Who doesn’t get astonished watching at the sculptures? It is said that sculpture is the art of intelligence. Sculptures are wonderful symbolism of honor and representation. Dhaka city is glorified with several mind-blowing sculptures that symbolize different events of our history which we want to preserve. In this article we are going to highlight the top sculptures in Dhaka city. Stay with us to know the specific symbolic events behind these mesmerizing sculptures.

Best Sculptures in Dhaka City

APARAJEYO BANGLA

Inaugurated on the 16th December 1979 at Dhaka University campus, the ‘Aparajeyo Bangla’ sculpture reflects the sheer determination of Bengali youths with timeless vigilance, care, and invincible aspiration for independence. Designed by the famous Bangladeshi painter and sculptor Syed Abdullah Khalid, the 18-feet high Aparajeyo Bangla sculpture is constructed with reinforced concrete. 

The three dynamic figures of Aparajeyo Bangla depict three people from different aspects of society. The left side statue symbolizes a young woman devoted to nursing holding the first-aid box. The middle statue represents a brawny village youth carrying a rifle on his right shoulder and a grenade on the left palm. The right statue portrays an urban youth bearing a rifle with his hands. These three fascinating statues of Aparajeyo Bangla represent the combined strength of the entire Bengali nation during the liberation war of Bangladesh.

SHONGSHOPTOK

Shongshoptok is one of the popular sculptures in Bangladesh symbolizing an outstanding combination of sacrifice and determination of the freedom fighters during the independence war of Bangladesh in 1971. Designed by the renowned Bangladeshi sculptor Hamiduzzaman Khan, this sculpture was inaugurated in March 1990. Shongshoptok stands in front of the Central Library of Jahangirnagar University at Savar in Dhaka.

Shongshoptok sculpture symbolizes the bravery and devotion of an injured Bangladeshi freedom fighter. Even after losing one hand and one leg, the symbolic freedom fighter is holding a rifle and showing valor to fight against the Pakistani military forces until the last breath. This 15-foot high statue is made of steel armature and brass. Including the brick-built base, the whole Shongshoptok sculpture stands about 28 feet tall.

SHOPARJITO SHADHINOTA

Shoparjito Shadhinota is built in the context of the liberation war of Bangladesh in 1971. This sculpture symbolizes the horrendous genocide of general people, intellectuals, and freedom fighters. Besides depicting violence from diverse angles, this sculpture wonderfully portrays the united protest of the people of this country against the oppression of East Pakistani rulers.

Shoparjito Shadhinota is one of the best creations of the famous Bangladeshi sculptor Shamim Sikder. This sculpture is placed in Dhaka University at the intersection of TSC and Rokeya Hall. After the inauguration of this sculpture in 1990, the Islamic extremist groups threatened to demolish it.

RAJU MEMORIAL SCULPTURE

Installed at the TSC intersection of Dhaka University, Raju Memorial is known as one of the best Sculptures in Bangladesh. The concrete sculpture was established in 1997 following the design of Bangladeshi sculptor Shaymol Chowdhury and Gopal Paul. This anti-terrorism sculpture is built with several statues depicting a group of marching students keeping their arms linked with one another.

Raju Memorial sculpture is dedicated to the memory of Moin Hossain Raju, a meritorious student of the Soil Science Department of Dhaka University and an activist of the Bangladesh Students Union. On the 13th March 1992, suddenly gunfire violence broke out and panic spread in the Dhaka University regarding the clash among some political activists over establishing influence on the campus area. At that moment, Raju fearlessly marched on the street and protested against campus violence. During this protest, Raju was shot dead. ‘Raju Memorial sculpture’ symbolizes the language of protest. 

SWADHINATA SANGRAM

‘Swadhinata Sangram’ is the country’s first, and one of the biggest sculpture gardens. This masterpiece sculpture is designed by the reputed sculptor Shamim Sikder. Inaugurated in 1999, ‘Swadhinata Sangram’ is located at Fuller Road (between two halls: Jagannath Hall and SM Hall), in Dhaka University. The ‘Swadhinata Sangram’ sculpture represents the struggle and pride of the Bengali nation.

The main sculpture symbolizes the faces of some prominent historical persons and holds the National flag of Bangladesh on the top. The sculpture garden is enriched with one hundred and three miniature statues spread around the altar of the main statue. The small sculptures mostly represent the faces of pioneering leaders, poets, and renowned persons of Bengali culture and history.

