A group art exhibition titled “Body and the Map” began at Bengal Shilpalay in the capital’s Dhanmondi area on Friday. 

BRAC University English and Humanities Department Chair Professor Firdous Azim and  Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy Director Mustafa Zaman jointly inaugurated the event. 

“Body and the Map” is a contemporary visual art exhibition exploring the collective psyche of society in the wake of a transformative youth-led uprising of July-August, 2024 sparking a sense of freedom and the promise of change. Ten artists, many of whom actively participated in the protests, come together through a multidisciplinary approach to address the social climate and realities following this momentous shift.

The exhibition examines the body—personal and collective—as both a site of resistance and a vessel of trauma, bearing the weight of political brutality and generational scars. This body, deeply entangled with the land it occupies, reflects the struggle for belonging within a fractured territorial political system— symbolised by the map.

“Body and the Map” invites viewers to contemplate the dialectics of oppression and renewal as the body becomes a canvas for evolving identities and shifting paradigms, redefining the map it inhabits, propelled by the shared memory of sacrifice and resilience. The exhibition encourages engagement with themes of identity, power, and transformation as society reclaims its place and voice in a fragile, yet steadfast pursuit of “equality, justice and human dignity”.

Curated by Sharmillie Rahman, the show features artworks by artists A Asan, Afsana Sharmin, Ashang Mong, Farzana Ahmed, Mong Mong Shay, Niazuddin Ahmmed, Palash Bhattacharjee, Rasel Rana, Razib Datta and Ripon Saha.

The exhibition will continue from 4 to 8:00pm till 28 December.