Son wants to shift Zainul Abedin’s works to museums abroad for better preservation

Son of Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin has threatened to transfer his father’s works to foreign museums citing negligence by authorities in Bangladesh.

“Many of father’s paintings are with us, but we doubt if they can be preserved in this country. So, I consider transferring them to some museums abroad,” said Moinul Abedin.

His views came at a memorial meeting marking the 41st death anniversary of Zainul Abedin at the Faculty of Fine Arts of Dhaka University on Sunday.

Art critic Moinuddin Khaled questioned the way the legend was presented in the art exhibition featuring the artworks of four late master painters at Bangladesh National Museum last year.

“The museum authorities hardly had any idea how texts are presented with the paintings. It was a weird planning by the director general,” he said.

The speakers emphasised measures to stop piracy of Abedin’s works.

Zainul Abedin was the founding principal of Institute of Arts and Crafts, now known as Charukola (Faculty of Fine Arts).

He also founded the Folk Art Museum at Sonargaon and Zainul Abedin Sangrahashala, a gallery of his own works, in Mymensingh.

Terming Abedin as “charioteer of time,” Khaled said: “Rural Bengal, nature and famine surfaced in his paintings time and again. Many became aware of the famine through his paintings.”

Referring to ‘Durbhikkho,’ the paintings on 1943 famine that brought Abedin fame to a large scale, Khaled said: “He wanted to preserve time through his paintings. History will fade away if the famine series of Abedin is lost or not preserved in a due manner.”

Charukola Dean Prof Nisar Hossain said: “He (Zainul Abedin) always experimented through his works. The future generation must work on his creations.”

Different departments of the Faculty of Fine Arts paid tributes at Zainul Abedin’s grave near Dhaka University Central Mosque the same day.