Alia Kamal's 'Excerpts' under way at Jatra Biroti
Painting is one field that has become a popular calling to many. While Charukola is throbbing with young students from different walks of life, some aspiring painters are taking private classes, while others are teaching themselves. Alia Kamal is one such painter who recognised her passion early on in life and has been working on improving ever since.
Organised at Jatra Biroti, Excerpts, Alia's first solo exhibition, is a brilliant showcase of her oil paintings. Her works portray fragments of entire lives - intimate moments, perhaps in the mundane or perhaps in silent crises. “I try and paint from my distinct gaze of being a Bangladeshi woman struggling to find her identity in the chaos of Dhaka,” says Alia. “My artistic philosophy aligns with the thoughts of artist Hannah Wilke who said that women should “universalise” the “personal” and make it the subject of their art.”
Alia dedicated herself to art while working at the BRAC Institute of Educational Development. Soon, she left her job to be a full-time artist. For Alia, it was a gamble that worked out. She recently spent about five months in Nepal teaching and practicing art, where she felt that her art-making became really organic. Before the trip, she felt that her hands were very restricted and she neither felt fully confident about her technique nor was she collected about her vision of her work. “My time in Nepal was very restorative and gave me some much-needed practice and perspective,” she explains. “By the end of it, I was itching to get back into the studio and tackle some new challenges. Once I started working and the paintings grew, I felt finally ready to gather the courage and try for my solo exhibition.”
Although at first it was terrifying, Alia's friends and family really supported her and she has not looked back since.
Her works were previously featured at the Dhaka Arts Center, TedxDhaka, Longitude Latitude 6, Mad Koffee 2.0 and the Milkshake Collective. In the near future, Alia hopes to seek more training in drawing and painting in an atelier art studio.
The opening reception of Excerpts was held on November 10, with a classical music performance of flute by Musarrat Jabeen Rahman. The exhibition will continue till November 24.
Comments