Srinagar Flood: Part-III

It is how flood victims divided themselves into various categories at Gupkar Road’s helipad, as they exist in our reservation system, and how I was trying to look at our lives as how it must have been like before the eyes of the Almighty...

I, along with my neighbors headed towards the rescue camp by sitting into an Army-bus. Some ladies were still sitting outside here and there in timeless wait. They were awaiting for their beloved husbands separated by rescuers as they were preferring ladies and children to come out first. That Army-bus brought us to a higher area on Gupkar Road, where in a temple or school a relief camp was set up. As I decided not to go in relief camp while all my neighbors went to the camp. Now I wanted to reach to Srinagar airport anyhow, so I could go further to Delhi. There were arrangements to send people to Jammu, Delhi, Chandigarh, Mumbai, and Bangalore. Secretariat’s helipad was being used to send people outside, which situates at Gupkar Road. This road was the only dry-patch that time in that area, as it situates on a hillock overlooking most of Srinagar. Several top officials including the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah's (former now) residence is also on the Gupkar Road. This elite Gupkar Road was thrown open to the public after around 10 years. 

But as I reached upward towards helipad, it was like almost loosening of all hopes. Around 8,000 people, in around 15 km long queue, were already there waiting to enter into the complex. There were two gates to enter, one was for VIP’s only and other was for common public. But till I reached there the timings for common people were closed. Situation was likely to be in that queue for some more days but I didn’t wanted to go back to relief camp. I had made up my mind to wait there, without knowing that how I was going to spend that night there on road that’s too all alone. Gratefully I found some other colleagues and alumnus of my school there. None of us had ever thought that someday we would spend a night on road like this. We were without food and without any arrangement for that chilly night. Soon we, like many other people gathered some tree sprigs from around, as it was a backwoods area too. Thereby, arranged the bonfire and could spent that night at open, dark and parky road. It was just that night, I could spoke at home (Delhi) through somebody’s mobile and could inform them that I was safe and okay. 

People were quarrelling to come ahead in queue. In night the gates of complex were opened for ladies and children to sit inside. But hoard like people entered inside and occupied the nearby place of helipad. Few were still sitting silently outside the gate, as they were confident of forthcoming morning scene. They were saying that outsider’s queue only will work in morning and people those went inside would be extruded. But in morning foreigners, and ladies and children were called up to come first. In consequence, more scuffle had arisen. It was a tough situation for Army-men to handle. That concourse weren’t including human-beings and victims now. They were Foreigners, then they were Tourists, Localites, Outsiders, Kashmiris, Non-Kashmiris, Employees and so on. So many categories were there, as they are in reservation system. But here these categories were identified by people themselves, wasn’t recognized by Government. Army-men were asking to send Foreigners first and then to ladies and children. Because foreigners were our guest, and it was our humble duty towards them, and for ladies there were no toilet facilities. But some localites were arguing over this calling it a biasness towards them. Few started laying down on the helipad. 

Crowd at Helipad, and I too a part of it
(A Clipping of a Newspaper of Rajasthan)

Many among other mobs, were trying to push others to come ahead and to go first. Men were even pushing women. Few pregnant women too were there, Army-people made them stand separate. But modest citizen of this country were not sparing even them. Even some elderly ladies were shoving those women. Some were fainting, men were shouting, women were crying, kids were nagging. It was becoming severe and none was ready to grok the situation. None was ready to either collaborate or to compromise. Everyone was desiring to go first, without realizing the need of cooperation. Helicopters were coming towards helipad but due to scarcity of landing space, they were unable to land there. Anyhow after spending a lot of efforts, Army-men could able to control the crowd. Eventually, they could made a helicopter to land. I would say myself extremely lucky that I was in first 20 people, who were chosen to go in first term. Perhaps due to bally-ragging I was pushed in-front, but causing the same I couldn’t flew in that term. But I managed to ascend towards helicopter in fourth term at last. 

