A collection of artworks titled “Artistic Musings of the Greats” by Nasir Ali Mamun is on display at the Bengal Gallery of Fine Arts. The exhibition is a fiesta for the art enthusiasts of the country as it is a collection of artworks by famous artists Quamrul Hassan, SM Sultan, Shamsur Rahman, Aminul Islam, Qayyum Chowdhury, Anisuzzaman and Monirul Islam.
Dhaka Tribune caught up with the collector to learn about his interest of archiving:
“Since I was nine years old, I was fascinated with photos published in newspapers. I use to cut and collect them. Taking pictures and collecting autographs of renowned people was always my aspiration,” said Nasir.
“While taking photographs of notable personalities, I would carry scrap papers, notepads and pencils, and request them to give their autographs. Some artists drew and some wrote two lines of poetry for me. I collected autographs of Syed Shamsul Haq, Nirmalendu Goon; both drew portraits of women along with their signatures.”
“Haq called me ‘Camerar Kobi’ (The Poet with the Camera) which was an immense honour for me.”
Asked about any interesting incident that happened while taking autographs, Nasir said: “In 1981, when Mother Teresa came to Bangladesh, I took her photo and asked for an autograph; she wrote ‘Shanti Shobar Jonno’ (Peace for everyone). S M Sultan drew my portrait and named it ‘Portrait of my friend.’”
In 1972, Nasir Ali Mamun introduced portrait photography in Bangladesh. The photographer took pictures of many international literary celebrities and creative personalities including those from the South Asian subcontinent. Till date he has had more than 40 solo photography exhibitions. Nasir would like to publish a photo catalogue of these icons from the ongoing exhibition. In addition, as part of his archiving process, the collector wants to open a museum titled “Photosium” in Savar.
The exhibition will remain open until July 5.
