Debashis Pal’s solo ceramic exhibition at Galleri Kaya
If we look at our history, we detect the use of ceramic and terracotta. Clay has been used in various artistic purposes in our country. It has become popular from ancient times, as the material has been easily found in our surrounding. Flexibility of clay makes it easier to use in various categories of pottery. Our soil is ideal for this purpose. It is noticeable that legendary artists like Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso and Marc Chagull have also worked with the medium.
Debashis Pal — assistant professor at the Ceramic Department, Faculty of Fine Arts, Dhaka University — has worked for an extensive period on ceramic. His solo ceramic exhibition, titled “Journey in Fire”, is now on at Galleri Kaya in Uttara, Dhaka.
Debashis was born in Netrakona, a place characterised by panoramic splendour, riverine beauty and excellence in pottery. Though Debashis now lives in Dhaka, memories of his childhood continue to inspire him. Some of the recurring subjects in his works are flora, birds and rural women.
Adroitly coloured with plain hues and touches of pale blue, crimson, black, azure and green, they bring out a sophistication of early portrayals of women and their children, human figure, torso, seeds, plates, bowls and vases.
Embellished with dots, lines and curls, most of his works have been produced in stoneware. There are some “raku” as well. The spirit of our Language Movement, Liberation War and current socio-political instability and upsurges are also highlighted at the exhibition.
Round, rectangular, oval, triangular and other shapes have formed the outer edge of the works while the colours of red, white, black, blue, yellow, green and more have been applied to provide absolute sense of artistic sophistication.
Debashis’ “Journey in Fire-64” features a cluster of human faces that symbolise the current chaotic situation of our society.
Another piece, “Journey in Fire-32”, includes a human face and water lily — constructing a typical vision of rural Bengal. “Journey in Fire-4” features a number of faces in different shapes where the colours used are red, white and grey. The work addresses the anomalies in our political, economical and social structure that is followed by corruption and power play.
The exhibition ends on May 15.
-With The Daily Star input