Sitting onto pew in that Army-helicopter, there were exuberating emotions. Ladies and children were blubbering inside. And, I am with lack of words to describe the moment, when helicopter boarded from helipad. Instant on that minute, while gazing outside through the window, I was feeling something hyperphysical. Now, we were flying refusing for dying. Soon, in while we had reached to Air Force Station Airport. From there we were brought to Civil Airport of Srinagar by an Army-bus. There were separate queues for distinct destinations i.e. Jammu, Delhi, Chandigarh etc. on Srinagar Airport. My waiting ended finally in late evening when Delhi passengers were called up. Around 250 passengers of that Delhi flight were a motley cluster of foreigners, tourists, employees, laborers and others. Laborers were seemingly pleased with their first air travel experience. While flying from Srinagar, looking down through window I was trying to view the earth as how it must have been like before the eyes of the Almighty. We might are not less than the toys afore him and our lives too. How tiny our houses and our flood marooned lives were, as we were elevating from the earth. That night on 10th September, 2014 by an Air India flight (provided by Government to Flood victims) I could came to Delhi, to my home, to my family.

Srinagar Flood: Part-II

It is how the sky and water had made the horizon, how I along with others could came out of house and how a ruined city gave birth to two different breeds of one species called human-beings...

Calamity Painted Abstraction
(A bird eye view of water from third floor) 

Everywhere it was muddy water around our houses (which were not drowned completely). Water cropped them to resemble houseboats and Dal Lake too was coalesced into that squalid water. But the night of 7th September 2014 in those static houseboats was more awful than other days. We were fifteen people on third floor and each of us was assuredness of the other. Few from our neighborhood had been left already in 6th September night. Some were questioning if they had information then why they didn’t tell to others? And some were saying that there was an announcement through a nearby mosque in previous night about ensuing calamity but reality was that we were stuck bemused in our houses with no connection to outer world. 

Through My Window

Horizon was now the meeting point of sky and water instead of earth. Since morning of 7th September Army helicopters were hovering all over in the sky to muster the situation. Everyone was looking upon them with some kind of hope. Flying vultures were even resembling us the helicopters. Each time while listening to sound of the helicopter, people used to run through their windows to know at least what was going to happen now. Everyone wished to be taken away from his/her house through those helicopters. People were tying up red clothes onto brooms or long sticks for showing them to helicopters, but none got anything apart of some convincement. We were spending most of the time to major the water level through eyes. As and whenever we assumed it little downer, we used to feel felicitous. Our situation was no less than a group of unfamiliar people living on an alien island. That time only we all got introduction of each other, and the best part of that bad spell was that we all lived together by sharing whatever we had, ate together whatever whosoever had, laughed together and cried together. None was Hindu, none was Muslim. None was Kashmiri Muslim, and none was Kashmiri Pandit. All were human beings, all were victims and all were survivors. 

It was how people were bringing 'Red' into light

Helicopter rescuing people from Hotel

Few were exiting through boats

On 9th September, it was third day while we were living like this but now with shortage of drinking water and food. People who were taking shelter onto a nearby five-storied hotel were anyhow became succeed in calling a helicopter. It was the only building with flat terrace, as buildings are built with elusory roofs in Srinagar because heavy snow fall take place in winters. Some people had constructed the wooden boats, and some were being received by their local relatives. It was inevitable to come out of the houses now, as we couldn’t stay there for long like this. Rescue team from Jammu as assured by my uncle remained a dream only, as they may be couldn’t find any way to reach us. That afternoon we saw an Army-boat coming towards our house. We started calling them. Actually one of our neighbor’s old-aged parents were stuck in their house and he wasn’t in town, so now he was coming back to take his parents with the help of that Army-boat headed by an Army Major and his troop. On our request they had taken us also. We didn’t knew while leaving the home where we will be going but still we were pleased. Major told us in the way that they were bringing us to Army Cantonment, where a relief camp was set up. He also told us that same day while rescuing the flood victims their four team members were attacked viciously by militants. 

