We Indians, it seems, place a high value on fairness. Scan through a few matrimonial classified ads and you’ll see that a requirement that appears frequently, for a girl, is fairness. I’d thought that with our generation we would see this disappear but a recent dinner conversation reminded me that we still have a long way to go This goes out to all Indian ladies who continue to suffer the teasing and taunting of friends and family because they are dark complexioned.

In case you’re interested, links to a few articles/comments saying it so much better than I ever could. A Darker Side of Fair, Fair = Lovely, Bollywood delusions,

20″ X 24″ acrylic on canvas

I used a reference of my niece for this but the people I saw while painting were my two sisters!   Even now I see my sister and not her child.   Did I exaggerate the features I was familiar with till the likeness changed to resemble another person from another time?

Uma WIP 10″ X 10″ acrylic on canvas.  Photo taken by Suporno.

Everyone seems to be discussing Tibet lately. Even my niece, who isn’t quite two, has been taught by her nanny to say “Free Tibet!”.

The reference for this piece is the cover of a recent issue of Time Magazine. 8″ X 10″ Pen & Ink in my sketchbook. I have used a white ink pen to recover from errors. Looking around for a grey pen to be able to use three distinct values in a future attempt.

Our first joint exhibition, ‘Friends and Faces‘ has been a success. It ended on March 31st and the paintings are safely back home. We spotted listings a few times in The Daily Star, the local leading English daily, on a radio channel and everyday during the period in Prothom Alo, the local leading Bengali newspaper and this being our “first” exhibition, we were pleased with the coverage. We even had an interview appearing a week after the exhibition in the Daily Star. Most of all we got great feedback and encouragement from friends, the artist community and even a few strangers! So much so that Smita and I have decided to exhibit together again before the end of the year.

These are a part of a series which I hope my friend will add to. I’m titling it “People that Matter” and have a plan for a similar series on my family and close friends. approx 8″ X 8″ acrylic on canvas. These two need more work.

Update : April 28, 2008 : The Daily Star interview was picked up by the website Indian Art Collectors in their news from the world section.

Three blind mice, three blind mice,
See how they run, see how they run,
They all ran after the farmer’s wife,
Who cut off their tails with a carving knife,
Did you ever see such a thing in your life,
As three blind mice?

Winter sun, open spaces and getting away on your lunch break.

When there is a heavy load to bear, sometimes you need to walk alone.

Inspired and named after Tagore’s beautiful, nationalistic poem, “Ekla cholo re”. It is an exhortation to follow your heart, alone if necessary.

“Ekla cholo re”, 24″ X 36″ acrylic on canvas.

with apologies to Tagore

Walk alone

If they do not answer to your call, walk alone.

If they are afraid and cower mutely facing the wall,
“unfortunate” one,
open your mind and speak out alone.

If they turn away, and desert you when crossing the wilderness,
“unfortunate” one,
trample those thorns under your tread,
and along the bloodied track travel alone.

If they do not hold up the light on that stormy night,
“unfortunate” one,
with the flame of pain ignite your heart
and let it shine alone.

“unfortunate” - as indeed you are the opposite if you follow your heart

You can look inside but you cannot be a part of what you see.

“Glass Wall”, 10″ X 8″ acrylic on illustration board.

The Annual UNWA Art Auction is one of the main events in the Bangladesh Art Calendar. It took place on December 7th last year. Unexpectedly, it turned out to be a juried show. I was happy to hear that my painting was amongst the 24 selected and I had many well know artists for company. A day after the auction, I was told that the painting had done very well The silent auction raised approx 350,000 taka ($5000) and mine contributed approx 27,000 taka ($400) towards the Hurricane Sidr Relief Fund.

(these figures will updated, if necessary, when I receive the letter from UNWA)

The piece put up at the auction

I’d always believed that cows were friendly docile creatures till I got chased down a busy road for patting one on its nose! That velvety nose had been so tempting, I didnt notice the horns till they were pointing in my direction! Quite obviously looks can be deceptive and so can the zillion movies showing docile cows. They’re still at the top of my list of animals to sketch, followed closely by elephants!

We have a saying in Hindi Bhagwan jab deta hai to chappar phad ke deta hai. It means when God gives it is plentiful enough to bring the roof down! It feels that way, at least on the art front, starting with my first sale in August last year.

Shako, a group formed by 9 leading Bangladeshi artists with the aim of promoting women’s art in Bangladesh, has invited my friend, Smita and me to exhibit with them for International Womens Day from 11:00am - 8:00pm on March 7th & 8th, 2008.

Update : March 1, 2008 : Venue: Hse 80, Road 23, Block A, Banani, Dhaka 1212. If you happen to be in town do stop by to have a look.