# Dhaka Rickshaw Painting

> Oil paintings made by street artists on the metal back-board and canvas hood of cycle rickshaws in Bangladesh. Film stars, flowers, birds, landscapes and religious scenes appear in bold, raw colours, framed by borders and decked with appliqué, tinsel and plastic flowers. UNESCO inscribed it in 2023. Unlike the chrome, bone and wood work of pakistani-truck-art or the jeepney's metal ornament, its core is a framed oil picture panel, often led by a film-star portrait, with a plainer appliquéd hood.

- Period: 1950–present
- Where: South Asia
- Origin: Dhaka and Rajshahi, Bangladesh; oil paintings on rickshaw back-boards and hoods, with distinct styles per district
- Branch: Traditions & vernacular
- Also known as: Bangladeshi rickshaw art, Rickshaw painting
- Page: https://stylogeny.com/styles/dhaka-rickshaw-art/

## Use it with care

This is a living craft practised by working, rarely credited artisans, tied to Bangladeshi communities and particular districts, and it is endangered as rickshaws decline; imitate its manner with care, credit makers where known (some sign with steel pins) and do not present pastiche as authentic rickshaw art.

## How it works

- Paint in oil in bold, raw colours such as fluorescent green and dark red, which also weather well.
- Treat the rear back-board as a framed picture panel and the hood as a second surface for appliqué.
- Crowd the panel with popular subjects: film actresses, flowers, birds, landscapes, mosques and geometric borders.
- Add tassels, tinsel, cut-out appliqué and plastic flowers so the whole vehicle becomes ornament.
- Carry the driver's own wishes, devotion or occasional social comment, and keep the district's local manner.

## Its design choices

Defining choices make the style, characteristic ones are usual, occasional ones turn up now and then.

### Layout & composition
- [Framed panels](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/framed-panels/) (defining)
- [Central symmetry](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/central-symmetry/) (occasional)
- [All-over field](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/all-over-field/) (occasional)

### Space & hierarchy
- [Horror vacui](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/horror-vacui/) (defining)
- [Single focal point](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/single-focal-point/) (characteristic)
- [Repetition & rhythm](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/repetition-and-rhythm/) (occasional)

### Typography
- [Hand-lettering](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/hand-lettering/) (characteristic)
- [Brush & pen calligraphy](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/brush-and-pen-calligraphy/) (occasional)
- [Eclectic mixing](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/eclectic-mixing/) (occasional)

### Colour
- [Full polychrome](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/full-polychrome/) (defining)
- [Fluorescent & neon](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/fluorescent-and-neon/) (characteristic)
- [Complementary clash](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/complementary-clash/) (characteristic)
- [Flat fields](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/flat-fields/) (occasional)

### Form & shape
- [Naturalistic depiction](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/naturalistic-depiction/) (characteristic)
- [Stylised figuration](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/stylised-figuration/) (characteristic)
- [Biomorphic curves](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/biomorphic-curves/) (occasional)

### Surface & texture
- [Painterly brushwork](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/painterly-brushwork/) (defining)
- [Gloss & highlights](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/gloss-and-highlights/) (occasional)

### Ornament
- [Abundant decoration](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/abundant-decoration/) (defining)
- [Floral & vegetal](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/floral-and-vegetal/) (defining)
- [Borders & frames](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/borders-and-frames/) (characteristic)
- [Folk & sacred symbols](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/folk-and-sacred-symbols/) (occasional)

### Imagery
- [Painterly illustration](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/painterly-illustration/) (defining)
- [Found & vernacular imagery](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/found-and-vernacular-imagery/) (characteristic)
- [Icons & pictograms](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/icons-and-pictograms/) (occasional)

### Medium & production
- [Hand-painted](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/hand-painted/) (defining)
- [Architecture & signage](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/architecture-and-signage/) (characteristic)
- [Textile & craft](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/textile-and-craft/) (occasional)

### Tone & intent
- [Communal & popular](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/communal-and-popular/) (characteristic)
- [Warm & approachable](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/warm-and-approachable/) (characteristic)
- [Romantic & sensual](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/romantic-and-sensual/) (characteristic)
- [Playful & witty](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/playful-and-witty/) (occasional)
- [Spiritual & sacred](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/spiritual-and-sacred/) (occasional)

Avoids: Ornament-free, Modular grid, Generous white space, Monochrome, Grotesque & neo-grotesque, Desktop publishing

Palette: #1f9d3a, #8b1a1a, #f2c200, #1b4fa0, #e8559b, #111111

Typefaces: Hand-painted Bangla lettering, Hand-painted Latin and Arabic-script lettering for names and religious phrases

Known for: Dhaka rickshaws and rickshaw painting, inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (2023); Mohammad Hanif Pappu, Old Dhaka rickshaw painter and founder of Pappu's Art School for All (self-taught); Regional types of Dhaka, Rajshahi, Chittagong and Comilla rickshaws

## Where it comes from, and what it’s close to

- Grew out of: [Hand-Painted Signage & Vernacular Lettering](https://stylogeny.com/styles/hand-painted-signage.md) (1800–present)
- Influenced by: [Hand-Painted Bollywood Poster](https://stylogeny.com/styles/bollywood-poster.md) (1940–1999)
- Alike in its design choices: [Pakistani Truck Art](https://stylogeny.com/styles/pakistani-truck-art.md) (1947–present), 83% alike
- Alike in its design choices: [Swedish Painted Wall Hangings (Dalmålning, Bonadsmålning and Kurbits)](https://stylogeny.com/styles/dalmalning-bonad.md) (1750–present), 79% alike
- Alike in its design choices: [Jeepney Art](https://stylogeny.com/styles/jeepney-art.md) (1946–present), 75% alike
- Alike in its design choices: [Picó Sound-System Painting (Colombian Caribbean)](https://stylogeny.com/styles/pico-sound-system-art.md) (1967–present), 71% alike
- Alike in its design choices: [Indian Calendar & Bazaar Art](https://stylogeny.com/styles/calendar-art-india.md) (1878–present), 70% alike
- Alike in its design choices: [Fileteado Porteño](https://stylogeny.com/styles/fileteado-porteno.md) (1890–present), 69% alike

## Sources

- UNESCO, Rickshaws and rickshaw painting in Dhaka, Intangible Cultural Heritage, decision 18.COM 8.b.23 (December 2023): https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/rickshaws-and-rickshaw-painting-in-dhaka-01589
- Wikipedia, Rickshaw art: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rickshaw_art
- The Daily Star, Pappu's Art School for All brings rickshaw painting to everyone: https://www.thedailystar.net/life-living/news/pappus-art-school-all-brings-rickshaw-painting-everyone-3957656
- Joanna Kirkpatrick, Transports of Delight: The Rickshaw Arts of Bangladesh (1985)

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From Stylogeny (https://stylogeny.com/), an atlas of graphic-design styles by Van Riel Online Services. How it is made: https://stylogeny.com/about/. Cite as: Stylogeny, “Dhaka Rickshaw Painting”, https://stylogeny.com/styles/dhaka-rickshaw-art/