A lone neighbor whose son came with Army-boat

While sitting into that boat going towards Cantonment, our vacuumed eyes were confronting a drowned city. A water-prostrate city telling with sighs that how a man spend almost his whole life to set up a house and household goods, which can be washed away within few hours. How someone spend many years to obtain an educational degree, to become an engineer or somewhat like that, can be empty handed with no papers in hand. How someone anxiously earns the money, increases bank balance, feels lordly to have bank ATM’s, which can be useless without ATM machines. How someone having a big bank balance, couldn’t have money to buy eatables. How someone having money to buy eatables could be with no availability of required things. I too was with no cash money in hands while leaving the home, thankfully I was given a sum of 7000 rupees by a strange neighbor who even didn’t knew my name. Water had gulped the past, the present and had left the dubious future. Now there were no lanes, no roads and no particular addresses. We were sailing away above everything. This elevation from earth wasn’t the high rising success instead it was the annihilation of a civilization. 

It was how we came outside through Army-boat

There were numerous Army-boats rescuing the people and going towards Cantonment. But there were a lot of people stuck in their houses complaining about lack of rescue operations. We too were among those people few minutes ago. Mothers having kids in their laps were in more trouble. Some people could made their own arrangements to wave over the water i.e. by tying up the empty drums. But sadly few among them were not helping and rescuing anyone. They were a group of anti-etiquette finding the advantage of catastrophe. They were collecting the Gas-Cylinders which had swayed away from kitchens through the windows. They were going to sell them afterwards. They were stabbing the jewelry shops. They were entering into houses for larceny by demolishing the glass-windows in night. It was the reason many residents didn’t wanted to leave their houses even in that moribund condition. 

Drowned up School Building on third day
(As I could capture it while sailing towards Cantonment)

One could juxtapose the efforts of these contrary breeds of one species Homo-sapiens. One was selflessly serving the injured mankind and the other was filling own empty injections through their dried-up blood. My left eye was wet seeing the Army-men’s sedulity and right eye was sodden looking at sad face of humanity. In drowsiness of these thoughts, soon we entered into Cantonment area which situates at heights as compare to rest of the city. After writing down everyone’s name, the place from where one rescued and one’s destination place, Army-men were sending people to rescue camp. While writing down the names they were offering some dry food items and fruits. Finally some efforts from the Government came afore the eyes.

Rest in the Next (Blogpost)

Srinagar Flood: Part-I

Images, Words and Questions… Didn’t wanted to make alive the inert memories of a murky chapter of 2014, but the images and words still persist in some corner of mind to come out as I couldn’t write and share them at that time...

The year which has gone shouldn't be remembered because of the hurdles it implanted in a waving way, but some happenings are difficult to erase from the memory. One such event still persist in memory which occurred exactly four months before is the Srinagar Flood. Though the city has overcomed largely now, by concealing the scars flood has left on its skin. Still the flashy pictures of ‘Sailab’ (as the word is pronounced more in Kashmir instead of flood) lingers in mental veins. For me it was first ever incident when eyes saw the life on its verge opening up multifarious scenes. Some scenes among them are still the nightmares, some were the signs that humanity exists! And some stood as questions to etiquette.

It was September 2014, I was still new to the place, Srinagar, Kashmir, the paradise! I hadn’t explored it till that time, instead I was juxtaposing it only to my previous posting place Andhra Pradesh (Telangana now). The competitive world of Andhra was replaced to demulcent Kashmir. Andhra too was stagnant and serene in its appearance but inside there was something instigating. Contrastingly Kashmir looked convivial due to bustling tourism, and dreary due to terrorism but above both of its outer faces, I found Kashmir cool! The bone-dry Chinar trees in autumn, the scattered reddish-yellow leaves around them (makes me remember Maple leaves), galloping Sumos and Military vehicles on roads, the big beautiful eyes peeking through their vesture, the unpredictable weather and the Army-men deputed at every road and turn. It’s a mixed picture of ease, fain, and faze but I was experiencing the place grip-free despite of its varied facets.  

