Ranjit Das at 53, is a very respectable name in the world of modern art in Bangladesh and beyond. With the Grand Prize in the 7th Asian Art Biennale Bangladesh in 1995 he was recognized as an artist of outstanding creativity. Ranjit is not only an innovative artist, he is also a prolific painter as is evident from his ability to organize significant solo exhibitions every eighteen months on an average. It is important to mention that his paintings are not just rapid productions or sketchy drawings, but are well conceived and painstakingly executed compositions that demonstrate his spontaneity and depth.

Like his contemporaries, Ranjit likes to experiment in different media. Of them, he perhaps enjoys drawing in black and white most. His preference for oil and acrylic is relegated to large canvases. Ranjit’s miniatures have also won him international recognition.

Ranjit exploits the elements of modern abstract expressions in projecting his figures. Only rarely does he subscribe to full abstraction. On such occasions he is an abstract expressionist exploring the beauty of forms in colour, especially warm hues. He has a keen eye for natural landscape, but is certainly drawn to human and animal figures more. Figures of horses, dogs, elephants and crows have appeared in his work time and again. The horse, it seems, is predominant for its appeal in terms of form and style in motion. People, even the artist himself, are nonetheless important elements in his work. Underlying the vigour of his paintings, there is a shadow of pain and pathos. In his current exhibition-his 20th solo-the mood of pathos, whether the painting is in sombre shades of gray, blue or algae green or in purple and brown, is overwhelming. Sadness prevails even in the juxtaposition of human and animal forms.

Stylistically, Ranjit had distinguished himself quite early in his artistic career by introducing the application of sharp lines across his otherwise solid compositions. The lines define the essential structure of his paintings. Thin or not, these lines form bands running sharply across the canvas. Sometimes grid-like patterns appear- a grille or a cage- perhaps expressing some form of incarceration. This may be symbolic of the boxed-in urban life in Dhaka.

The application of the straight line or the bar across his canvas began soon after he received his post-graduate degree from Baroda University in 1987. This has become a kind of signature on Ranjit’s paintings.

By virtue of a certain mode of application, some of Ranjit’s recent paintings emit the translucency of watercolours, although executed in acrylic. His skill in drawing is well-known and takes on a special fullness in the present exhibition.

It is not just skill, technique and style of work that distinguishes Ranjit as an artist worth serious discussion, but above all, the feelings and emotions that his works genuinely evoke. The works in the present exhibition deeply communicate a sense of pathos, a sincere message of the sad predicament of our contemporary life and environment.