Rainy Season in Bangladesh – A Festive season

Wherever I look I see water, everywhere there is water...it is the rainy season, the monsoon season...trees are submerged, lands are flooded and even some villages are all under water. Yet the season brings fond memories for me. When I was younger I remember the feeling of excitement and joy and this season brings about an armada of boats, boats become the essential mode of transport. Women are excited in the villages as this season their fathers or brothers send boats to take them to their father’s home for a long term visit, termed ‘Nayor’ in Bengali.

As most of the land is underwater, people usually congregate in one another’s homes and tell stories, sing songs, children and some adults are usually playing in the water swimming and generally having a festive time. I remember the late night chatter, stories, folk songs every time I see the water, the rainy season is indeed a joyful time ...this is the inspiration behind this painting.

The Wild Flower's Song

As I wander'd the forest,
The green leaves among,
I heard a wild flower
Singing a song.

I slept in the Earth
In the silent night,
I murmur'd my fears
And I felt delight.

William Blake

Landscape in Bangladesh

I have been thinking for a long time to paint something related to Bangladesh, but I couldn’t decide what my theme should be. I wanted to do a subject that I love. Immediately boats came to my mind, as they hold many fond childhood memories for me. I was still looking at what exactly that would mean and then I saw my brother’s recent photo album where he took pictures of different beautiful places in Bangladesh.

There was this one picture of a boat on a lake which inspired me and I used this photo to compose my painting, though not identical it follows generally the composition of the photo itself. Thank you Anwar Hussain Enam.

Blue Sea from a Balcony

Chilli

This is my panel painting. I placed the Chilli in three various positions and painted the different panels over a few days. I chose this subject not only because I like chillis but also because it has a vibrant colour. The panels could be placed side by side both horizontally and vertically

This is a close up of one of the panels. The shadow created by the chilli on the plate gives the painting a 3-D effect. I love the yellow colour in the background, which contrasts with the blue colour of the plate.

My Friend's Dream House

*This is an unfinished picture of the painting*

This a portrait of my friend's dream house. She gave me a picture of it and I painted it for her. I did make a few slight changes to the colour and composition of it because I thought it would look better that way. The fence in the picture frames the house beautifully. In the finished piece, I added more white to the fence so that it would contrast with the colour of the house.

From the outside it looks empty however inside there may be lots of stories unfolding.

I like the way that the light and shadows fall on the house, it gives it a more realistic feel. Thankfully, my friend says that she loves the painting :)

Empty Road

This painting was painted in a slightly different way to my usually style, to create the effect I 'stabbed' the canvas with the point of my brush.

I painted it because the picture had a very strong composition, which I liked. It's a long driveway and the falling leaves are just changing colours to varying autumn colours - the end of summer and the beginning of autumn.

The vanishing point lies to the left hand side of the painting - what is beyond that point, I do not know.