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Sunday, May 1, 2016, Baishakh 18, 1423 BS, Rajab 23, 1437 Hijri


The quaint rickshaw art of Nobo Kumar Bhadra
Solo painting exhibition at Alliance Fran?aise de Dhaka
Published :Sunday, 1 May, 2016,  Time : 12:00 AM  View Count : 26
Cultural Correspondent
A solo painting exhibition titled 'Summer in Colour' by artist Nobo Kumar Bhadra is now on at Zoom Galerie, Alliance Fran?aise de Dhaka. The inaugural ceremony of the exhibition was held on April 29.
Dr Pierre-Alain Baud, writer and researcher, Moinuddin Khaled, art critic, Anwar Hossain, photographer and Imorz Hassan Chowdhury, creative director were among the distinguish guests present during the inaugural ceremony. Bruno Plasse, Director of Alliance Fran?aise de Dhaka welcomed the distinguished guests and presided over the opening ceremony.
The innumerable streets of big cities and not-so big cities in Bangladesh has the name rickshaw written on them. For a good number of rural-to-urban migrants rickshaw is an opportunity to make their ends meet; for environmental campaigners they are the perfect environment-friendly, pollution-free transport to go for; for commuters finding their hearing lessening everyday in the deafening clangour of the horns and whistles rickshaw is a relatively soundless ride - the list goes on. Though the engineering behind the vehicle is antiquated as the age-old rickshaw in Bangladesh has not changed much since the early-twentieth century, the incomparable artistic aspects rickshaw ornaments itself with is unlike anything even today! Adopting from a wide range of topics: myths and legends of Bangla, Dhallywood film posters and characters, folklores, pastoral scenery with rivers and greenery, architectures like bridges and buildings, rickshaw paintings never cease to provide the unmindful viewers with something to become mindful for.
Nobo Kumar Bhadra, a veteran rickshaw painting artist, has more than 25 years of expertise under his belt. Under the tutelage of his master Shitesh Shur, Bhadra started his journey with rickshaw painting in 1987 after having working experience with painting film banners in late 70s Dhaka. As a firm believer of establishing rickshaw painting as an internationally recognised folk art form, he continues to paint, be it on a tin canvas or cartridge paper or on a miniature hand-crafted rickshaw model or on a melamine plate.
The exhibition will continue till May 14.








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