The stories we carry: IUTPS brings ‘Break The Circle: Season XII’

On November 27, The Islamic University of Technology Photographic Society (IUTPS) inaugurated "Break The Circle: Season XII" at Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy's Art Gallery 6, unveiling one of its most ambitious international showcases to date. The exhibition features 50 single photographs and seven photo stories selected from 7,832 submissions by judges Syed Latif Hossain, Suborna Morsheada and Sarker Protick.

Curated by photographer Jewel Paul, this year's edition demonstrates a remarkable breadth of visual language — spanning documentary, abstraction, portraiture and surreal narrative — while remaining rooted in the emotional nuance.

The arrangement of the photographs allows the single images to take on new meaning when placed together. Speaking to The Daily Star, Jewel said, "I arranged these pictures in sets, especially the single ones, by how they look or feel. The pictures in a set are not from the same artists or even the same place. Instead, I picked the ones that tell a story when placed together."

Photo: Naveen Islam Toree

Each of the photo stories explores something deeply personal. "Nur Banu Chowdhury" by Mohammad Tawhidulur Rashid reflects on what a deceased person leaves behind, prompting viewers to revisit the eternal question: what remains of us after we are gone? Another captivating series is "Being" by T M Muhin, which questions the meaning of existence and the photographer's love for those closest to him through an evocative monochrome set.

From the intoxicating pull of Dhaka, captured through Rahat Karim's story "Mrittupinik", to the quiet joy found in everyday pets in Kazi Muhaiminul Islam Munaj's "Light, Pet and Action", each body of work attempts to answer the unspoken questions that linger at the back of our minds.

Photo: Naveen Islam Toree

Several of the exhibition's most compelling works emerge from riverine spaces. In one pair, a boatman lies on woven mats under soft daylight while, just metres away, a swimmer glides through dark water — two gestures of rest and motion sharing the same frame. Nearby, a boy paddles across a bustling harbour on a makeshift board, a white goat balancing beside him as wooden boats crowd the horizon. Filled with texture and lived-in familiarity, these images root the exhibition firmly in Bangladeshi rhythms.

One of the most serene photographs in the show depicts a monochrome landscape where light, mist and reflection converge to create a dreamlike atmosphere. At its centre stands a cluster of tall trees forming a natural colonnade. Soft sunlight filters through the dense canopy, illuminating the foliage with a gentle, misty glow. In stark contrast to the darkened forest interior, a lone white cow stands at the water's edge, its bright figure almost ethereal against the surrounding shadows. The still water mirrors the trees and the cow, creating a quiet symmetry that deepens the tranquillity of the scene.

Photo: Naveen Islam Toree

Taken together, the works form a textured narrative of contemporary life — its uncertainties, joys, burdens and fleeting tenderness. They speak of Bangladesh without claiming to define it, share global concerns without abandoning local specificity, and bridge generations of photographic practice.

The exhibition invites viewers to see themselves more clearly. It makes them pause, breathe and reflect. Through thoughtful curation and a strong cultural pulse, "Break The Circle: Season XII" stands as both archive and forecast — a snapshot of where young image-makers are headed and a testament to what collective artistic labour can create.

The exhibition remains open to the public until November 30.