Unique techniques, appealing works

THEY ARE not landscapes, as seen by the artist, depicted realistically; Sandeep Bomble, an alumnus of Sir J.J. School of Art, Bombay, tries to depict his experience of Nature as interpreted by his mind, through his own idiom. Titled `Mindscapes V', the paintings on show at the Lalit Kala Akademi till April 15, 11 a.m. - 7 p.m., are a sequel to his four earlier exhibitions of the same title.

His individuated technique of using the palette knife horizontally results in powerful broad strokes, the width of which alone changes to effect different depths. `The Lake' has a smoothly finished blue surface representing still waters, while in the left bottom corner is the land in his restless strokes in green and brown with blades of grass, while on top the slow moving clouds are in white. Take `Sunchimes' - the bright tints express a sense of exhuberance; the glowing yellow strokes of the knife in thick layers of the oil colours create the impression of paper collage; this effect gets enhanced because of the straight and angular edges of the strokes.

In Bomble's large oil paintings one can't really see any curved lines. It is a straight slash of white which indicates the torrent of water in `The Fall'. The staccato strokes in the `Twins' is more attractive when seen from a distance. `Nature's skycraper' can give a psychedelic effect, as it is the ground eye view of the sky seen above a circle of tall forms.

The watercolours are also in a similar technique, though smaller in size. Though mostly untitled, one can still visualise forms such as a boat, its ropes and the birds sitting on it. These are mainly in ochre with dashes of orange. In both oils and watercolour, the colour juxtapositions are attractive.

The profile view of `Lord Ganesha' in oil pastels is interesting; but most of the other works in this medium are just excuses for paintings.

Personal statements

Vinod Dave obtained a M.A. Degree in Painting from the M.S. University, Baroda. But during his student days, photography was his hobby and he hardly ever showed them outside. Later, when he was working at the Garhi studios of the Lalit Kala Akademi in Delhi under a fellowship, he decided to combine his talent and started painting over press photographs of events, mainly centred on violence. After he went to the United States, the technical facilities there impelled him to use his own photographs. He missed India and started living it through his art. His subjects were culled from the streets of India and the life of common man, his gods, his aspirations and the entertainment he relishes, such as the cinema.

Vinod photographed models dressed like Gods and transferred the image on to the canvas coated with photographic chemicals and painted around the image. These American `Gods' might be wearing a Levis or a Nike, which adds an element of humour. He is not really trying to represent or mock the Gods, but trying to make comments on certain aspects of the society's behaviour. He interprets ``popular images of deities into personal statements'' - a cinema actor or politician often is venerated like a God by his fans or followers; it is the tension between the powerful and the humble that Vinod tries to depict. ``Lord of the capital'' is a satirical comment on the rich and powerful politician and his life style.

This tension between the contrasting elements by their juxtaposition, extends to the straight lines and the curves; to the neatly printed words stuck on the canvas like a collage and to the unruly strokes or precisely painted or stenciled forms of objects like a gun, even to the mundane and the supernatural elements like the Gods and miracles and also to the dull grey or brown photographic images.

He also cleverly mixes the various media like acrylic, pastels, coloured graphites, collage and of course, photography. His `Reflections on Indian popular culture' are being shown at his first exhibition in Chennai at the Apparao Galleries till April 30.

Individual styles

Ravi Shankar, Sajitha and Narendra Babu are exhibiting their creations in different media at the Lalit Kala Akademi till April 15, 11 a.m. - 7 p.m. Each of them indulge in their own personally preferred medium, style, themes and imagery.

As it has been her practice in the past few years, Sajitha's themes revolve around woman and her concerns; there are quite a few `Mother and child' paintings expressing the close bond between the two. There are some positive titles like `Ecstacy', and it is also the emotion seen among a group of women; in fact the female figures are arranged in vertical rows, one on top of the other.All her paintings, the small and the large ones, are in burnt umber, sepia and white combination; the human forms are simple without any embellishments almost minimalist - raw emotions expressed through bare minimum elements.

Narendra Babu lives in a world of fantasy through his pen and ink drawings. Contemporary objects like a clock, airplane and trains exist along with animals and mythical forms of birds and animals. Into this are introduced his ideas, such as a palm tree or a mile stone, which are brought in by building his imageries around them.

His forms are derived from temple sculptures, an ordinary working woman resting under the palm tree looks like one from a dream world. Such a big and heavy animal the rhinoceros is shown as being light and soft, when he puts one in the normal fashion and the other upside down on top of it with a flower in between them.

There are trains, big and small, along with a crocodile moving in an undulating manner in one composition. All these are filled with minute detailed patterns, demanding hours of concentrated work. Some of his works have a coating of gold acrylic in parts. A few of his recent works are done with water colour, still with the same ideas, but this time painted with thin brushes.Ravi Shankar's computer paintings are figurative too and though having fancy titles like `Role play in cyber room,' they are expressive of personal and emotional conflicts, whatever they may be. The manner in which the human forms are placed, often as if fighting with one's own shadow, the crowded criss-cross scratches with which the human forms are filled, communicate tension. Using different tools, he cleverly contrasts areas which are very much like etchings and flat areas of mild colours that lend variety to the textured surfaces.

Metallic tones

A B.Com. graduate, Rajny Krishnan's passion for art led her to Kalakshetra to be trained under Srinivasalu in painting and under Kalasagaram Rajagopal in sculpture. She bases her concept on the perfection of life, the power of cosmic energy or the superpower, which we call god, her faith in the absolute and the relative, be it in sculpture or drawing. Hence the title of the show ``Sanctuary of Faith.'' And because of this faith she also has a strong feeling towards earth, which impels her to work with clay and create terracotta sculptures. In these, instead of allowing them to remain in their natural colour, she paints them with various colours and metallic tones, which gives a feeling of varied textures.

Sculptures are generally thought of as solid. But Rajny has been more interested in the hollowness, as in a conch, which from one side looks solid and on the other swirling side creates the hollow and allows the air to move.

Thus her sculptures both in terracotta and bronze, which she casts in the lost-wax process, are hollow forms, with a free flowing movement of lines; either the group of human forms can be seen frontally or they surround a hollow centre.

Rajny's drawings are also based on the same theme as the sculptures, done in the Far-eastern technique using the brush, have an airy feeling with their free curvatious lines, with minimum paraphernalia. But in her drawings with pen and ink, there are textured areas around these human forms; when she dwells on the first simple drawing, she is led to create these segments, she admits.

In these drawings we also see the hand playing a major role; this to her symbolises protection from the supreme being. Vinyasa Art Gallery will be filled with her sculptures and drawings till April 19, 11 a.m. - 7 p.m.

LAKSHMI VENKATRAMAN

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