Monirul Islam is considered to be the country’s most influential artist of 60s. Most importantly, he has for long represented Bangladesh’s art scene abroad.

As a budding artist, Monirul Islam enjoyed painting landscapes in watercolour. Then he left for Spain in the late 1960s. Most of his paintings were of the beauties of rural Bengal.

As a student, Sadarghat was one of his favourite haunts to dabble in his painting. He recalls Dhaka’s past: “In those days there were no traffic jams. The air and surroundings were neat and clean. The city population was less. It was not crowded at all. People were simple, peaceful and sincere. We were so comfortable living here.”

Things have changed and Monirul Islam says with a tinge of regret: “I was shocked to see things when I returned home after ten years."

After completing his BFA, he obtained a foreign scholarship. In 1969, when he was 27 years old, he set out for Spain. This has in no way detached him from his motherland. The beauty of Bangladesh lives in his paintings in a various forms and ways. "I lived for so long in this country. My childhood, my teenage years, all these important stages in my life, was passed here.”

The passionate artists is enraptured by Bangladesh’s natural beauty. “Our nature fascinates me,” he says. “Though I live abroad, the rich, verdant atmosphere of my homeland is firmly embedded in my senses.”

He continues, “A man is not separate from nature. We are created by Nature and we return there after our death. We live in a lap of nature.” Bangladesh’s country boats, flora and fauna and much more are found in his paintings, often in abstract form. He loves representing natural phenomena, such as the infinitely changing aspects of water – rain, waves, clouds, the play between light and water, sky and the stark landscape.

Monirul Islam explains his art: “I like to wander, to search for my work. My work is never complete until I am satisfied. An artist needs to gain pleasure from his work. Only then can he achieve what he aspires. I always want to add a new dimension and novel theme to my works. Past, present and future – the three stage of time are represented. We all are entrapped by the time."

The artist talks with confidence. Before starting any painting, Monir contemplates on composition and colour. “Every work has a balance. I set the balance right first which you cannot do without drawing the composition. Then you have to think about space, line and colour. It is like an structural allegory, laying the foundation of an structure," says artist Monir.

About the elements of his canvas, he says: "I use for my composition little doodles, sharp lines, dots, tiny motifs and a lot of symbols. From the beginning of my career, after settling in Spain, I have been using paper as my medium. Paper holds a sense of mystery. It holds a special appeal and a different look. I have started making my own paper and it lends an enigmatic sense to my paintings.”

“At the beginning of my stay in Spain,” says the artist, “I did many watercolors, mainly focusing on the unparalleled beauty of Bangladesh. I was so full of memories. I enjoyed living in the past.”

He talks of his life in Spain: “On Sunday there is a very popular market in Madrid where I would go to sell paintings. I think that the people of Madrid liked my art because of the colors and images. I would sell a painting for about 10 dollars and at least five or six paintings were easily sold. In those days that was my only source of income.”

About the contemporary trend in art around the world, Monir says, “We are actually going through a time of crisis. In present times, we have been suffering from many crises – economically, socially and politically. Every 50 or 100 years, if we look through the history of art, we find that the art world invariably faces some sort of crisis. Such crises are created for various reasons. European artists are running short of imagination and ideas. They travel all around the world in search of themes and ideas. Art has no permanent or distinct language for any region or any country. Every artist should have a personal language which makes him or her different from others."

His works

In Monirul Islam’s ‘Evening Song’ we find perfection in his etchings. He goes into a minute analysis and lures his viewers with his lines and colours. Monir always aims at presenting something new in his exhibitions. In this composition the artist has combined blue and gray, two contrasting colours. At the bottom are some triangular shapes in yellow ochre, which could represent sandcastles, beyond which is the vast expanse of the grayish yellow sky and the mysterious sea. The evocation of the vastness of nature has been done superbly and the pencil lines in the background lend mystery. Some human figures have been included in the forefront in simplified geometrical form to tighten the composite structure.

’Forest dance’ brings in tree trunks in yellow, emerald green, azure and shades of more blue with outlines in gray and black. This piece lends a sense of fantasy. In ‘The Oriental Singer’ indigo, yellow, orange and black dominate the canvas in harmony.

One thing that is remarkable about Monirul Islam is his use of light colours. His works, are soaked in water. He likes to use colours found in nature.

Says Monirul: “Our sky is azure, sometimes dark and shady. But the sky of Europe is usually grey, different from our sub-continent.”

An artist develops the sense of inner vision, which allows awareness and response to ideas. There is also discovery, knowledge and understanding that comes through observation. A painter creates a world with personal themes since being an artist means creating what is original and refreshing. An artist has a different system of observation and can feel the pulse of society. "I am always aware of my surroundings. Different phases of my life have taken a vast place on my canvases. Various types of colours dominant on my canvas at various times.”

Monir has used a sweetmeat box as a canvas: “Last year, I visited my home district Chandpur. Suddenly I wondered about using a sweetmeat box as a canvas. I started working on it. I think dirty paper inspired me more than a piece of new white paper. I feel comfortable and this canvas has been given me a good feeling.”

He speaks of images: “Some paintings give the image of a figure. This is not fully abstract. You can get various images in different symbolic forms. Images appear on my canvas in various moods according to my state of mind, my feelings.”