An artist whose creativity curve still shows an obvious upward tilt even though he is now at his 70s, Hamiduzzaman Khan鈥檚 career reads like a continuous success story in retrospect. Mustafa Zaman of 抖阴精品 meets the artist and scours his mind to shed light on what went into the making of the artist he is today.
An arrow across time
For his age, he looks rather young and his work habits are that of a much younger person. This is how urbanist and art writer Professor Nazrul Islam described artist Hamiduzzaman Khan few years ago. Today, at 73, Hamiduzzaman is as busy as any hyperactive young exponent of the contemporary scene, still toiling away to expand his horizon. The septuagenarian, whose fame has spread across the borders, is seen simultaneously working on a large painting and a series of sculptural pieces. The latter comprises of some new structures he intends to add to the ongoing sculpture park at a Gazipur power plant of the Summit Group. They would be placed in and around his sprawling 300 ft mural work he created for the factory 鈥榯o add a touch of aesthetic to an otherwise mechanical environment,鈥� to quote the artist.
One must also be cognizant of the fact that the artist mounted his retrospective show at the National Museum in 2017, the year he turned 71. His last solo exhibition took place at the capital鈥檚 Abinta Gallery in August 2018. And on top of that, he is now set to stage a watercolour exhibition at Dwip Gallery, slated to take place sometime in the second half of the current year. He is one of the busiest sculptors in the region who was lucky enough to work in Korea during the Olympic in Seoul, in 1988, at the Olympic Park, where his work was permanently installed alongside many other internationally famous artists.
鈥業 cannot help but work relentlessly. This is how I survive,鈥� the artist pronounced at his studio where an interview with 抖阴精品 is about to commence. However, the word 鈥榮urvival鈥� here only applies to his spiritual existence. Since the material aspect has long been resolved and his five-storey residence cum studio in North Badda testifies to that, where a large-scale painting is in progress and neatly farmed watercolour works are stacked up along one wall. Today, Hamiduzzaman is the country鈥檚 most sought-after sculptor responsible for myriad outdoor sculptures in the capital as well as across the country.
Yet, his career in sculpture had begun without premeditation. In fact, it had been a diversion from the course he was ready to take. Hamiduzzaman was trained in painting in the college of arts and crafts that Zainul and his peers founded in 1948. He studied under the most famous teachers of his time, including Mustafa Monwar. Since his entry into the college in 1962, Hamiduzzaman attracted attention of his teachers and peers for his watercolours. As he became teacher at the department of sculpture in 1970, 鈥榓t the behest of Zainul Abedin,鈥� who was also fond of Hamiduzzaman鈥檚 works, things started to roll in another direction, unplanned, though not to the disadvantage of the artist. The painter soon became known for his sculptures.
Hamiduzzaman completed his Bachelor鈥檚 Degree in 1967 and in 1973 went to Baroda on a scholarship to obtain his master鈥檚 in sculpture. His early forays bore all the telltale signs of his latter-day success. In the very first national-level sculpture exhibition organised by Shilpakala Academy in 1976, he received Best Award for his entry. The prize-winning creation was based on the series he did on the Liberation War and it showed a broken door. The work was titled 鈥楻emembrance 71鈥� 鈥� he did an entire series under this rubric.
Today, his interest toggles between sculpture and painting, especially watercolour painting. And with the latter he is more intimate, experimental and even given to metaphysics, 鈥榮piritual dimension鈥�, in his word.
The working of the eye
In an essay entitled 鈥業mages and Bodies,鈥� Henri Bergson wrote that there was 鈥榦nly one method of refuting materialism鈥� 鈥� by recognising what is 鈥榲irtual鈥� or 鈥榟idden鈥� in matters. In an interesting twist of argument, he suggested that we should demolish what the spiritualists see as an attribute of the spirit and materialists regards as 鈥榓ccidental garb.鈥� It is this 鈥榮pirit鈥� or the 鈥榓ccidental garb鈥�, which the philosopher phrased as 鈥榲irtual鈥� or 鈥榟idden鈥�, that Hamiduzzaman has been trying to capture in his watercolour works, 1980s onwards.
An artist whose reputation as a sculptor over the last 50 years eclipsed his early as well as latter-day success in watercolour painting, the 鈥榓ccidental鈥� qualities Hamiduzzaman easily achieved in the two-dimensional works apparently never had any bearing on his sculptural constructions. At least not yet!
However, the artist has his own theory of how things turn unnatural in human eyes, or how we perceive the world in a different light at certain times of the day, or night, in this case.
In an interview with the late art writer Faiza Haq, the artist once said that when light diminishes, and we look at a tree it acquires a sculptural quality. This observation may cue us in on a possible link between his paintings and his sculptures.
At night Sundarbans appears different, I have been to the mangrove forest 16 times, says Hamiduzzaman who feels that night always brings out a different 鈥榗harm鈥� and 鈥榬omance鈥� in nature. Art, however subjective, thus bespeaks a presence of a way of 鈥榮eeing鈥� that often stands apart from general, everyday seeing. Hamiduzzaman feels that one must also be exposed to good art to develop a gaze that makes one see things 鈥� enthusiastically, imaginatively.
