Martijn Crowe, Phnom Penn.

Tucked away from the frenetic streets of Dhaka city, in an otherwise unassuming building, Athena Gallery is currently hosting the wonderfully vivid exhibition Show: Yourself. This exhibition features Martijn Crowe from Brazil, Ronald Merkesteijn from The Netherlands, and Bangladesh's very own Rezaun Nabi; these three artists from three different continents have come together to showcase a collection steeped in culture from around the world which has come to reside in Dhaka.

Ronald Merkesteijn, Unmatable.

Walking into Athena Gallery one is immediately greeted by a shock of colour. This is Crowe's mixed media on watercolour paper piece, Amsterdamm. It is an eclectic blend of blues, reds and greys that somewhat resembles a photograph with its colours inverted. It's difficult to make out the subject of this piece and it's a common theme with Crowe's works. They're dotted around the room like portals into some of the busiest cities in the world. It is through them that you are transported to the various locations he has chosen to portray – Sao Paulo, Tijuana, Phnom Penn and New York. It is interesting to note that, apart from Tijuana, none of his other works feature any people as the subject. They have taken a backseat and the cities they inhabit have become the stars of the show. Despite this fact, Tijuana is still as vibrant as the others. With the blur and the shades of red and purple, it's akin to a drug-induced hallucination – and that isn't such a bad thing in this instance.

Martijn Crowe, Tijuana.

Rezaun Nabi, Wall II.

While Crowe has explored urban environments, Merkesteijn has chosen to delve into himself to produce distorted self-portraits and images featuring characters that exude his inner turmoil he has drawn inspiration from. These characters appear to have fluid genders, displaying both male and female traits. Their outlines are frenzied. Their colours reflect his internal conflict– they are angry spatters of blacks and blues with the occasional spark of neon green. They're abstract figures that transcend social strata while representing simplistic concepts through their titles, things like Watching Television and After Work Was Done.

It is apt that, in an exhibition in Bangladesh, it is the work of prominent local artist Rezaun Nabi that ties everything together. Between Crowe's manic colours and Merkesteijn's sharp lines, Nabi provides the perfect balance with his subdued acrylics. He uses muted colours which seem to have a sobering effect. Browns, yellows and greens are predominant in his work, with the occasional pastel purple and blue. His mostly abstract art depicts a calm Bangladesh, a landscape we may not be too familiar with in this day and age. They're images he has captured with his paintbrush and framed, to be preserved not just in his memory, but in real life too.

The exhibition runs until August 31.