Samarpan: a dream called Mahatma Gandhi, Vermeer and Music and more..

NEWS


Mind The Home

(Work by Karl Antao)

Gallery Sumukha, Bangalore presents a solo show of art works by eminent artist Karl Antao. The show titled, ‘Mind the Home’ features sculptural works of the artist, which represent the Mind of a human being as the actual home of the person. Driven by ambition and nurtured by love and harmony this home can become the foundation and base for an individual’s success or drive them to the ground with insecurity and despair.

Using the mind as a metaphor for the world around us, the artist makes subtle suggestions about its working and attempts to set it free.

The works will be on view till 28th October 2013.

Samarpan : a dream called Mahatma Gandhi

Kalarasa Art House, Bangalore, presents a group show with the works of 16 eminent artists, titled, ‘Samarpan - A Dream called Mahatma Gandhi’. 

The works on display depict various nuances of the Mahatma as seen by the artists. Be it his struggles and simplicity of thought and living, the works capture the essence of his teachings and a greatness in spite of every problem he faced.

The show includes artists like Manju Hassan, Naveen Kumar,  Jagdish Kadur, Gururaj Alagond among several others in the show.

The show is on view till 11th October 2013.

Ethereal Epiphanies

(Work by Neena Singh)

Cymroza Art Gallery, Mumbai presents a solo show of works by artist Neena Singh. The show titled, ‘ Ethereal Epiphanies’ is a collection of works which have been rendered in the style of abstract imageries.

There is a certain elusiveness to the works and the spirituality evoking works conceal a purity and grace untouched by malice.

The works are primarily made in acrylic and oils on canvas and the show is on view till 12th October 2013.

Vermeer and Music

(A painting by Johannes Vermeer)

The National Centre for Performance Arts, (NCPA) presents a once in a life time opportunity to view the exquisite works of Dutch artist, Johannes Vermeer at their Dance Theatre Godrej.

The show is in collaboration with the National Gallery, London, and Johannes Vermeer is one of the most startling and fascinating artists of all time, as he is the painter of The Girl with a Pearl Earring. Vermeer painted little more than 30 works that exist, and the National Gallery has chosen to focus on his art in relation to music. Music was one of the most popular themes of Dutch painting and revealed a lot about the sitter and the society. The event goes beyond the exhibition to tell his entire life story and, in doing so, shows many of his works in detail

The show is on view till 14th October 2013.

( News reports by Sushma Sabnis)

FEATURE

Celebrating the Ordinary

Usha Ramachandran’s sculptures delicately cast the drama in movement

(Artist Usha Ramachandran)

Usha Ramachandran’s sculptures are movements frozen in time. A man in windswept clothes stands with his upturned umbrella blowing away; another shields himself from torrential rain with a long leaf and a third runs from searing sunlight with a newspaper for protection. Usha’s people are usually busy with the business of life, and her works capture their split-second moments of beauty within the mundane. With 31 such sculptures, and 37 of her paintings on display at Durbar Hall Art Gallery, Usha says, “Variety lies in ordinary people.”

Observing life

( Sculpture by Usha Ramachandran)

Usha finds inspiration from the lives of people around her, from the news on television, and from newspaper clippings. “I like people; I like observing them. Their faces and expressions stay in my mind long after they’re gone,” she says. It’s usually strong visual moments that translate into her art. A series of sculptures feature sportsmen in action — a footballer dives in time to save the goal, and two others are caught midway through a powerful kick. “I hope to create some on tennis players as well,” says Usha. Besides the rippling muscles and engaged faces that define sharp movements, three of Usha’s pieces on display are physically mobile as well. The sculptures of a girl skipping rope, a man pole vaulting and a diver taking off from his board move back and forth when touched.

( Sculptures by Usha Ramachandran)

Usha also draws from the various cultures she has been exposed to. As wife to C. Ramachandran, who was in the services, she shifted house several times across the country and the characters she met then people her work now. “I’ve lived in Kollam, Kasaragod, Delhi and Chennai but I’ve been settled in Thiruvananthapuram for 25 years now.” ‘The Village Bard’, which features a man playing a simple bow and string nanduni, is drawn from the sight of temple singers near her current home; ‘Little Laundress’ depicts a young washerwoman Usha saw near Palakkad and ‘Papa’s Lift’ shows a farmer father, dressed in a mundu with a towel thrown over one arm, carrying his child atop his shoulders as they walk to the local evening shadow play.

Such familial love is a common occurrence through Usha’s work. Fathers sit fishing beside their children and mothers caress their newborns.

Usha’s own career as an artist began at 60, after her children were settled and her husband had retired. “You’re in a different world when you are creating. You need time, and concentration, which is difficult to get when you’re raising kids and have a household to run,” says Usha. With time on her hands now, Usha sculpts and sketches as inspiration strikes. “I first make a skeleton of the figure in wire, then I mould in wax, adjusting proportions as I go along. Once I’ve got the balance right, the figure is then cast in bronze.” While Usha prefers bronze over other materials as it gleams well and lasts long, a few of her works in fibreglass, and wood are also on display. For instance, ‘The Bird’s Fascinating Tale’ has a man cast in brown fibreglass with a bronze bird seated on his shoulder, whispering in his ear.

( Usha Ramachandran's works on display)

While Usha is currently prolific as a sculptor, her first steps into the art world were as a self-taught painter. Her works in charcoal, oil, acrylic and pastels of everyday people hang aplenty on the gallery walls. “My first solo exhibition, in 2009, was of paintings. There I met V. Satheesan who taught me the basics of sculpture, and by 2010 I had my first exhibition of sculptures - ‘The Bronze Age’. A piece from here was given the Honourable Mention by Kerala Lalithakala Akademi and that gave me immense confidence.” Thus motivated, Usha is currently on her eighth solo exhibition, ‘Rhythms of Life’. The show will be on till October 6 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

( Report from The Hindu, Photos by Thulasi Kakkat)