鈥業t was in London that I first experienced the unveiling of many different types of artistic creations, through the exposure to art and artefacts ranging from ancient to modern,鈥� he says and hastens to add, 鈥楳y stay in London after my accident which left me with a tender scalp provided the opportunity to look at art preserved in the museums.鈥�
It was in 1967, when Hamiduzzaman鈥檚 head was badly hurt in a traffic accident in Dhaka. After that ordeal his visit to England was imminent.
The mishap on the university campus almost bore a hole in his head. 鈥楽ince the spot I was hurt had still remained exposed to danger after the bones crushed, Dr M Asiruddin, the surgeon who operated on me, told me that a second operation was needed,鈥� Hamiduzzaman recalls. Dr Asiruddin also arranged for his treatment in England. But money was in short supply.
鈥業 generated the amount needed for my travel and treatment by selling my watercolour works. I used do works using rapid technique, one that I picked up from Mustafa Monwar and the likes, who were my teachers. Papers of quality were unavailable to us back then, so I used to bring used saris of my mother and pasted them on cartridge papers so that I could achieve my desired result while applying watercolour,鈥� he adds.
Zainul Abedin, who was instrumental in ensuring the young student鈥檚 proper care in Dhaka hospital following the accident, helped him earn enough to make his journey to England a reality. Zainul often used to comment on his young student鈥檚 effort on sari-pasted papers, and when an opportunity came of a commission in Chittagong, now Chattogram, he asked Hamiduzzaman to travel to the port city.
鈥業 went to Chittagong Club where they had a newly opened space that needed some paintings for display. Abedin sir told me that all you need to do is put the works on display and they would give you a cheque in exchange,鈥� he recalls. And the money he earned 鈥榳as a huge amount鈥�.
鈥楢 pound only converted to five taka back then. Someone suggested that I buy a ticket for a seafaring vessel and go by sea instead of air, since air ticket was rather expensive back then,鈥� says the sculptor.
The one-and-half-month journey in an ocean liner did not go in vain.
鈥業n 1969, I embarked on the journey to England and for the first time in my life set foot on foreign soil. It was in Sri Lanka where I watched a movie during the stay. The next stay was more enlightening. In Dakar, Senegal, where I had no visa to make disembarkation but went along with another young man to stay at a hotel where I encountered a black man who came to sell small black ritual sculptures. They were amazing and I bought a couple of figurines. I still retain them,鈥� says the artist alluding to his own collection kept on a shelf in the next room.
The medical help the young artist received in England 鈥� first in Edinburgh and then London 鈥� seemed to him as an easy fix. 鈥楾he doctors were excellent. They took care of me and there were no dearth of professionalism and sincerity. Following the operation, they even waived my bill and suddenly I was left with a huge sum that I thought I would use on further travels,鈥� he says.
鈥楾here was a Bangladeshi doctor called Rashid who helped me communicate, since my English was insufficient and he even went out of his way to assist me and took me to London after the doctors had decided that my stay needed to be prolonged 鈥� for four months since they put me under a doctor鈥檚 observation, whom they assigned for me at a London hospital,鈥� says Hamiduzzaman, harking back to his days in London.
The months in London were spent navigating through museum floors and art exhibition halls. 鈥業 began to look at art. Went to British Museum, Victoria Albert Museum, Tate gallery 鈥� their names were even unfamiliar to me back then. They stoked my imagination. I remember going back to look at Turner鈥檚 works many times over,鈥� recalls the artist who soon left London after his doctor asked him to.
Hamiduzzaman was asked by his doctor to pack all the medicines he needed before quitting England. As he was packing his bag before setting out on his return journey, it occurred to him that there were other places he wanted to visit in Europe.
鈥楤y then, I became bit smarter, and was confident enough to travel to Paris. I had a plane ticket to Dhaka and as I approached the company asking them whether I could make a halt at Paris, they said why not. So, I decided to stay in Paris for three weeks. I made a phone call to Rashid sir, and he called his father-in-law, who came to fetch me at the airport,鈥� recalls the artist.
As he moved into an international hostel, a place for foreigners to secure lodging at a cheaper rate, his second lap of art travel began.
鈥楤efore entering the Louvre, I encountered Giacometti sculptures in the Impressionist gallery, that was a life-changing experience,鈥� declares Hamiduzzaman, as if he is still struck by the excitement and joy he felt at that time.
Paris and London, two of the most happening city in modern times, left the artists filled with hope and enthusiasm as his plane hit the ground of his motherland.
On the pursuit of forms and symbols
Back home, Hamiduzzaman was determined to pursue his goal of making the sculptures that had already appeared in his drawings and sketches.
鈥業 found a place to live right behind the hostel. For about a year and a half I stayed with some of the co-tenants as I set out to make sculptures,鈥� recalls the artist.
