India.
Comments