It has been more than four decades since Ashok Bhowmick has been painting. Naturally, his art has undergone many changes during this long span.
But what has not changed with time is his unfettered urge to attain something simple –something uncomplicated! It has been a constant journey to pursue one’s own conviction and for Ashok, it has also been an arduous journey. Be it paper or canvas, small or large, Ashok fills the spaces with his unique cross hatching rendered with pen and ink. He creates the darker spaces with a dense mesh of lines while lighter areas are achieved through controlled arrangements of lines.

 

It is a matter of utmost dedication that has made his paintings so exclusive. In fact, Cross-hatching is
a technique known to the artist since ages and we find its excellent use in the early drawings
of Rembrandt. Etchers and print-makers all around the world have also used it extensively
in their line drawings. Among the Indian artists Rabindranath Tagore and later F.N Souza and
some other contemporaries have occasionally used this technique to attain their desired
goals. The cross hatchings of Ashok Bhowmick, however, can hardly be compared with that of
other artists, as he has arduously transformed cross-hatching, from a sheer technique to an
independent and comprehensive medium.

 

- NEETA PATHARE

Taken from Review excerpts