AMAR EKUSH

The Amur Ekush sculpture is situated near the central cafeteria of Jahangirnagar University at Savar near Dhaka. Designed by prominent sculptor Jahanara Parvinin, ‘Amar Ekush’ sculpture was first inaugurated in 1991. The sculpture remained unfinished for many years and the repairing work was finally done in 2018. This sculpture is built in the memory of our glorious language movement in 1952.

Amur Ekush tells the story of the painful sacrifice of the Bengali youths in the language movement. This sculpture has three figures including a protesting male student, and a mother holding his deceased son – killed by the west Pakistani aristocrats during the protest. Besides representing the indomitable courage of Bengalis to preserve the honor of their mother tongue, this sculpture exhibits the violence against language martyrs including Salam, Barkat, Rafiq, Jabbar, Safiur, etc. 

Also read: 22nd Young Artist Fine Arts Exhibition begins at BSA

Let Thanksgiving have the turkey. Let Christmas have fruitcake. Every other day, it’s got to be pizza.

So argue Thom and James Elliot, brothers and pizza makers from England who have written a book celebrating the worldwide phenomenon of roundish dough cooked with toppings.

In the 270-page “Pizza” (Quadrille), the brothers offer over 30 recipes for homemade pizzas — including a carbonara and one with asparagus and pancetta — as well as eating guides to delicious slices in cities like Rome, Paris, Chicago and New York. It turns out New Haven, Connecticut, has a very distinct and vibrant pizza scene, though its just 70 miles from New York.

The Elliots marvel that while the pizza we eat today was invented in Naples in the late 1800s, other cultures have their own versions, from one with spiced ground meat in Lebanon to a baguette topped with mushroom and cheese in Poland.

“All these countries came up with this on their own. And that is the definition of a good idea, right?” says James Elliot. “It’s a bit like the way so many cultures created beer independently. Just great ideas make it through.”

The brothers include sections on controversial ingredients — pineapple, that’s you — and which drinks to pair with a slice, as well as the various ways people can eat it, from rolling it into a cigar to a technique called the “snag and drag.”

They present the info without judgement, refusing to weigh in on whether coal ovens are better than wood or if buffalo milk is better than cow milk for making mozzarella.

“There’s that saying: There’s two kinds of people in the world — people that love ABBA and liars,” says James Elliot. “Not all music has to be high and mighty in the same way that not all pizza has to be high and mighty. You can love different songs and different pizzas for all kinds of different reasons.”

The origins of the book began when the brothers ditched their regular jobs in 2012 to go to Naples and learn all about pizza. They traveled the length of Italy and the world and, once educated in all things delicious, came back to the United Kingdom to open a chain of pizzerias, Pizza Pilgrims.

In Chicago, they encountered that city’s famous, dense variation. “We ate four deep dishes a day for five days,” says Thom Elliot. “I really surprised myself. I went to confirm my hatred of it, but actually left being like, ‘This has got a place for sure.’”

The book is a distillation of all they learned, from pizza records (“Cheesiest Pizza,” “Furthest Pizza Delivery”) to how to work with active dry yeast. The working title was “The Pizzapedia,” but the authors felt that didn’t convey their love of the food. “Encyclopedia just feels quite cold and quite factual,” says Thom Ellliot.

“We’ve been told by so many people in so many different ways that pizza is not enough to carry a book. ‘There are not enough interesting things to say about pizza.’ And so we have been on this mission for five years to write a longer and longer and longer and longer list of why these people are wrong.”

Despite the brothers’ obvious respect for the classic Neapolitan version, they acknowledge the impact of the huge pizza-making chains, like Pizza Hut and Domino’s. The book includes interviews with their executives, who oversee companies making millions of pizzas a year.

“You can’t ignore it. They’re doing something right. Whatever you think, they’re doing something right,” says Thom Ellliot. “They love pizza. These are not people who are just sitting there going, ‘Oh, we don’t care. It’s just all about the margin and how do we sell more for less.’”

Pizza, to the brothers, is clearly woven into the fabric of humanity, a cheap, delicious, satisfying meal that can be scaled up or down. It’s a food we eat when we are celebrating, gathering for entertainment, working hard collectively or when we’re just in need of a hug.

“Pizza is the place that people turn when they’re struggling, when they break up, when they lose their job, when they’re just having a tough day. Pizza is the food that they talk about — like their spouse — that thing that carries them over the line,” says Thom Ellliot.