Who knew then that there is another fated facet was to confront, which was its ruinous face. It was 4th September, 2014, I went to school like any other day which locates in Shivpora near to Badami Bagh Cantt, Batwara. Just after reaching there, I and everyone around got to know that river Jhelum is flowing above danger mark and Pantha Chowk side has inundated, as it was raining incessantly for last four days. Parents were calling or either coming to school to send/take their kids back to their homes. In few hours we the staff members only were left in the school. We could see the Jhelum’s flow from one of the classroom of first floor of the building. The next day 5th September was Teacher’s Day, which declared holiday by chairman due to weather conditions. Ceaseless heavy raining had made the streets of Indra Nagar (near to Shivpora where I live) not less than flowing river and 6th September was also became a holiday as it wasn’t possible to come out in such weather. Everyone was trying to buy necessary food items, vegetables and medicines etc. to store as it could be difficult to go outside to buy these on daily basis, but none predicted the devastating flood even until 6th September night. That night I slept like every day thinking to get up early in the morning hoping that rain perhaps stop by next morning and I might go for my job.

Indra Nagar (Srinagar) through my window
in the evening of 6th September 2014

Indra Nagar (Srinagar) through my window 
in the morning of 7th September 2014

But at around 01:00 O’clock (7th September), the vociferating voices of my neighbors who lives in ground floored apartments/rooms begun to disrupt my sleep. Soon as I completely came out of sleep, their voices became more precise to me. Now they were flicking through the door of my apartment (as thankfully I lives at third floor) while shouting ‘Pani aa gaya.. Pani aa gaya…’ As I opened up the door I came to know that Jhelum bund (an embankment) had been broken and water was entering in the Srinagar city swiftly. Till that time the water had already been drowned the ground floors and was expected to raise its level. Electricity had been gone already and everyone was in rush to gather their important/necessary belongings i.e. documents, valuables, food items and cloths etc. in any possible way. I had only little battery left in my phone which was at least enough to inform the family members about the current conditions of Srinagar. Thankfully mobile network cooperated for a while and that was the last in that week when somebody from home (Delhi) heard my voice over phone. It was just that my uncle suggested me not to tremble and insured me to send a rescue team from Jammu at my Srinagar address.

Army-Men helping their Colleagues to get down from tower they had climbed upon, when suddenly water level was increased

Water level on 7th September 2014 as Street Lights were about to submerge

Eyes glancing through the windows & Balconies who possessed nothing apart of Hope for Life

The ascending water level inside my building, A door at first floor was visible to an extent whereas ground floor was completely drowned

It was a view from my another sided window, it was a five-storied Hotel building where people living around in one or two-storied houses took shelter

The zoomed pictures of around the Hotel

Nevertheless, I didn’t had any clue of what was happened, what was happening and what was going to happen. While everyone was busy in gathering goods and making phone calls I was now opening up all the windows and looking all around outside astonishingly. Humans were questing to higher places and animals were hopping for shelter either on some tree branches or on floating woods/objects. Rain had been stopped till now but wide sky was seeming wild. It was supposed to swallow the earth, us. It was blue-gray and clean but wasn’t cheerful. Sobbing voices of ‘bachao.. bachao’ were coming from distant horizon, breaking the taciturnity for a while and disappearing suddenly somewhere. Humans and living beings drink water to survive but that day water was drinking us, them and to everything that exist, that filthy, profane water! 

Rest in the Next (Blogpost)

The Difference between Planting and Constructing

Education

Discussing Education in Art Schools may have been seen, but descants over Art Education in Schools is very less pronounced. It has been an area of disregard and demoralization both by art fraternity and non-art sections of the society. School level art education doesn’t embroil the art fraternity, because it doesn’t relate directly to contemporary art practices or to discourse of art, and non-art sections (laymen masses) are not aware about Fine Arts as a fully-fledged career. 

   

School Magazine Cover Page by Me
(Collage and mixed media on paper)

In both public and government schools, art education is not a ‘grade gaining’ subject, which students have to study and score high to obtain a good CGPA; instead it is a co-scholastic area.  Like music, dance, sports and work experience, art education introduced and included into curriculum with the aim of overall personality development of a child. Here the point of dismay begin when it loses the status of ‘co’ and enters into an ‘extra’ zone. Most of the schools outbid a hierarchy of subjects in their curriculum emphasizing the science and commerce stream. School administration feel a staunch exigency of it for saving student’s future in terms of making them able to earn a livelihood in their forthcoming lives. With such thinking schools also behave like non-art sections of the society that doesn’t induce fine arts as a desired career option.  

