Lost Shadows
Gidree Bawlee
Kamruzzaman Shadhin
Salma Jamal Moushum
The video ‘Lost Shadows’ brings to life histories and tales from the past, like ghosts returning to watch over the living. A procession of shadows crosses the screen, shadows of things past that were once part of the regular life in the village and are now lost and forgotten. They dance to the melancholic tune of departure. Not so long ago, there used to be jungles around here, where various species of animals, birds and other supernatural beings lived alongside humans. With time, the jungles got cleared, the big trees were cut down to make way for more agricultural lands. As the humans encroached on every possible corner of land, the non-human beings that had been central to the life of the village slowly disappeared. The dancing tells mute stories full of melancholic loss that evoke disappearing animals and plants, pushed out by advancing industrial monoculture that erases ancestral knowledge and non-human beings.
Digital video, 14'20"
Currently showing at Museo Madre, as part of the exhibition ‘Rethinking Nature’ curated by Kathryn Weir and Ilaria Conti
Gidree Bawlee (Santal, meaning ‘children’s babbling’) is a multidisciplinary platform which facilitates cultural and artistic exchange through organizing various creative programs by initiating collaborations between artists and the rural and indigenous communities in the village of Balia in Thakurgaon, Bangladesh. Through its social practice and community focused activities, the organization aims to make art that responds to the local history, culture and the environment.
This ground breaking unit is the brainchild of artistic producer Salma Jamal Moushum and multi-disciplinary artist Kamruzzaman Shadhin.
Mousham develops and directs projects at Gidree Bawlee. Her research interests revolve around the concepts of participatory art, art in public sphere, social practice and community art.
Kamruzzaman Shadhin is a visual artist born and based in Bangladesh working in the mediums of installation, video and performance art. His research mostly explores social, political and environmental issues and their overlapping relationships. His projects are often created through public participation and are exhibited in public spaces where the audiences are general public and surrounding communities. He is the founder of Gidree Bawlee. Shadhin is also a founder member of Chhobir Haat – an alternative open space for art and artists which has played an important role in the ongoing public art movement in Dhaka since 2005.
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