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拍品專文
"[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).
Choudhury's artistic practice was honed during his education across Dhaka, Paris and Madrid. He initially trained as a painter at Dacca Art College (now the Faculty of Fine Art, University of Dhaka) before receiving scholarships to continue his studies at the Central Escuela de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid and the Académie Julian in Paris. It was during his time in Europe that the artist broadened his practice beyond painting, studying sculpture, fresco and tapestry – experiences that fundamentally shaped the course of his artistic career. Choudhury found in weaving the means to fully realize his artistic vision, embracing a medium that “cast him as an outlier among painters and sculptors” of the time (S. Jhaveri, ‘With Rashid Choudhury's Untitled Tapestry, a Prominent Bangladeshi Artist Enters The Met Collection’, Perspectives, 18 January 2019, The Metropolitan Museum of Art website, accessed July 2026).
Reflecting on this decision, the artist recalled, “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). For Choudhury, tapestry was not an alternative to painting but the medium through which the people, landscape and stories of Bengal could be most fully expressed. Returning to East Pakistan in the mid-1960s, he combined the formal lessons of his European education with the indigenous materials and cultural heritage of his homeland to create a vibrant body of work over the next few decades.
Executed in 1979, Untitled (Gypsy) exemplifies Choudhury's practice. Set against a rich burgundy background, a singular figure occupies the composition. Constructed from an arrangement of geometric planes in earthy tones and deep blacks with accents of vibrant color, this figure evokes a sense of rhythmic movement as its forms flow into one another across the surface. Although recognizably figurative, the body resists complete naturalistic representation, fragmented into angular shapes that oscillate between abstraction and figuration. From a distance, these forms resolve into an almost coherent image, but when viewed closely the figure dissolves into an intricate network of interwoven shapes and textures that draws attention to the materiality of the tapestry itself.
"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). While often developed from painted studies, Choudhury's tapestries were not straightforward translations of image into fibre. Instead, the process of weaving introduced new formal and tactile qualities to his work. Untitled (Gypsy) invites the viewer to experience the tapestry simultaneously as image and object, perfectly demonstrating how the qualities of the medium were integral to Choudhury's practice.
Choudhury's artistic practice was honed during his education across Dhaka, Paris and Madrid. He initially trained as a painter at Dacca Art College (now the Faculty of Fine Art, University of Dhaka) before receiving scholarships to continue his studies at the Central Escuela de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid and the Académie Julian in Paris. It was during his time in Europe that the artist broadened his practice beyond painting, studying sculpture, fresco and tapestry – experiences that fundamentally shaped the course of his artistic career. Choudhury found in weaving the means to fully realize his artistic vision, embracing a medium that “cast him as an outlier among painters and sculptors” of the time (S. Jhaveri, ‘With Rashid Choudhury's Untitled Tapestry, a Prominent Bangladeshi Artist Enters The Met Collection’, Perspectives, 18 January 2019, The Metropolitan Museum of Art website, accessed July 2026).
Reflecting on this decision, the artist recalled, “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). For Choudhury, tapestry was not an alternative to painting but the medium through which the people, landscape and stories of Bengal could be most fully expressed. Returning to East Pakistan in the mid-1960s, he combined the formal lessons of his European education with the indigenous materials and cultural heritage of his homeland to create a vibrant body of work over the next few decades.
Executed in 1979, Untitled (Gypsy) exemplifies Choudhury's practice. Set against a rich burgundy background, a singular figure occupies the composition. Constructed from an arrangement of geometric planes in earthy tones and deep blacks with accents of vibrant color, this figure evokes a sense of rhythmic movement as its forms flow into one another across the surface. Although recognizably figurative, the body resists complete naturalistic representation, fragmented into angular shapes that oscillate between abstraction and figuration. From a distance, these forms resolve into an almost coherent image, but when viewed closely the figure dissolves into an intricate network of interwoven shapes and textures that draws attention to the materiality of the tapestry itself.
"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). While often developed from painted studies, Choudhury's tapestries were not straightforward translations of image into fibre. Instead, the process of weaving introduced new formal and tactile qualities to his work. Untitled (Gypsy) invites the viewer to experience the tapestry simultaneously as image and object, perfectly demonstrating how the qualities of the medium were integral to Choudhury's practice.