This attitude results into a burden on children to pursue science, mathematics or commerce without having any aptitude for it. Though I descry the urge of studying and emphasizing on ‘subjects’ till class-10, but I also feel the need of deciphering the child’s interest and competence right from class-8 onwards, so that s/he can decide her/his career at right time in right direction. There are children those have all the capacities to grow into a creative, analysis and exploration based profession, but they also get pushed into undesired and inept areas in their professional lives. A radiant and class topper student of my previous school who has adopted science stream in class-11 told me that her interest always lied in studying history not in science, but she was pressured to carry an aim of becoming a doctor due to his father’s qusere in a subject like history, who is an reputed engineer. He consider history a peril area to pursue. 

I recall my own school days, as I studied in both public and government school, where we had book of ‘Kala Shiksha’ in our curriculum but no ‘Kala Shikshak’ to teach. A lot of time I feel if I would have anyone to inculcate my creative interests right in school, I would not have wasted my five years in wandering around medical science and arts. It took time to recognize my real zest by own, because in family very few get anyone familiar with fine arts. But even today school’s administration generally consider art education for those children who are poor in studies even after all efforts. Bright students are not made for a thing like art because they can pursue other subjects, no matter how much they have suppressed their interests, creative expression and talent.

I assume it as complete stereotypical notion set in their mind, as people those become artists, writers, performers, art teachers and so on, they were not the weakest at academics. They could also pursue any other management, engineering or medical degree but despite of it they had chosen the areas of their passions. We have a number of significant and practicing artists those listened the sprouting sound of their hearts while keeping aside a well-settled career in another field. And none can deny the power of an honest passion that lead someone to satisfaction, hard work and success. It should be recognized by the system of school education that art touches our lives in many more ways than we know. A factory production of engineers, doctors and MBA’s is as lopsided, non-healthy and non-productive as constructing the sky-high buildings at the cost of mushrooming green trees. It just cannot fill the emptiness the human race is facing within, living in uncertainty and anxiety despite of all outward signs of progress like-flyovers, metros, cars, malls and everything that attracts from outside. 

Art is an expression that is born out of our own from the world we live in. It germinates from the changes that happen in our socio-political climate. I should agree that for people who are not informed about fine arts, its wide and multifaceted scope when the word ‘art’ is once mingled with ‘contemporary’ and its historical discourse, the first step to make them aware is arduous. And it’s good to see that some mainstream art galleries, museums and other non-profitable institutions are coming up with children learning programs, summer-camps and hobby classes. It could help anyone among them having some zest to embrace art for a lifetime. Their parents would also familiarized themselves with artistic creativity and would experience it at larger platform. After all they also need to know the baffling expressions of contemporary art, with its multiple formats, materials, mediums, and environment. In small towns where there is no such institutions, I am hopeful that with dedicated efforts of like-minded people and educators, the need and relevance of art and culture will be recognized and its presence will reach out to a huge number of visitors and art lovers beyond the art fraternity.

I am hopeful that art will not be banished to ‘free period’ activity or simply to beautify the classroom or school premises as said by Roobina Karode, Educator and the director of Kiran Nadar Museum of Art as it has a vital role to play than this. It is important to realize that creative and artistic pursuits have a humanizing effect on us. I feel it when I enter into a primary classroom, kids waiting for their art teacher with glowing faces and felicitating smiles. They become happy to imagine the freedom they get in art period replacing the whopping stick. Situation is contrasting with secondary class children especially of class-9 and class-10. They have forgotten the joy of creative learning in front of growing academic scud even being good in creative areas.

I am hopeful that art teachers in schools will not be identified as ‘free’ or to simply used like ‘stepney’. Schools should understand that art teachers don’t only work for their salaries and money, they turned their hobbies into a profession due to their love towards art and they would find useless earning money if they will be forced to create distance from their work. This is the responsibility of art educators to try people make understand about it, so art education can contribute into children’s lives like watering into sprouting seeds not like shaping the grown-up bushes in order to make them artificially attractive. 

