Paintings > Water Paintings

The Water paintings reference the rivers of Bengal and the impacts of climate change. In South Asian culture, water symbolizes life, death, destruction, purification, and renewal. The works often include the words “Pani” and “Jal,” the Urdu/Hindi and Bangla words for water. One is used more by Muslims and the other by Hindus. Growing up in a mixed Hindu/Muslim family, with family members in both West Bengal (India) and Bangladesh, I have learned to use both words for water, switching depending on where I am and with whom I am speaking. The Water paintings comment on the way in which language and religion can unite and divide us, the partition of Bengal and India, and the cyclones and floods in Bangladesh, which are exacerbated by global warming. They include images of Bengali goddesses and my grandmother, who lived in a small cyclone-ravaged island in the Bay of Bengal.

Water 21 (Swept Away)
acrylic, fabric, paper, and newspaper on canvas
97 x 130 cm (38 x 51 in)
2010
Water 16 (Padma)
acrylic and paper on canvas
38 x 46 cm ( 15 x 18 in)
2009
Water 15 (Energy)
mixed media on canvas
81 x 100 cm (32 x 40 in)
2008
Water 14 (Ganga, Padma, Reunion)
mixed media on canvas
89 x 130 cm (35 x 51 in)
2008
Water 10
acrylic on canvas
89 x 130 cm (35 x 51 in)
2008
Water 9 (Floating World 2)
acrylic on canvas
89 x 130 cm (35 x 51 in)
2008
Water 8 (Where Will We Go?)
acrylic on canvas
89 x 130 cm (35 x 51 in)
2008
Water 6 (Ganga/Padma)
acrylic on canvas
97 x 130 cm (38 x 51 in)
2008
Water 5 (Kali)
acrylic on canvas
81 x 116 cm (32 x 46 in)
2008
 Water 4 (Durga)
acrylic on canvas
89 x 130 cm (35 x 51 in)
2008
Water 3 (Floating World)
acrylic on canvas
89 x 130 cm (35 x 51 in)
2008
Water 2 (Survival)
acrylic on canvas
89 x 130 cm (35 x 51 in)
2008
Water (Cyclone)
acrylic on canvas
89 x 130 cm (35 x 51 in)
2008