‘Unlearning the Book’: When stories escape the page

What is a book? Must it remain a linear, printed, and paper-bound object? These questions form the heart of “Unlearning the Book”, an interdisciplinary project that showcases the work of 27 multidisciplinary Bangladeshi artists at Alliance Française Dhaka.

The project was born from a collective inquiry into the deep history of the "book" or "boi" in the South Asian context. Before becoming a standardised, mass-produced object, the book's origins can be traced to material histories of trees, bark, leaves, and fabric. Historically, books were not only read; they were touched, recited, worn, carried, and lived with at the intersection of storytelling, ritual, and memory. “Unlearning the Book” marks an innovative step toward shedding the conventional, institutional idea of the book and returning to this deeper essence: a container of stories, cultural memory, and lived experience.

This idea was sparked through an intensive peer-learning process. Artists from diverse backgrounds, practices, and locations were invited to revisit ancient and evolving histories through workshops and curatorial guidance. The goal was not to create definitive answers but to propose experimental approaches. The exhibition showcases the first batch of outcomes from this collective unlearning, with textiles emerging as the central material and language of storytelling.

The works on view transform the book form entirely. Using upcycled fabric, cyanotype, embroidery, and stitching, the artists have created pieces that are meant to be unfolded, touched, and lingered over. The exhibition space becomes a storytelling room, inviting visitors to engage not just visually, but physically and emotionally. The curatorial statement gently reminds us: If this does not look like a book, look again. Not every book lives on a shelf. Some books are meant to wander. 

The themes explored are deeply personal yet resonate with collective memory. Curators Fareha Zeba and Sadya Mizan reflected on the project's motivation, questioning how much of an artist's work a traditional publication can truly capture. Zeba noted that in Bangladesh, where few art magazines or critical books exist, we are losing the history of the puthi (manuscript) tradition. The project asks: how do we want to see the book? How can it build a connection we can spend time with? Mizan stated that the exhibition aims to bridge the perceived distance between artists and the public, creating a space for contact and connection on a different level.  

Notable works include Jinnatun Jannat's deeply personal piece, created in the three months since her father's passing. Mixing poetry and art, she used jamdani, silk, cotton, and cyanotype printing on fabric—a cameraless photographic process using sunlight—to create a tactile memorial. Her work embodies how the project allows artists to use textile to process grief and memory, blending personal drive with material exploration.

In a powerful collaborative piece, artists Rafia Mahjabeen and Rituparna Saha presented tanti, or the weaver, which delves into the forgotten history of traditional handloom weavers. Their work critically examines how these artisans are being systematically replaced by machine-powered looms, and draws attention to the severe environmental degradation caused by industrial textile production. Through their textile-based book, they highlight how chemical dyes and industrial waste are contaminating water bodies, turning once-pristine rivers into toxic streams. The piece serves as both an elegy for a dying craft and an urgent call to recognise the ecological cost of fast fashion. 

Across the gallery, other artists have worked with taal pata (palm leaf), embroidery, and various formats, each translating the spirit of the ancient manuscript into contemporary practice.

In an art world often dominated by digital screens, these textile based books demand a slower kind of attention. They ask us not only to look but to touch, to unfold, and to listen to the stories held within their fibers. “Unlearning the Book” demonstrates that when we strip away the modern, rigid definition of a book, what remains is a profound vessel for heritage, protest, memory, and care. The exhibition is not just a display of art; it is an invitation to reconnect with storytelling as a tactile, shared, and deeply human act.

The exhibition brings together the works of 27 multidisciplinary Bangladeshi artists, transforming Alliance Française Dhaka into a space where stories are waiting to be opened, touched, and slowly read. It is organised in collaboration with Uronto Artist Community and Art Initiative Bangladesh. 

The exhibition runs from March 10 to 18, 2026, open Monday to Saturday between 11AM and 8PM. It is being held at Alliance Française de Dhaka, located at Gulshan House 8, Road 7, Gulshan 1, Dhaka 1212.

Nazmun Afrad Sheetol is an IR graduate and a contributor at The Daily Star. She can be reached at sheetolafrad@gmail.com.