“I really genuinely think that you don’t get that with any other kind of food, even the ones that people obsess about, like barbeque. People don’t turn to barbecue in their time of need. They geek out about it and they obsess about it and they see perfection. But they don’t have it like a crutch in their life.”

Today marks  the 99th birth anniversary of legendary artist Quamrul Hassan, famously known as ‘Potua’ for his brilliance in folk arts and remembered for redesigning the national flag of Bangladesh.

Born on December 02, 1921, in Kolkata, Quamrul graduated in fine arts from the Government Institute of Arts (now College of Arts and Crafts, Kolkata) in 1947.

He came to Dhaka after the partition of India in 1947 and then helped ‘Shilpacharjo’ Zainul Abedin to establish Dacca Art College, now known as the Faculty of Fine Arts of Dhaka University. He served there as a teacher from 1948 till 1960.

Through his portrayal of traditional aspects that he represented on his canvases using elements from the folk genre, Quamrul Hassan had contributed immensely to the country’s art scene.

Talking about Quamrul Hassan, renowned art critic Moinuddin Khaled said that people still fail to grasp the artist as not many of his artworks got exhibited. “Picasso was his idol, so his paintings have had similarities with Picasso, and the most important aspect of his paintings was his use of the metaphor - through which he channelled his protest against autocratic rulers like Yahya Khan before the Liberation War of Bangladesh,” Khaled addressed the art maestro to UNB.

Quamrul Hassan actively participated in all major national movements including the non-cooperation movement in 1969 and the Liberation War in 1971. During the war, he first served as the chairman of the Resistance Committee in Hatirpul area in the capital and later served as the Director of the Art Division of the Information and Radio Department of the Bangladesh Government in exile from Kolkata.

His caricatures portraying the ferocious gesture of Pakistani military dictator Yahya Khan titled ‘Ei Janowarder Hottya Korte Hobe’ (Annihilate These Demons) is considered as a classic artwork and cartoon that inspired the freedom fighters during the War of Liberation.

Often utilized ‘cubism’ (an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement that revolutionized European painting and sculpture) in his creations, Hassan practically worked with all mediums including oil, gouache, watercolour, pastel, etching, woodcut, linocut, pen and pencil.

Quamrul Hassan passed away through suffering a heart attack right after completing a sketch satirising the then autocratic ruler, President Hussain Muhammad Ershad, titled ‘Desh Aj Bissho-Beheyar Khoppre’ (Our land is now in the hand of the champion of shamelessness) at the 2nd National Poetry Festival in Dhaka University on February 02, 1988.

He received several prestigious awards and honours including President’s Gold Medal, Independence Award, Bangladesh Charu Shilpi Sangsad Honour and others for his magnificent contributions in the Bangladeshi art sphere.

Apart from shaping the national flag in its current form, Quamrul Hassan also designed several other national logos including the state monogram of Bangladesh, Freedom Fighters Welfare Trust, Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation, Bangladesh Bank, and Biman Bangladesh Airlines.

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The 22nd edition of Young Artist Fine Arts Exhibition Biennale was inaugurated at the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) on Monday.

Presided over by BSA Director General Liaquat Ali Lucky over the internet, the inauguration ceremony was virtually joined by Road Transport and Bridges Minister and Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader as the chief guest.

State Minister for Cultural Affairs KM Khalid, Additional Secretary of the Cultural Affairs Ministry Md Abdul Mannan Ilias, renowned artist Sahid Kabir and BSA's Director of Fine Arts Syeda Mahbuba Karim also joined the inauguration, spoke at the event and handed over awards to the recipients.

The month-long exhibition is showcasing 368 artworks by 337 artists, selected from a total number of 519 applicants and their 1,350 submissions of paintings, sculptures, print illustrations, craft-works, pottery-crafts, architectural and video arts, performance art pieces and new media arts.

Besides, a unique and specially curated subject-based art installation is being displayed at the 3rd gallery of National Art Gallery by 12 fine arts institutions of the country including Dhaka University, Chittagong University, Rajshahi University, Khulna University, National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam University and more, which is planned and researched by BSA DG Lucky.

The primary selection committee includes notable artists like Ivy Zaman, Dr Rashid Amin, Dulal Chandra Gain, Harunur Rashid Tutul, Shaon Akand and photographer Mofizul Islam.

The final selection committee for selecting the best artworks featured artist Naima Haque, Dr Md Iqbal, Mostafa Zaman Mithu, Anisuzzaman and eminent photographer Nasir Ali Mamun.