Studio Visit: Artist Tanul Vikamshi

Nisha Aggarwal visits Nagpur based painter and social activist, Tanul Vikamshi at his studio and comes out with the following observations about his life and art.

Amidst all the chaos- of fluctuating art market, rise and fall of optimism and despair, I see the serene face of Tanul Vikamshi, a Nagpur based artist. I met Tanul through his brother and artist Lalit Vikamshi whom I had met in an art camp in Goa. He took me to meet his brother. Tanul had come to receive us at the Nagpur Railway station; a rare courtesy these days shown by the artists. On the way to his studio, Tanul was all animated and happy while talking about the city and later about contemporary art scene in India.

Artist Tanul Vikamshi at his Studio in Nagpur

I met Tanul at his studio the next morning. I was gazing at one of his large canvases for a long time as he entered the studio. Tanul is not a painter by training. He studied sculpture from Sir.J.J.School of Art in Mumbai in 1993. Brother Lalit also studied sculpture though both of them actively pursue a career in painting. Their sculpture gene comes from their father who too was a sculptor. Man proposes and fate or destiny or god, call it anything, disposes. Tanul was a happy student at J.J.School. But his studies were cut short by an accidental fall from a tree. He was plucking mangoes for his teachers. The fall rendered him paralyzed below waist for some time and he had to leave Mumbai and cut short his studies. Finally, he finished graduation in sculpture from Khamgaon, an institution famed for sculpture studies. Later he took a masters degree in painting from Nagpur University in 2003.

Tanul does not feel bad about his change in career. Had it not been the fall he would have definitely pursued a career in sculpture. But today he paints regularly without heeding a bit about the changing graphs of the art market. He never thought of living in a metro city to make his career flourish. Currently he is a Co-founder/director of Alag Angle Studio in Nagpur, an initiative that aims to bring out budding artists in various genre of visual arts. Alag Angle and its students also work in the field of social awareness while collaborating with various other organizations and projects.

The significant projects undertaken successfully by Alag Angle Studio are ‘Hamari Nag River’ supported by Norwegian Embassy and Khoj Studios, Delhi, ‘Gram Art Project’ in Paradsinga Village, Madhya Pradesh and ‘I have a Dream Project’ by Vancouver Biennale. Tanul has exhibited in various parts of the world as a solo artist.

Tanul’s art and life reflect his never say die attitude. For him sky is the limit. In his earlier works, he repeatedly paints the image of a gate. According to him, it was an opening to the world and through which he could measure the world beyond, sitting on a wheel chair. Depending on his mood, the gate appeared either opened or closed. Another important image of that time was ‘car’. For Tanul car represented the pace of thinking, its maneuverability and its elegance. Between gates and cars there are always textured stones as another link image. Tanul says that a stone is a metaphor for the primitive imaginative capacity of human beings. They symbolize massiveness and solidity.

A Work by artist Tanul Vikamshi

Tanul paints mostly acrylic on canvas and on paper in monochromatic shades. However his color palette is teeming with brighter hues in the recent works. The melancholy of his earlier works is now fading and erupting into more lively shades of imagination. These are midway between abstraction and figuration. For Tanul the act of painting is similar to creating space that allows viewers to travel within. The textures are like various sojourn points essential for navigation into various directions and searching into the soul of the space/painting. The absence of the textures would limit this journey of viewers to the surface only. The tenuous presence of feminine figures is a metaphor of the energy/strength and Scorpions are of the artist himself. The sculptural outlook of these figures are evident of the artist’s earlier training in sculpture which now he could release only into his paintings. Tanul says he cannot resist doing it as it is a subconscious manifestation.

Of late the artist has begun to think about the balance created out of various counterparts in life or in different things. He delineates it through the machinery as it functions properly due to correct operation of its internal fittings. Here the artist’s endeavor is to understand the function of machinery which could give insights to human beings to make their lives ‘existent’, just like Tanul’s own life gives.

