Novera Ahmed facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Novera Ahmed
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| নভেরা আহমেদ | |
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Ahmed
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| Born | 29 March 1939 |
| Died | 6 May 2015 (aged 76) Paris, France
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| Nationality | Bangladeshi |
| Alma mater | Camberwell College of Arts |
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| Years active | 1961–1973, 2014 |
| Known for | Original design of the Central Shaheed Minar |
| Awards | Ekushey Padak |
Novera Ahmed (born March 29, 1939 – died May 6, 2015) was a very important modern sculptor from Bangladesh. She received the Ekushey Padak award from the Government of Bangladesh in 1997. Famous artist Zainul Abedin once said about her work, "What Novera is doing now will take us a long time to understand – she is that kind of an artist." This shows how special and ahead of her time her art was.
Contents
Early Life and Art Education
Novera Ahmed was born on March 29, 1939, in the Sundarbans area of what was then British India. Her family's original home was in Chittagong. She went to school in Calcutta and Comilla. In 1955, she earned a special diploma in Design. This was for Modeling and Sculpture from the Camberwell College of Arts in London.
Studying with Master Sculptors
At Camberwell, Novera learned from famous sculptors. These included the British artist Jacob Epstein and Karel Vogel from Czechoslovakia. Later, in 1966, she met Danish artist Asger Jorn in Paris. She also studied European sculpture with Venturino Venturi in Florence. After that, she continued her studies in Vienna. Many Western modern sculptors, like Henry Moore, influenced her artistic style.
Novera Ahmed's Career
Novera Ahmed worked with Hamidur Rahman on a very important project. They created the first design for the Shaheed Minar, Dhaka. This monument is a symbol of language and freedom in Bangladesh. Between 1956 and 1960, she made about 100 sculptures in Dhaka.
Exhibitions and Collections
Today, 33 of her sculptures are kept at the Bangladesh National Museum. Novera Ahmed's first art show happened in 1960 at the University of Dhaka. Another exhibition of her works was held in Lahore in 1961. Her last exhibition took place in Paris in July 1973.
Art Style and Techniques
Novera Ahmed's early sculptures often looked like geometric shapes. She made them from materials like stone and concrete. She also created "anthropomorphic" forms. These were figures that mixed human and animal shapes. Later, she started using iron and steel, and then bronze.
Exploring New Materials
She even began using spray paints. From 1964 to 1969, she used parts from plane crash remains from the US army in her art. After a serious accident, her drawings changed. They showed shapes and figures that made people think. These included space, islands, birds flying, phoenixes, flowers, water, sunshine, and the moon. She also drew simple landscapes and human figures looking towards new beginnings.
Personal Life
Novera Ahmed was married to a police officer in Calcutta in 1954. They later divorced that same year. In the 1970s, she moved to France. She married Gregoire de Brouhns in 1984.
Death and Lasting Legacy
Novera Ahmed had a stroke in 2010. After that, she used a wheelchair. She passed away on May 6, 2015, at a hospital in Paris, France. In August 2017, the Ministry of Cultural Affairs in Bangladesh announced a plan. They wanted to buy ten of Novera Ahmed's paintings for $47,000. This shows how much her art is valued.
Remembered by Google
On March 29, 2019, the search engine Google honored Novera Ahmed. They created a special Doodle for her 80th birthday. This helped many people around the world learn about her amazing contributions to art.
Selected works
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Composition
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Reclining Figure
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Seated Woman