The participating artists who were nominated as winners of total 12 awards in 11 categories and one overall grand award winner in the exhibition, received their respective awards, certificates and prize-money at the ceremony.

Artists Soma Surovi Jannat received the title award as the best artist in the exhibition, while artists Md Tariqul Islam (paintings), Mozahidur Rahman Sarkar (sculptures), Md Rafiqul Islam (print illustrations), Sanjay Kumar Pramanik (eastern arts), Imran Hasan (graphics design), Tanvir Hossaim Rhythm (pottery arts), Rubaiyat-E-Sharmin (craft arts), Md Fazlul Haque (new media, video arts), Kuntal Baroi (architectural arts), Naim Hossain (performance arts) and Mohsin Kabir (photographic arts) won awards in respective categories.

Started as a biennale back in 1975, the exhibition has earned recognition from art-lovers around the nation as a festivity and celebration of modern artworks and crafts by artists from all over the country.

The 22nd edition of Young Artists Fine Arts Exhibition will continue from November 30 to December 29, every day from 11am to 6pm on gallery 1, 3, 5, 6 and the sculpture arena at the National Art Gallery.

Read Also: BSA to reopen its theatre venues on October 23

The pachyderm dubbed the “ world’s loneliest elephant ” after languishing alone for years in a Pakistani zoo was greeted on his arrival in Cambodia on Monday by chanting Buddhist monks and was then sent on his way to a wildlife sanctuary.

Like other travelers during these times, Kaavan needed to be tested for COVID-19 before his flight. Once his large metal crate was safely on board, Kaavan was provided with in-flight snacks — 200 kilograms (440 pounds) of them — for the seven-hour journey.

Kaavan was not stressed during the flight, eating his food and even getting a little bit of sleep standing in his crate, said Amir Khalil, a veterinarian who accompanied him on the flight and works with Four Paws, the Vienna-headquartered animal rescue group that organized the move.

“He behaves like a frequent flier. The flight was uneventful, which is all you can ask for when you transfer an elephant,” Khalil said.

The 36-year-old, 4,080 kilogram (9,000 pound) elephant received a warm welcome on arrival in Cambodia from officials, conservationists and the Buddhist monks, who chanted prayers for his harmony and prosperity.

Kaavan, a 1985 gift from Sri Lanka to Pakistan, had been living in the Marghazar Zoo in Islamabad with his partner Saheli, who died in 2012. The zoo fell on hard times and conditions got so bad that a court in the Pakistani capital ordered the zoo closed in August.

The plight of the male Asian elephant has captured worldwide attention, including from the American singer and actor Cher, who has been closely involved in his rescue and was in Cambodia for Kaavan’s arrival.

Cher’s animal welfare group Free the Wild has worked with Four Paws and the American syndicated columnist and philanthropist, Eric Margolis, to relocate Kaavan — a mission that’s cost about $400,000.

According to Four Paws, very few adult elephants have ever been relocated by plane, so preparations were arduous.

Veterinarians and elephant experts working for Four Paws spent three months in Islamabad, coaching Kaavan three times a day on how to enter and exit safely and without stress his four-ton travel crate, which includes a system that can hold up to 200 liters (53 gallons) of urine.

He was also dangerously overweight due to his unsuitable diet of around 250 kilograms (550 pounds) of sugar cane each day. With Khalil’s help, Kaavan lost 1,000 pounds (450 kilograms) over the past three months.

Kaavan’s wounds are emotional as well as physical. He would spend his days throwing his head from side to side, a stereotypical sign of boredom and misery in an elephant, said Martin Bauer, a spokesman for Four Paws.

The loss of his mate Saheli took a toll on Kaavan’s mental health. Elephants are social animals that thrive on the company of other elephants, Bauer explained. For Kaavan, the last eight years have been akin to living in quarantine — something the world has come to understand all too well amid the coronavirus pandemic, he said.

Late Monday, Kaaven was being driven by truck to a camp in northern Cambodia where he should be able to leave his crate on Tuesday.

“Once Kaavan feels at home in a controlled setting, he will be released in a wildlife sanctuary, in Oddar Meanchey province, in the northern section of Cambodia, where some 600 Asian elephants live in peace and tranquility,” said a statement from Neth Pheaktra, a spokesman for the Environment Ministry. “Pachyderms can live for many years and even at 36, we hope that he will contribute to the gene pool.”

Also read: Cher in Pakistan to help ‘world’s loneliest elephant’