Despite his many years in Japan, artist Kamrul Hasan Lipu continues to return to the people, nature and folk traditions of Bangladesh in his paintings.
Women's faces, water lilies, sari ornamentation and arrangements of red and green reflect his continuing relationship with his birthplace.
These concerns and different stages of his practice come together in his first solo exhibition, “DOT: The Beginning of Everything”, at Gallery Shimizu in Yokohama. Its Bengali subtitle is “Bindu Theke Srishty.”
The exhibition opened at 3:00 pm on 20 October, with Matsudo City Councillor Mir Kazue attending as chief guest.
Other guests included Japanese painter Asano Yasunori, an adviser to the Yokohama Port Independent Exhibition; paper-cutting artist Mita Chikako; and Gallery Shimizu representative Kazue Shimizu.
Featuring 41 artworks, the exhibition runs until 25 October.
The title offers an entry point into the artist's understanding of creation: a dot becomes a line, a line develops into a form, and forms give shape to the visible world.
Artist Kamrul Hasan Lipu connects this idea with his own journey, bringing together childhood drawing, years of practice and experiences of life in Bangladesh and Japan.
Women's faces are a central subject in his visual language. The folds of a sari, jewellery, flowers in the hair and facial expressions evoke familiar aspects of Bengali life.
Alongside beauty, these works suggest sensitivity, dignity and emotional strength. Direct gazes, quiet expressions and contemplative figures invite viewers to consider an inner world.
Works including “The Bede Girl”, “Madhabi”, “Mrinalini” and “Beyond the Blue” explore different aspects of this subject. In “The Sari of Stories”, arrangements of a woman, a peacock, birds and flowers turn the sari into a bearer of memory and narrative. Folk ornamentation and the vibrant visual traditions of rickshaw painting also inform his compositions.
Water lilies carry a personal childhood memory for Lipu. At the age of eight, he began drawing them for an art competition with only three coloured pencils. He later borrowed pencils from others to add more colours and won third prize.
Recounted in his catalogue statement, this experience gives a personal dimension to the exhibition's theme. For him, the water lily recalls the beginning of his artistic journey as well as the natural world.
In works such as “Exuberance of Water Lilies” and “Awaiting Bloom”, flowers, buds and colour suggest life and possibility.
“Childhood Beyond the Kite String” recalls the rooftops and kites of Old Dhaka, while the red and green in “The Flag of Independence” connect personal experience with cultural identity.
Working in acrylic, oil and mixed media, artist Kamrul Hasan Lipu moves between recognisable forms and abstraction. Layers of colour, free-flowing lines, marks and textures give different expressions to his subjects and feelings.
He completed an Advanced Diploma in Painting at the Toyo Institute of Art and Design in Tokyo in 2012. His art education and years in Japan have informed his continuing exploration of Bangladesh's people, nature and folk culture.
His previous group exhibitions include the 14th Yokohama Port Independent Exhibition in 2026 and the 29th Seya Art Exhibition that year, where he participated as an invited artist.
Alongside his painting practice, artist Kamrul Hasan Lipu is active in cultural work within the Bangladeshi community in Japan. He founded Kahal Art Group, a joint Bangladesh-Japan arts organisation.
Through Kahal Gallery, he has been involved in presenting artists from different countries, introducing Bangladeshi nakshi kantha and folk art, and organising cultural programmes marking Bangladesh's national days.
The exhibition catalogue includes messages from artists Rafiqun Nabi and Jamal Ahmed, Professor Shahjahan Ahmed Bikash, and Japanese graphic designer and art critic Ikufumi Fukuzawa. Their assessments address Lipu's sustained practice, use of colour and texture, cultural memory and experimentation.
The first solo exhibition offers visitors an opportunity to see several strands of artist Kamrul Hasan Lipu's practice together. Women's faces, water lilies, folk imagery and abstract arrangements of colour return to questions of memory, people and identity.
The exhibition at Gallery Shimizu is open daily from 11:00 am to 6:00 pm. On the final day, 25 October, Sunday, it closes at 4:00 pm.