Art and environmental communication in Bangladesh: perceptions of artists and environmentalists

Abstract

Although art as a communication medium has a rich tradition in Bangladesh and the environment is a critical concern, no scholarly endeavor has connected these two research areas. This exploratory study, therefore, seeks to understand how artists and environmentalists perceive the role of art in environmental communication. Based on interview data, we explored two relevant themes regarding their perception: art’s uncertain contribution to environmentalism and environmental art’s role and transformation. The first theme discussed the art’s audience, its standard and use, its meaning, social and financial dilemmas in the way of art’s contribution to environmentalism, and disagreements between environmentalists and artists over a few issues. The second theme focuses on the communicative and persuasive roles and potentials of arts in positive environmental changes and how the internet has recently transformed environmental art, making it digital, wide-reaching, more democratic, and more innovative. Finally, this paper concludes with some practical implications of the findings and methodological limitations.

Keywords:

• art
• painting
• artist
• environmentalism
• environmental communication

Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Kenneth Caine and Dr. Geoffrey Rockwell for their contribution and cooperation.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Ethics statement

The plan for this study has been reviewed for its adherence to ethical guidelines by a Research Ethics Board at the University of Alberta (ethics approval number: Pro00119291).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Md. Sayeed Al-Zaman

Md. Sayeed Al-Zaman is Assistant Professor in the Department of Journalism and Media Studies at Jahangirnagar University, Dhaka, Bangladesh. His research interests focus on the intersection of digital humanities and sociology within social sciences and humanities disciplines. Specifically, he studies the impact of social media on social issues, digital information, and online behavior in Bangladesh. To aid his research, he employs advanced computational methods and tools. His work has been published in various international journals.

Mridha Md. Shiblee Noman

Mridha Md. Shiblee Noman is Assistant Professor in the Department of Journalism and Media Studies at Jahangirnagar University, Dhaka, Bangladesh. He specializes in communication theories, human communication, and the political economy of mass media. His research interests include legacy media, newspaper behavior, gender studies, and postcolonial studies. He published on various issues, including political news, interaction analysis of media outlets’ social media pages, and the future of print media in Bangladesh. He also translates nonfiction literature.