S M Sultan (1923-1994), a contemporary of Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin, is considered a leading modernist painter of Bangladesh. It is for his bold and expansive oil paintigs that he most well known. In his striking oils he framed epic narratives of the struggle and resilience of village life.
Sultan had done some of his most iconic works in his beloved home town Narail, where he spent his last days in the company of pupils and an extensive menagerie. In 2015, in response to a brief for setting up an art college named after Sultan at Narail, Yasmin Lutfun-Nahar Haque developed an architectural language that best reflected Sultan’s faith in the spirit of the land and the people around him. The richly nuanced architectural language of the four storied brick structure encompassing a courtyard, echoes the verdant, riverine landscape of southern Bangladesh.
The college commitee later requested the design for a block to house a few classrooms in the interim. In response, Jubair Hassan proposed a bold, modernist interpretation of a vernacular idiom, in bamboo.
Lead architect for 4 storied building: Yasmin Lutfun-Nahar Haque
Lead architect for Bamboo structure: Jubair Hassan, Archeground