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Lot Essay
"[Rashid] Choudhury was born into a Zamindar aristocratic family in a village called Haroa in what is now called Bangladesh. Rural life in Bengal at that time thrived under a rich synthesis of Muslim and Hindu culture, and the young Choudhury’s imagination was captivated by the colourful mythology that wasn’t bound by religion. He was most attracted to the myths with intense movement in them, and he naturally gravitated towards goddesses such as Durga, whose ten hands swirled in different directions and was celebrated annually in the Autumn Bengali Durga Pooja, as well as her Kali avatar and the Radha-Krishna archetype" (Dhaka Art Summit 2016, Dhaka, 2016, p. 161).
Like the cultural milieu in which Choudhury was raised, his education was similarly diverse. After finishing secondary school, Choudhury began his artistic training at the Dacca Art College (now Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Dhaka) as a painter. He completed a five year course in fine arts before receiving scholarships to continue his education at the Central Escuela de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid and then the Académie Julian in Paris. In France, Choudhury studied sculpture, tapestry and fresco painting. Inspired by Marc Chagall’s use of stained glass to represent folk tales, Choudhury desired to use similarly traditional mediums for his self-expression. His teacher, the renowned weaver and artist Jean Lurçat, encouraged him to commit completely to tapestry despite the financial burden. Recalling this significant moment the artist noted, “Butterflies of my imagination will glide in the air. I did not feel satisfied with the usual oils and watercolours. As piano and organ are excellent musical instruments but not much effective for solo performances, there are typical mediums in the field of art which have their limitations. I was, therefore, looking for a medium through which I can fittingly depict men and nature of my motherland. My search has borne fruit at last, I found my destination in tapestry” (Artist statement, A. Mansur, Rashid Choudhury, Dhaka, 2003, p. 15).
By fusing his training in Europe with the vibrant aesthetics of Bengali textiles and iconography of various religions, and experimenting with indigenous materials like jute, vegetable dyes, silk and wool, Choudhury reinvented textile art and asserted himself as an important contemporary artist in a textile tradition that dated back to antiquity. With its abstract and energetic figures the present lot, titled Adam’s First Garden, demonstrates Choudhury’s ability to masterfully deploy shape and texture with the naturalistic palette he felt allowed him the freest expression. Drawing on the Christian artistic canon with in this unique depiction of the Garden of Eden, Choudhury expertly blends his taste for organic forms with Western art movements and motifs from indigenous textile traditions. “Many of Choudhury’s tapestries began as paintings and watercolours, and once woven, the stories interlaced into tapestry form seem to burst from the fibre” (Dhaka Art Summit 2016, Dhaka, 2016, p. 162).
Like the cultural milieu in which Choudhury was raised, his education was similarly diverse. After finishing secondary school, Choudhury began his artistic training at the Dacca Art College (now Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Dhaka) as a painter. He completed a five year course in fine arts before receiving scholarships to continue his education at the Central Escuela de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid and then the Académie Julian in Paris. In France, Choudhury studied sculpture, tapestry and fresco painting. Inspired by Marc Chagall’s use of stained glass to represent folk tales, Choudhury desired to use similarly traditional mediums for his self-expression. His teacher, the renowned weaver and artist Jean Lurçat, encouraged him to commit completely to tapestry despite the financial burden. Recalling this significant moment the artist noted, “Butterflies of my imagination will glide in the air. I did not feel satisfied with the usual oils and watercolours. As piano and organ are excellent musical instruments but not much effective for solo performances, there are typical mediums in the field of art which have their limitations. I was, therefore, looking for a medium through which I can fittingly depict men and nature of my motherland. My search has borne fruit at last, I found my destination in tapestry” (Artist statement, A. Mansur, Rashid Choudhury, Dhaka, 2003, p. 15).
By fusing his training in Europe with the vibrant aesthetics of Bengali textiles and iconography of various religions, and experimenting with indigenous materials like jute, vegetable dyes, silk and wool, Choudhury reinvented textile art and asserted himself as an important contemporary artist in a textile tradition that dated back to antiquity. With its abstract and energetic figures the present lot, titled Adam’s First Garden, demonstrates Choudhury’s ability to masterfully deploy shape and texture with the naturalistic palette he felt allowed him the freest expression. Drawing on the Christian artistic canon with in this unique depiction of the Garden of Eden, Choudhury expertly blends his taste for organic forms with Western art movements and motifs from indigenous textile traditions. “Many of Choudhury’s tapestries began as paintings and watercolours, and once woven, the stories interlaced into tapestry form seem to burst from the fibre” (Dhaka Art Summit 2016, Dhaka, 2016, p. 162).