Ognikonya– an artwork of the metamorphosis of a nation

Bangladesh has recently witnessed a turbulent transformation, and all of our people are traumatized by the days we have been through all of July 2024. But right after the fall of the previous government, people are trying to recover themselves through a victorious form, and wall art is a great way to do it. The whole country is now in colors written and drawn by its people– who want to see a better future. 

Neza Mahmud is a law student but has always been an artist from her heart. However, the philosophy of her work-life balance is to avoid turning her passion into a profession, as there is a chance of losing the charm. She believes that being an artist is somewhat very close to her heart, and it is always inspired when it needs to be.

This July and August were undoubtedly one of those times when the artist within Neza took a sigh and wanted to be a part of it– not only while protesting against the injustice but also to create a visual identity to express the language of her experience. However, due to misfortune, she was injured during the protests and took some time to recover fully.

Meanwhile, she did some digital artwork but could not join the wall art. So, just after all the dramatic end bells of the previous government, the golden chance came to her when she visited her hometown, Manikganj. There, she reconnected with her high school juniors and made a team to create a mural to commemorate the July movement. 

The whole artwork needed a big wall for that, and as they were a bit late to engage, other enthusiasts booked all the upfront walls. Then, they found a massive wall of a primary school and started their planning. The central theme was Neza's brainchild, but she loved to recognize all the dedication and contributions of her teammates who helped her implement the idea. 

They took around five days to complete the artwork on the twelve by twenty-four feet wall. There were fifteen members of Ognikonya, and as they wanted to remain anonymous and at the same time remembered, someone came up with a name that was powerful enough to be suitable for the art.

They plan to do more social work activities in the future and look forward to throwing some more colors on some abandoned or forgotten walls.  

Turning limited resources into something beautiful– that is what a talented artist would do. Neza was no exception in this case as she utilized two of the windows immersed into her artwork as they were always meant to be. As she views it, "When we started, I saw that one window was closed and would not open at any cost. And the other was wide open. Then the idea came to my mind to turn the closed window into a cage." 

All you can see in the artwork is a story of transformation. Maybe a metamorphosis of a nation as Neza describes the essence of it, "If we take a look at the right side of the mural, all in black and white– there is a scary shadow of Sheikh Hasina and around her remain the tools that were apparently for the citizens but eventually used against them.

The tools are mass media, helicopters, drones, ballot boxes, etc. There are a few posters that say, "Big brother is watching" and "Poristhiti savabik. (The situation is normal.)," which shows us the helplessness of our media while being in turbulent political weather and still not speaking on behalf of the public.

This concept was inspired by George Orwell's book '1984'. There are also some dogs, which are allegorically BSL, that are scaring people to put their vote in the ballot box for only one political party, and the word 'democracy' remains questioned.'

Neza beautifully manages to link the past and present, and the timeline extends from oppression to people being on their own. And during this transition, the color of the mural changes.

In the middle, there is a yellow monument of people uniting; the goddess of justice stands above them all. The artist expressed the unison and equity of the people of Bangladesh in this one vibrant color, the color of the mighty sun– which shows us hope to look for better days.

The monument starts from foliage, and it looks like a ray of expressive light. In the last part of the artwork, there is red and green– the colors of Bangladesh in a celebratory mood with protesting students, flying white pigeons depicting peace, and the open window itself stands for the freedom we seek.

There is also a 'Free Palestine' slogan just beside our national flag to express solidarity with the oppressed, not only in our country but also worldwide. 

"As this is on a primary school premise, I wanted the art style not to be very mature to be difficult for the children. I wanted to engage them as my main audience as they will look at it almost daily. So, I used a childlike style for the whole artwork, and I believe that it was a successful thought as I had already found some students talking to one another about what all these meant. They were talking about the birds, the colors, and whatnot!"

The artwork's central theme, "Bikolpo ke? (Who is the alternative?)," echoes a lingering question that has haunted us in recent times. The piece offers a poignant answer, which is "Bikolpo Amra. (We are the alternative.)"

This message carries a powerful hope, urging us to believe in our collective ability to create a better future. Let us hope that this beacon of optimism remains steadfast, inspiring all citizens to strive for positive change and become the best possible versions of themselves while keeping the creative aspiration in our hearts.

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