By June 1970, he became part of the faculty. A young teacher at the sculpture department enthusiastically seeking out new means of sculpting, Hamiduzzaman was fortunate enough to be working under the aegis of the legendary artist Abdur Razzak. Razzak was the department head. Another talented sculptor Anwar Jahan, who already made a name for himself, was his colleague.
When the war broke out, Hamiduzzaman chose not to join the front. He had just recovered from his head injury the year before and decided to stay back in the city while many fled after Operation Searchlight on the night of March 25 made it apparent that the Pakistan junta was not ready to tolerate the call for independence, which many felt was the only option at that juncture.
The artist was at 25, 鈥榓n ideal age to join the war鈥�, according to Nazrul Islam. However, in March 1971, Hamiduzzaman remained stationed in his rented room at a government quarter in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar. When the area was raided by the army on the night of March 26, he had to face interrogation and was lucky enough to pass for an innocent Bengali whom they left unharmed.
The next couple of days, following the army crackdown, young Hamiduzzaman had only a slight inkling about the shocks he was to endure after he came out and went about the city to discover the aftermath of the mayhem. He saw unattended dead bodies strewn across areas near New Market. These scenes of carnage would leave a lasting impact on his psyche. His next course of action was to immediately leave the city and reach his parental home in Kishoreganj.
What stayed forever with him is the memory of loss of innocent lives. If one surveys his works, especially works from the first two decades following the emergence of Bangladesh in December 1971, the victims, those who attained martyrdom, are a recurring theme in his imagery.
The genesis of art
Hamiduzzaman Khan was born in village Sasram in Kishoreganj. He grew up with an acute awareness that right next door, in the village Gachihata, Hemen Majumder once lived, who was then a famous painter in Calcutta, now Kolkata.
鈥業 was a student of Banagram Ananda Kishore High School, and my teachers where mostly from the Hindu community and they were enlightened people. My school subscribed Basumati where watercolour works by famed Indian artists used to be published,鈥� Hamiduzzaman harks back to his childhood days, pointing out how as a child he began to draw inspiration from printed art.
鈥楳y father used to like art. So, when he bought me a set of paint and brushes, the first thing I drew was the beautiful mosque we had at the village. The imam of the mosque, a man who came from Sylhet, also appreciated my rendering and asked me whether he could hang the work inside the mosque,鈥� recalls the artist.
鈥業 was then a student of class seven and that was the very first time my painting was appreciated. In the following year I clinched an award at a thana-level art competition in the area. The cup I received was the first memento that fuelled my enthusiasm,鈥� he adds.
After matriculation in 1962, Hamiduzzaman鈥檚 father thought his son should study science to prepare for his future vocation as a doctor. Young Hamiduzzaman was sent to Hazi Asmat College in Bhairab.
鈥業 became tired within two months and said to my father that I wanted to study art. My father relented and we set out for Dhaka. We found out that Zainul Abedin鈥檚 residence was in Shanti Nagar and the day we went there, we found him in a lungi, bare-breasted. He asked me about the purpose of the visit and I said I could draw,鈥� says the artist.
Though classes for first year had already started two months ago, Zainul Abedin allowed him to be part of the 1962 batch. Thus began the journey that took Hamiduzzaman Khan through many a bend, but in the end, turning him into a renowned artist.
Conclusion
Hamiduzzaman Khan has little time to look back to assess his contribution to the art scene. He is always chasing a deadline for a project or maybe planning a show. Recently, he is mulling a painting show where huge canvases would occupy the gallery space.
As an apprentice in the 1960s in Dhaka and the early 70s in Baroda, the aesthetic knowledge he absorbed was nothing if not eclectic.
He says he is beholden to his teacher in Baroda Raghav Kanaria, who helped him come to grips with 鈥榝orm鈥�. While on another occasion, on a visit to the US in 1982, he was lucky enough to sell a few of his watercolour works to be displayed at the World Bank headquarters, giving him an opportunity of a protracted stay. During his year-long stay he saw an exhibition by Henry Moor in New York, which, he says, gave him the idea how form and surface quality can be varied, thereby leading to various aesthetic ends.
鈥業t is from modelling that have gradually progressed towards form, while space-specificity must also be considered one of my preoccupations. With outdoor sculptures, scale becomes the most important factor, though,鈥� says the artist.
For the younger generation, he has a parting comment: 鈥榃e have all the resources in our country 鈥� all we need to do is concentrate on the land. Land and space are important point of departures for artists,鈥� he concludes.
鈥榃hat I am trying to do with the Gazipur project titled 鈥淪ram ebong sristee, or Labour and Creativity鈥� is fusion between industry and art. My experiment has impressed some of their young officials, this very thought makes me happy, says the septuagenarian artist.
Hamiduzzaman was awarded Ekushey Padak聽in 2006, and Prime Minister鈥簊 Award for contribution in the beautification of Dhaka city in 2006, among other laurels earned at home and abroad.
Photos by Sony Ramany