Page 186 - Art and Crafts of Bangladesh

PRINTMAKING 183

and settled there. As a printmaker he is successful and
popular for his etchings. His etching exhibitions and
workshops introduced to Bangladesh the trends in
modern printmaking. He popularized some new
etching techniques in our country like the application
of many colors on the same plate, application of acid
directly onto the plate in the aquatint method to create
the effect of watercolor etc. Monirul Islam’s etching
aquatint is very transparent and sometimes appears to
be like watercolor. He has created further variety by
using the collage print method. A collage print is one
where colored paper is pasted to the paper on which
the print will be taken. Introducing various techniques
like these he has added a new dimension to the
printmaking of this country. The subjects of his work
are people, nature, country, the liberation war, etc. In
his early work images are recognizable (in the
seventies), later abstraction takes over, but it is
inspired by reality (pl.3.19). In 1993 he directed a
workshop organized by the Bangladesh Shilpakala
Academy and in the same year the Shilpangan Gallery held an exhibition of his prints. fig. 3.10 Ratan
The young printmakers of Bangladesh were quite excited by his works. He has Majumdar, Kite,
participated in many solo and group exhibitions and is an honored artist in Spain with woodcut, 1982
many international prizes to his credit. His important series are – Homage to
Bangladesh (1971), Creation of a Nation (1971), and Flying Eye (1976).
Kalidas Karmakar is an important artist in the milieu of printmaking of Bangladesh. The
particular form of his line-based etching prints is well appreciated in the art world of
Bangladesh; his works are figurative but opposed to the conventional figurative trend,
his unique quality is the emergence of symbolic figures from a complexity of lines
(pl.3.4). In 1969 he obtained his Bachelor’s degree from the Calcutta College of Art and
Craft. In 1977 he went to Poland for higher education where he received special training
in printmaking. He has held many solo exhibitions at home and abroad. One of his
achievements is forming an organization named ‘Atelier’71’ (1985) for popularizing
printmaking. Besides providing training on printmaking this organization gives
enthusiastic artists working facilities. From 1982 to 1984 he received a fellowship of the
French Government and was trained in the studio of Heiter, the famous artist in the print
media. His series are – Image-46 (1974) and Image-47 (1974).
Mahmudul Haque joined as a teacher of the Art College in 1969 and joined the
Printmaking Department in 1984. He obtained higher degree in printmaking from
Japan in 1984. In 1968 he participated in the Printmaking Workshop of Michael Pons
de Leon at Karachi. Michael is a world famous American printmaker. Mahmudul
Haque’s noteworthy contribution is skill in the ancient mezzotint method. He has
created quite a few art works in this medium. His important series is Stone upon Stone