A three-week solo exhibition featuring paintings, drawings, installations and video-works of Chittagong-based artist Dilara Begum Jolly is going on at the Bengal Art Lounge in Gulshan. Titled “Threads of Testimony,” the show gives special attention to the condition of women in the garment industry, a theme that Jolly has been exploring in the past years.
This exhibition further explores major themes that recur through the artist’s entire body of work: the particularities of the feminine condition, its confrontation with dominant orders, its tension with motherhood and so on.
Entirely in black and white and displaying several site-specific installations, “Threads of Testimony” strikes the eye by its formal and visual boldness. The only touches of color in the exhibition come from the artist’s video-works. Jolly’s use of the camera is documented by her practice as a performance artist and some of her video works are conceived as performing acts enhanced by the multiple possibilities of digital recording. The results are gripping and constitute a major addition to the artist’s cross-genre approach.
The opening ceremony was held on Saturday with the presence of celebrated artist Ferdousi Priyobhashini as the chief guest. Anthropologist and activist Saydia Gulrukh was present as the special guest. The exhibition will continue until September 4 and will be open daily from 12 to 8pm.
