// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhat did Dhali Al Mamoon say to the wall? "You're always mamoon-ing me.
Dhali Al Mamoon | |
|---|---|
ঢালী আল মামুন | |
| Born | 1958 (age 67–68) Tipperah District, East Pakistan, Pakistan |
| Citizenship | Bangladesh |
| Education |
|
| Known for | Painting, printmaking, drawing, installation, sculpture, video art |
| Movement | Contemporary art |
| Awards | Grand Prize, 12th Asian Art Biennale (2006) Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy Award (2000) |
Dhali Al Mamoon (Bengali: ঢালী আল মামুন; born 1958) is a Bangladeshi contemporary artist and art educator.[1][2] He is a professor in the Department of Fine Arts at the University of Chittagong.[3] His work spans drawing, painting, printmaking, kinetic sculpture, installation and video art.[1] He represented Bangladesh at the 55th Venice Biennale in 2013 and received the Grand Prize at the 12th Asian Art Biennale in 2006.[1][4] His works are held in the public collections of the Bangladesh National Museum, the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, and the Ibsen Museum in Norway, among others.[1][2]
Early life and education
[edit]Dhali Al Mamoon was born in 1958 in Tipperah District, East Pakistan, Pakistan (present-day Chandpur District, Bangladesh).[1][2] He received his post-diploma degree in printmaking from Visva-Bharati University in Santiniketan, India.[2] He earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Chittagong.[2] From 1993 to 1994, he studied at the Berlin University of the Arts on a fellowship.[2][3]
Career
[edit]Mamoon began his career as a painter and printmaker in the early 1980s.[3] He is a professor in the Department of Fine Arts at the University of Chittagong.[3][5] He is a founding member of the art group 'Shomoy' (Samay), alongside artists including Nisar Hossain, Wakilur Rahman, Dilara Begum Jolly, and Shishir Bhattacharjee.[6] The group emerged in the 1980s as a departure from the dominance of abstract art, seeking to engage with contemporary social and political realities.[6]
In 2013, Mamoon represented Bangladesh at the 55th Venice Biennale.[1][4][7] His works have been exhibited internationally, including at the Diriyah Contemporary Art Biennale in Saudi Arabia,[8] the Kathmandu Triennale (2017),[2] and the Dhaka Art Summit.[2]
In 2016, Bengal Gallery of Fine Arts hosted his solo exhibition Time, Coincidence & History, featuring drawings, sculptures, installations and moving images.[9] In 2023, he presented Atlas of Dissent at Bengal Shilpalay, a work exploring the colonial history of Bengal through drawings, sounds, videos, kinetic objects and organic materials.[10]
Mamoon has also curated exhibitions and mentored young artists. In 2025, he conceived an exhibition of works by alumni of the University of Chittagong's fine arts department, titled Practice. Praxis. Celebration, held at Kalakendra in Dhaka.[5]
Artistic practice
[edit]Mamoon's work spans drawing, painting, printmaking, kinetic sculpture, installation and video art.[1] His practice explores issues of knowledge, history, identity and the legacy of colonialism.[1][10] He has used materials such as indigo and tea as symbols of colonial exploitation in Bengal.[11]
His work constructs allegorical and melodramatic experiences, casting light on memory and history.[1][9] He has stated that art is an essential knowledge-system that renders the structures of thought and perception visually intelligible.[10]
Mamoon has addressed social and political issues in his work. His first installation dealt with the death of Sanjay, a victim of an attack by fundamentalists, using wooden logs wrapped in bandages and soaked in antiseptic, alongside childhood photographs and personal items.[3] His project Water is Innocent combined paintings, sculptural elements, photographs, texts, video, sound and kinetic elements.[3]
Selected exhibitions
[edit]Solo exhibitions
[edit]- Water is Innocent, Alliance Française, Chittagong and National Museum, Dhaka (2004)[3]
- Kagajer Chhaya (with Wakilur Rahman), National Museum, Dhaka (2009)[12]
- Aponayon / Elimination, Bengal Art Lounge, Dhaka (2012–2013)[13]
- Time, Coincidence & History, Bengal Gallery of Fine Arts, Dhaka (2016)[9]
- Drawing and Thinking, Thinking and Drawing 1, Kalakendra, Dhaka (2018)[11]
- Atlas of Dissent, Bengal Shilpalay, Dhaka (2023)[10]
Group exhibitions and biennales
[edit]- 12th Asian Art Biennale, Dhaka (2006) – Grand Prize winner[1]
- 55th Venice Biennale, Bangladesh Pavilion (2013)[1]
- Kathmandu Triennale, Nepal (2017)[2]
- Dhaka Art Summit (2020)[2]
- Diriyah Contemporary Art Biennale, Saudi Arabia (2024)[8]
- Practice. Praxis. Celebration, Kalakendra, Dhaka (2025)[5]
Awards and recognition
[edit]Collections
[edit]Mamoon's works are held in the following public collections:
- Bangladesh National Museum, Dhaka[1]
- Bengal Foundation, Dhaka[1]
- Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Japan[1][2]
- Ibsen Museum, Norway[1][2]
- Institute for Media Culture and Theatre, University of Cologne, Germany[2]
- University Museum, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh[2]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 "Dhali Al Mamoon". Bengal Foundation. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 "Talks & Conversations #1". KNMA. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Dhali Al Mamoon: Aiming to change the structure of the society through installation works". The Daily Star. 20 November 2004. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- 1 2 "Dhali Al-Mamoon". Artsper. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 "CU fine arts alumni display works at group show". New Age. 2 October 2025. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 "শিল্পী ঢালী আল মামুন". BD Fashion Archive (in Bengali). Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- ↑ "Bangladeshi artworks get appreciation". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 10 August 2026.
- 1 2 "Dhali Al Mamoon – Kather Nripati". Samdani Art Foundation. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Time, Coincidence & History". Bengal Foundation. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 "Atlas of Dissent". Bengal Foundation. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- 1 2 "Mamoon criticises colonisation with innovative works". New Age. 27 March 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- ↑ "The many perspectives of Wakilur Rahman". The Daily Star. 25 September 2010. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- ↑ "Aponayon / Elimination". Bengal Foundation. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
External links
[edit]- Official website (archived)