A Veritable Thor

Rooster 1, bronze, 27x17x10cm, 2013.

Illustrious sculptor Hamiduzzaman has been working in metal for years. In the Karwan Bazaar roundabout one sees metal hilsa fish done by him. In Mirpur No I roundabout there is a work by him done with box pipes. “There are birds at the turning of Baridhara. Last year I worked at the Patuakhali Science and Technology University, I have a he stainless steel work,” he says. Earlier, Hamid had done many “Muktijoddha” work at Jahangirnagar University, at Shangshaptak, for instance. Earlier he did a family of birds in front of the Bangladesh Bank.  
Asked what pleasure he gets doing acrylic, going by his earlier solo at Kaya Gallery, and the present one at Athena gallery, he says that as water-colour has to be done quickly, acrylic, a new media, can be worked with, getting the results of oil media. In London he studied all he could at the Tate Gallery. He needed treatment for a head injury, and he stayed in London for four months. "I got the chance to see the Victoria and Albert Museum. It has certainly enlightened me and helped me a lot. In the US, I saw the Guggenheim too," says the multi-faceted artist. In Europe too, in Mont Marte, he saw Picasso's works, which definitely influence his present day sculpture, which at times appear like African masks.

Peaking 1, wood, 123x46x9cm, 2013.

Talking about his teachers, he says that in India it was Ragov Kanaria, who happened to have studied in England. Subramanium was another teacher who has influenced his works, although he was from the painting faculty.
 Earlier on, in Bangladesh, as a student, he had Mohammed Kibria and Shafiuddin as teachers. "They happened to be our direct teachers. Zainul Abedin was there too for us. We had Shafiqul Amin and Abdul Basset too. Zainul Abedin liked my watercolours quite a bit. When I was going to India, he advised him not to leave water-colour in my quest for sculpture. Even today I remember his words, even though I now work in steel and stone,” says Hamid.
His father, who was a homeopathic doctor, encouraged him a lot. His childhood was a happy one. His school was about two and a half kilometres away. He walked there merrily on the rough roads. He loved soaking in the rain, and plucking fruits as he went. He enjoyed fishing too in the nearby ponds. There was no pressure of work. His wife, Ivy Zaman is a sculptor too.
His recent exhibition “Earthly Treasures” at Athena ends on March 31.