When art is not art anymore
There’s a story behind the disproportionate and frankly, incredibly hideous animal sculptures across the city, and parks or resorts across the country. They are made by people with little understanding of art and bought by people who suddenly have more money than they know what to do with
With a round, protruding stomach and greasy skin that glimmers in the sun, Abdul Hamid sits on the teak wood throne at his store in Savar every day. With rods, cement and tiles piled up at the back of his store, you can be forgiven for mistaking Abdul for a construction business owner at first glance.
But don't be fooled. Abdul is an art enthusiast. At least, that's what the front yard of his store tells us, with rows of concrete animal statues, including but not limited to tigers, lions, gorillas and monkeys, all awaiting a buyer.
But as I walked into the concrete zoo, I was overwhelmed by how incredibly ugly, disproportionate and marred by unrealistic detailing the animal statues were. I mean there is no way a lion 1 meter in height will be 4 meters long!
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I thought perhaps the artist was being sarcastic, mocking the concrete jungle around us and how this excessive use of concrete makes us hideous. Well, my optimism soon got obliterated.
"I had been a bus driver earlier in life. When I managed to save some money, someone advised me to go into the construction materials business, so I opened a tiles shop here in Savar 12 years ago. But later I found out that too many people had gotten into the tiles business, so I decided to try something new. I started selling ornamental animal sculptures," Abdul seemed incredibly proud of his business acumen.
This cleared a lot of things. First, I was not in any 'art land.' And second, it unlocked the mystery of where all the hideous animal figures and sculptures, across the country, come from.
Abdul has been in this concrete sculpture-making business for the last 10 years and he gets orders from the resorts and parks that are budding all around the country.
At his Mariha Enterprise, Abdul has eight to 10 workers that work for him and none of them have any academic training in sculpting. Most of them have worked as construction workers before, or worked with some professionals in the sculpture industry and then started working independently.
There are four or five such sculpture shops in Savar that do commissioned work and take orders to make animal statues and sculptures. Another such shop named Craftsman is owned by Opu, who has a bachelor of fine arts degree from the Fine Arts Institute of Narayanganj.
"My father is an artist, and so is my younger sister. So art is something that is instinctive in me. I have been running this store for the last 11 years and I can say that we are doing better than before," said Opu.
But like any other business in Bangladesh, sculpting also has an 'imposter' market now that is dominated by business owners like Abdul Hamid. And perhaps the most fascinating fact is there is a group of people that buy from these shops.
"In the last 10 years, a number of local politicians and small business owners have earned a lot of money. Many have bought land, where picnic spots and resorts are being built. They might not have a taste for art or aesthetics, which they want to compensate for by spending money. That's where all the orders are coming from," explained Opu.
But that's not the only customer base. Abdul claimed that he has got tenders to make sculptures for a couple of government projects as well.
But how can these hideous sculptures get commissioned by the government? "Because these are cheap. And instead of working on custom-made projects, most of the sculptures are made using moulds, which takes less time as well," replied Opu.
Born out of a long tradition
According to those local to the area, there was a metal shop in the Savar bazar area around 2002 owned by a local. Adjacent to the metal shop there was a small sculpture shop in the corner where a local sculptor made concrete animals and birds. "That shop doesn't exist anymore, but over a period of time, we got inspired by him and built our own businesses," Opu said.
Nasima Haque Mitu, the chairperson of the department of sculpture of Charukola Institute in Dhaka emphasised how sculpture-making is an age-old business in this region because of the large number of Hindu communities. Their deities are some of the most beautiful sculptures. These deities were made of earth, as the soil of this riverine land is smooth, and as the ritual is to 'Bishorjon' or sacrifice them to the river, the earth could quickly disintegrate in the water.
"Besides, most people couldn't afford traditional European marble ones; it was mainly an aristocratic decor item. Over a period of time, with the advancement of industries, as construction materials and plaster of Paris became available in the market, it became easier to work on sculptures," she said.
The primary materials are iron rods, cement and time
Time and patience are crucial in the process. After finalising the initial sketch and dimensions, bending and shaping iron rods is the first thing they do. Then, over a month, plops of cement and sand mixture are applied to the figure.
"If the layers are not dried well, it may break later. So it's important to apply a layer and then let it dry completely. It takes us from three weeks to months, depending on the size of the sculpture," explained Opu.
After finishing the sculpting, a white primer is applied and the structure is kept under the sunlight for drying. After two coats of primer, paint is applied.
And painting is crucial here. It needs a professional touch. You need to be able to mix the colours well, to give it a semblance of a transparent or ombre effect. In a year or two, the painting on the sculptures fade away due to rain and humidity.
"We also provide the service of repairing and repainting," Abdul offered an instant solution.
The pricing depends on the size and details. For example, while an eight feet tall bear may cost Tk 1 lakh, a two feet peacock with intricate patterns may cost 1.5 lakhs.
Both Opu and Abdul said they have taken orders from people from nearly everywhere in the country, except for Chittagong.
"The Muslims of Chittagong are more religious, I felt. In Islam, it's prohibited to replicate any living thing that only God can create. So they don't like sculptures that much," Opu said.
But now people are less bothered with these notions. Even if the majority of Muslims don't allow sculptures to be placed inside or outside their residences, they are open to placing them in parks and resorts.
