20/04/1988-29/07/2005, Performance and Installation, Mixed, Variable, Approximate 50-60 minutes, National Museum Gallery, 2016.
This was the recalling the memory of my younger brother who born and died 20/04/1988-29/07/2005. He was committed suicide. During his death he was 18 years old. Last 14 years it’s makes us numb with all of his used cloths and memory. And also, this chair (with this chair he did that) makes us numb. In the beginning that plan was to present his cloths and his used chair with the Bengali written word “OSHAR (Numb)” into the national Museum, but during that exhibition suddenly I felt like to go and sit on that chair. And that was approximate 50-60 minutes.
Urbanization, Site-specific performance at Rose Garden (Colonial period Architecture), Dhaka, Approximate 15-20 minutes, 2014. Day by day almost every major city of this world is giving birth to mega structures and the cities are becoming overloaded, as well the quicksand of illusion. In a sense, we create spaces between spaces using various walls. As a result, visual perceptions change continuously. So, I tried to represent those transformations in performative way.
This performative act was done during the discussion about the performance and performing at “Shoni mongal adda”. Shoni mongal adda- every Saturday (Shonibar) and Tuesday (Mongolbar) an informal discussion group comes together to listen to presentations from Dhaka’s creative community. Founded by a group of visual artists.
Sunburn, Daylong site-specific performative land art, 2020, Here I tried to focus on the intimate relation between the context and sensual or physical body. To depict the scar, being lenient to subconscious feelings tried to create some visual as a process of my conscious construction. Where my own body plays the important role through performativity.
In this expression I tried to collaborate with natural power, depending on the relevance to create my expected visual within my own body where the very inner feelings executed through my involvement with the time, natural power, control and inability of control. which I inspired from political, cultural and social behavior which dominate one’s feelings in our existing social system. Here I wanted to portray visual depiction of those as a metaphoric way.
Land eater, Approximate 20 minutes, In front of Bangladesh National Museum, 2014
I don’t want to explain much more about this public act because everybody knows about this issue. So I just express what I saw from the newspaper, internet, TV news, etc. as a global citizen. Here I want to show that for this delicious land, humans can do anything.
This live act was in Ramadan time; usually in Muslim countries, people don’t eat in public space. Rather, I could say people don’t eat in front of others for respect of Ramadan. During the Gaza violence, there was a massive killing of children and women to destroy future generations, which was an open secret. This live act was a metaphoric representation of forbidden.
NON VEG, Approximate 20 minutes, Dhaka University, 2015
Usually, we know those as vegetarians who avoid fish or meat in their diet and non-vegetarians, who don’t bother. The reason behind becoming non-veg is generally either for religious beliefs or medical causes. But my performance is about exploring the concept of non-veg against vegetarian (overlooking the literal meaning of veg and non-veg) to portray a carnivorous, bloodthirsty character that is, in general, the other face of regional or international politics. The term non-veg is here somewhat symbolic. The performance, titled “non-veg,” is to justify my actions, where some pictures of ongoing political turbulences are focused. A dead body is a necessary element to run and succeed in the power play. Now to make a label/level playing field, the playing field (earth) is being made as a graveyard. The world is becoming a bloody place by discarding humanity.
Untitled, D’LAB (Dhaka Live Art Biennale), 65 minutes, Year- 2017.
“Deity > Human > Non-person”
Loud, twisted laughter fills the air,
While tranquility lingers like classical music.
Today, the crowd of humans and deities laughs at the Non-person.
They laugh with loud, shrill sounds.
Non-person—
You are not supposed to have the right to live.
You have no right to joy or love.
Why do you dream, Non-person?
Why do you feel exhilarated at the sight of your beloved?
You’re not supposed to feel hunger or tremors in your veins.
Why do you tremble? You do not have the right to tremble.
Non-person—
Do you not understand what it means to be Non-person?
It is to be someone who cannot claim the love of others and lacks the right to exist.
Touch a person, and their faith will falter;
You will be a sin to them, ostracizing them from their society and family.
Your birth is a sin of existence, as unwanted as hair on a body.”
“Every day, death is constantly chasing us. We are groping around in the pitch-black darkness, where death is intertwined with hopes and words of love that move throughout this gloom. Some of these words feel very familiar. Here, I sense that the words are slowly coming closer to us, and desperately, we are trying to reach them. But how strange it is! Since the words are approaching and we are moving forward as well, shouldn’t we be able to find a light? Could these words transform into life? If we could touch them, maybe we could stay alive a little longer.
Are the words mocking us, treating us as worthless or abandoned? Do they not want a soul to remain alive among us? They do not wish for us to live in peace for a few more days!
Why are there so many words that signify death? Why are there so many negative phrases surrounding us? Why are all these words chasing us? Why is it so dark? How strange! Why are our surroundings so reddish-black? Don’t we have any desires or dreams? Why can’t we let red become yellow? How astonishing our surroundings are! How mentally disordered we feel!”
Resonance 3
In the conversation between legal and illegal, where do we stand?
Are we slaves of reality?
Are we meaninglessly and ridiculously trying to deny humanity?
Are we just flowing with time?
Are we just harming the world and manipulating others with our power play?
“Deity > Human > non-person”
Loud, twisted laughter fills the air,
While tranquility lingers like classical music.
Today, the crowd of humans and deities laughs at the non-person.
They laugh with loud, shrill sounds.
Non-person—
You are not supposed to have the right to live.
You have no right to joy or love.
Why do you dream, non-person?
Why do you feel exhilarated at the sight of your beloved?
You’re not supposed to feel hunger or tremors in your veins.
Why do you tremble? You do not have the right to tremble.
Non-person—
Do you not understand what it means to be non-person?
It is to be someone who cannot claim the love of others and lacks the right to exist.
Touch a person, and their faith will falter;
You will be a sin to them, ostracizing them from their society and family.
Your birth is a sin of existence, as unwanted as hair on a body.”
probe search-
“Every day, death is constantly chasing us. We are groping around in the pitch-black darkness, where death is intertwined with hopes and words of love that move throughout this gloom. Some of these words feel very familiar. Here, I sense that the words are slowly coming closer to us, and desperately, we are trying to reach them. But how strange it is! Since the words are approaching and we are moving forward as well, shouldn’t we be able to find a light? Could these words transform into life? If we could touch them, maybe we could stay alive a little longer.
Are the words mocking us, treating us as worthless or abandoned? Do they not want a soul to remain alive among us? They do not wish for us to live in peace for a few more days!
Why are there so many words that signify death? Why are there so many negative phrases surrounding us? Why are all these words chasing us? Why is it so dark? How strange! Why are our surroundings so reddish-black? Don’t we have any desires or dreams? Why can’t we let red become yellow? How astonishing our surroundings are! How mentally disordered we feel!”
