I was deeply honoured to be invited to Dhaka in December 2018 to receive the prestigious Zainul Award from the Faculty of Fine Art, Dhaka University, Bangladesh.

In receiving this award for my contribution to Art and Art Education, I welcome it as an award which recognises and celebrates the special artistic and educational relationship between the Slade School of Fine Art, University College London (my school), and the Fine Art Faculty at Dhaka University. It is a relationship which goes back to the founding of the Dhaka Art School in 1948 (now the Fine Art Faculty) by Zainul Abedin for whom this award is named, and more recently developed through a seven year  British Council INSPIRE strategic exchange programme led by myself and the inspirational artist Professor Lala Rukh Selim. So this is an honour to be shared with Lala Rukh as well as the many artists, colleagues and students at both the Slade and in Dhaka that have contributed to our collective cross cultural journey. Thank you Dhaka University for the recognition!

More information on the Slade/Dhaka University British Council INSPIRE strategic exchange programme can be found here.

Below are a few photos from the day (platform photos mainly courtesy Joya Shahrin Huq, as was the sari).

On the platform the seating order from left to right:
Dean of Dhaka University’s Fine Art Faculty, Professor Nisar Hossein; Myself; Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Akhtaruzzaman; Pro vice chancellor Professor dr Muhammad Samad; Former Dean Professor Rafiqun Nabi; fellow Zainul awardee Monirul Islam, and Mainul Abedin, son of Zainul Abedin.