Artist Mahfuza Beauty depicts the struggles and stories of women in her diverse medium artworks on display at an exhibition under way at the Saifuddin Shilpalay in Dhanmondi, Dhaka.
The seven-day exhibition titled 鈥榃omen鈥檚 Journey Through Life鈥� is the first solo exhibition of the artist.
The exhibition is featuring 27 artworks created using different mediums, including gouache colour, acrylic, pen and others.
About the subjects of the artworks, the artist said that she was very much influenced by alpana and Nakshi Kantha. Moreover, she was influenced by real-life experiences and sufferings of women to create the artworks.
鈥楳any women face different kinds of obstacles in the patriarchal society. I have tried to depict their sufferings and struggles through paintings,鈥� said Mahfuza Beauty.
She mentioned, 鈥楢lpana and Nakshi Kantha are the most attractive forms of folk art in Bangladesh and rural women have made huge contributions in enriching the two art forms.鈥�
鈥榃ith the intention of highlighting their contribution, I started working with folk motifs in the middle of 2020. I have displayed some of those artworks in this exhibition,鈥� said Mahfuza Beauty.
The artist said that as a writer and artist, she wanted to tell stories through her paintings.
She also talked about some of her artworks and the stories behind them.
Among the artworks, an artwork titled 鈥楽tory of Women鈥� comprises three gouache colour paintings showing a woman standing on the balcony, a woman holding a handheld fan and a woman with a bird sitting in her hand.
鈥業t is true that many Bangladeshi women have little or no opportunities to go out of the house. They spend their leisure time standing on the balcony or taking care of their pets. The artwork tells their stories,鈥� said Mahfuza Beauty.
A pen on paper work titled 鈥楥onfinement鈥� shows a pair of hands restrained by chains. The background of the artwork contains alpana.
Another artwork titled 鈥楥onfinement-2鈥� shows chained legs depicting obstacles facing women in the patriarchal society.
The seven-day exhibition, which was inaugurated on Saturday, will end on May 24.
