Page 136 - Art and Crafts of Bangladesh

SCULPTURE 133

extraordinary qualities. Moreover, she also had first hand and clear ideas about modern
sculpture. She went to the Rodin museum in Paris. While in England she must have
been exposed to the works of Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth and other modern
sculptors. She was sincere and devoted to sculpture and did not accept any barriers to
come between herself and her study of it. Her close friend, the artist Hamidur Rahman
possibly empathized with her passionate enthusiasm for sculpture with his own
greatness and helped her as a well-wisher for many years.
In 1956 Novera completed her study of sculpture and returned to her homeland.
Though Novera’s original parental residence was in Chittagong, her childhood had
been spent in Kolkata. Novera’s mother’s hobby was modeling in clay. Kolkata’s open
environment, blend of many cultures, diversity of mainstream and folk art may have
nurtured her dream to be an artist. Novera’s cultured family gave her enough
inspiration to practice the arts.
She created a stir in the art world of Dhaka after her return to the country. Those were
the times to realize dreams. When Pakistan was established the Bengalis had thought
that they would enjoy equal status and rights as citizens of an independent country but
this was proved wrong. Immediately after partition Bengalis were faced with a new
question about their culture and identity with the Language Movement. The strength
to sacrifice lives for the mother tongue pushed them towards greater clarity. Amid
debates, confusion and misunderstanding about language and religion, Bengalis
realized that religion was only one aspect of culture. They discovered a secular,
exploitation free, progressive ideal amidst violence, counter-violence and reactions. It
became apparent in every sector that Bangladesh had become a colony of Pakistan
instead of Britain. Bengali artists, litterateurs, intellectuals and others achieved greater
self-realization. Art, literature and music swelled with a new tide. First generation
artists like Zainul, Safiuddin, Quamrul selected rural life, nature or art as their main fig. 2.41 Novera
source. Combining modern ‘universal’ art with this ‘nationalism’ was a difficult task. Ahmed, Cow with Two
Figures, cement, 1958,
The majority of successful second generation artists received some art education in photograph Amirul
Europe or the United States to return home. The fast-moving, modern and apparently Rajib, courtesy
free western art world created in them a fierce attraction for the new. Slowly but firmly Drishyakarma
abstraction grew in their work. Yet it must
be admitted that secularism and a kind of
open, progressive thinking were
characteristics of the artists of those days.
Mohammad Kibria, Rashid Choudhury,
Aminul Islam, Abdur Razzaque, Hamidur
Rahman and others had faith in freedom of
ideas. It cannot be denied that the freedom
was mingled with the particular concept of
freedom of the west. They had to go to
considerable trouble to combine patriotism
and the attraction for the west.