Raising basic questions

THERE IS a new installation by Natesh at the Alliance Francaise de Chennai. Humourously he has titled the 15-metre structure it `Nungamba 2' or even laughing at himself `Nonsensism'. ``Making pretty, colourful paintings and selling them is alright. I have done it too. But now I want to ask some basic questions about art, which makes me indulge in creating installations; these may be temporary and cannot be sold, but they have their psychological value. If, as some say, art is dead, when it is reborn, the function of art would also be relocated,'' asserts Natesh.

Natesh feels, like many of us do, that the habit of going into the wide open spaces is dying. Life seems to be confined to the TV or computer screen and small apartments. When he constructed the tall framework of a cage with steel angles, people naturally looked up wondering what he was up to. That at least would make them look at the sky, the space, the sun, the clouds, etc. Part of his earlier installation in the shape of an egg became the body of a bird, with beaks attached, all made of bamboo.

The huge bird looks down on the earthlings, with a single eye, which actually is an enlarged Indian currency note with the image of Gandhi, the eyeball planted in the middle. Says Natesh, ``I have put only the middle eye - `Netrikann' - with the currency, because everything revolves round money these days.'' Instead of the bird being inside the cage, the cage and bird become part of each other in this concept. And there is a mirror in front, while the viewer stands in front of the installation and looks at it, he/she is reflected in the mirror and becomes part of the whole concept.

Natesh is one artist who does not seem to tire of raising socially and politically relevant questions through his installations, mostly made up of natural materials.

LAKSHMI VENKATRAMAN

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