Friendship promotes its work of cultural preservation at home and abroad through an on-going travelling exhibition. The boats on display are handcrafted maintaining every single feature and detail of each type of boat. The exhibitions also have materials traditionally transported by life-size boats. Jute, ropes, bamboos and clay pottery gives a sense of what the daily life on the boats are like. Films and descriptive panels complete the visual material. The purpose of these exhibitions is to raise national and international awareness on the impending loss of our ancient fleet.
After being hosted by the Bengal Gallery in Dhaka in 2004, the exhibition moved to the Bangladesh National Museum in 2005. The exhibition had been a great success, with the highlight being the day when we had almost 10,000 visitors, ranging from politicians, to rickshaw pullers to students and many more, all in one day.
Following this exhibition, an increase in the recognition of the work of Friendship took place and Runa Khan Marre, the Executive Director of Friendship, was accorded the Rolex Award on 26 November, 2006, for her work in promoting Bengali heritage and its conservation.
In addition to this recognition, awareness grew internationally and the exhibition was taken to France, where it was first hosted by the National Museum of the Marine in Paris in 2008. The Museum, as well as international specialists recognized the extraordinary quality of the model boats realized by our carpenters.
Starting from 2008, exhibitions were held in the Museum of the Marine in Brest in 2008 and the prestigious Salon Nautique, Paris in 2008 and 2009 and most recently in Dhaka in the Bangladesh National Museum in March 2010. Currently, the exhibition titled Voiles anciennes du Bangladesh is on-going at Le Port Musée de Douarnenez in Brittany, France and a two month long exhibition in the CCRN in Luxembourg starting on 22 July 2010.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Bangladesh National Museum, 2010 |
 |