Minal Mondal: From frame binder to art collector
Minal started with two abandoned paintings he received from a security guard of a gallery. He now has 700 paintings in his collection, including the works of Qayyum Chowdhury, Samarjit Roy Chowdhury, Abdus Shakoor Shah, Rafiqun Nabi and Biren Som
Two decades back, following the first art exhibition at the then newly-launched Gallery Chitrak, a couple of 'discarded' paintings from the show lay on the premises unattended, collecting dust. One of the security guards stumbled across the two paintings by artist Moniruzzaman and offered them to Minal Mondal, a frame binder.
"The security guard told me that the gallery didn't need the paintings anymore, and said I could take them with me if I wanted to."
Minal was greatly drawn to those paintings.They were rendered in watercolour and depicted women engaged in activities such as cooking rice, and returning home with rice flour from the paddy field. Being from a village himself, the paintings evoked a sense of nostalgia within Minal.
Ever since, Minal Mondal has embarked on a journey of collecting paintings. Over time, his collection has grown to encompass approximately 700 artworks.
Currently, a 12-day exhibition called 'Minaler Songroho' is being held at the Shilpangan Gallery in the capital, featuring a total of 56 paintings by 38 different artists from Minal's collection, alongside two paintings which he did himself. Among them are the works of Qayyum Chowdhury, Samarjit Roy Chowdhury, Abdus Shakoor Shah, Rafiqun Nabi, Biren Som and many others.
Back in 1991, Minal moved to Dhaka and started working in his brother's photo frame shop in Shahbagh's Aziz Super Market. It was through that job that Minal had his first proper affiliation with the art world.
Minal started doing framing for famous artists of the country. After that, he worked at different galleries of the capital. "Especially when there was an exhibition, I was called," said Minal.
"As I worked alongside artists, helping them create frames for their artwork, my love for art began to grow. It was during this time that I had a profound realisation: a single painted image can capture our history and traditions, and it can last for many years," Minal added.
Minal was a frequent visitor to practically all the exhibitions because he worked behind numerous exhibitions and art galleries. As a result, he developed a love for painting and began to collect paintings, in addition to gradually learning how to paint, albeit irregularly.
"Maybe it was 1997 or 1998, a solo exhibition of Pablo Picasso was organised in Dhaka. I was really amazed by that exhibition, and kept thinking about how a subject can be painted so beautifully! Although I did not understand the paintings deeply, I was able to get a sense of them. Visiting and working behind the exhibitions played a big role in instilling a love for art in me."
Minal also mentioned that during that time, he found great inspiration in an exhibition featuring the works of the artist Rafiqun Nabi. And he did the frame binding job for that exhibition.
Minal then started collecting various paintings and sketches from wherever he could. As he was connected with artists, he used to request paintings from them, from time to time. Many painters noticed Minal's passion and curiosity and gave him different types of paintings.
Apart from collecting paintings by request, Minal also bought and still buys paintings from many exhibitions at his own expense. Minal said, "As long as I live and can afford it, I will continue to collect the works of artists. And later I intend to have another exhibition."
"Unfortunately, many artists are looking at this exhibition with raised eyebrows, because I am a simple man from the village and a small frame maker. They don't like that I am doing an exhibition with other artists' pieces. I don't, however, want to mention their names," he said.
Minal has a great reputation as a frame binder in Bangladesh. Besides working on various exhibitions, he currently works as a frame maker for the Liberation War Museum. He has also worked for several other museums.
Once the Liberation War Museum received 50 photographs of 1971 by the internationally renowned French photographer Marc Ribound, from a French museum. The selected black-and-white images were printed in a studio in Paris.
"However, the French authorities were hesitant about binding the work in Bangladesh. Under the planning and supervision of the curator of the Liberation War Museum, and with the help of Minal Mondal the images were framed, and video footage of each task was sent to Paris. They expressed full satisfaction. It was a recognition of Minal Mondal's skills," remarked Mofidul Hoque, one of the founder trustees of the Bangladesh Liberation War Museum.
'Minaler Songroho' is open for all till 6 June 2023.