Image Courtesy: The Artist

(First Appeared Online in CartanArt Magazine, Issue-I, June 2014)

On the Threshold of ‘A Portrait’

Review

‘On the Threshold of Time’ is a group show of four young fresh graduates from Delhi College of Art, New Delhi. Mounted at the Heritage Art Gallery in the city, this show attracts the viewer with its emphasis on ‘self-portraits,’ feels Nisha Aggarwal.

Why do artists paint self-portraits, is an age old question in art history. When asked Frida Kahlo once, the artist replied, ‘because I am the subject, I know best’. Answer to this question varies as artists have responded to this in their own ways. The first ever believed to be found portrait was by the Ancient Greek sculptor Phidias, who inserted a likeness of himself in the frieze ‘Battle of the Amazons’ at the Parthenon in Athens. The Early Renaissance artists of the mid-15th century can be more frequently identified depicting themselves as either the main subject, or as important character in their work.

A Rare Self-Portrait by Adolf Hitler
(Photo: Caters News)

Italian Renaissance painters avoided producing formal self-portraits, but tended to insert images of themselves in their painting. Instances can be seen in the paintings of artists Simone Masaccio, Piero della Francesca, Sandro Botticelli, Michelangelo Buonarroti, Raphael, and Titian. Some Florentine artists like Gentile Bellini and Leonardo da Vinci executed more formal self-portraits. The 20th century sought the painters like Henri Matisse, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Marc Chagall, Paul Klee and Max Beckmann producing stylistic portraits of themselves. Likewise, the Mexican artist Frida Kahlo executed 55 self-portraits depicting her personal torment. The great Spanish artist Pablo Picasso painted a wide range of autobiographical portraits depicting himself at various stages of his artistic career. All these artists used self-portraits either to advertise their skills, to explore inner turmoil or to stake a place in history. Beyond representing one’s physical and inlying attributes, self-portraiture can also announce one’s style. The reasons may be whatever but it can be deciphered as a painting with art of writing.

A Work by Akshay Sethi

Once again ask the question; why do artists paint self-portraits? This question comes to me again as I descend the stairs of the Art Heritage gallery, which is located at the basement of the Triveni Kala Sangam, New Delhi. There I confront a huge portrait of a young man wearing a Shaktiman costume. This one is by Rahul Gautam, one of the participating artists in the group show. The question refuses to fade as I walk along the aisle of the gallery, where Akshay Sethi’s works are displayed on either side. Sethi’s works focus more on the plight of the middle class caught in the metropolitan cities. These self-portraits are not heavily detailed, however, they tell me about the issues of the aam aadmi in his/her efforts to survive in big cities.

Naughty Boy by Dipanker Pramanik

Inside the main gallery, I see the works of Dipanker Pramanik, Sambodhi Ascharya and Rahul Gautam. Dipanker revels in the immediate and he gives expression to his visuals responses in small paper works. These are windows kept open to his life, to his family and the life that floats by. Sambodhi dares to bare as she paints female nudes though she blurs the nudity by photoshop act. For the artist, female body is not different than the landscapes and the natural aesthetics they carry in them. But what attracts me more is a series of self-portraits by Rahul Gautam done mostly in oil and acrylic on canvas or pencil on paper.

Shakti-Shakti-Shaktiman by Rahul Gautam

In Rahul’s works the perceived reality around him meets the imagined reality inside the artist’s head. Hence one could see a lot of popular images in his works. He gives iconic status to the ordinary individuals; at times to his own self and at other times to his family members. The characterization of these works is crucial to the artists as several of them are ‘living’ people; his family members or friends. Rahul’s dependence on autobiography could be read out as a need for self-validation felt by the artist himself. He repeatedly changes the ambience of the locales where these protagonists are seen and this changing ambience in a way suggests his thoughts and desires. For instance, in ‘Lovely One’ he depicts the union of college mates in a birthday party or something. By the mere enlarging of the scale of the painting, he underlines the importance that gives to a mundane occurrence.

Lovely One by Rahul Gautam

‘Hey! What’s Up?’ is from the series of works on his facebook addiction and relations. These pencil portraits are profile pictures of his facebook friends (his real life friends too) and the text written with them is taken from facebook chat-box, which defines their character or personality. His other work ‘Cold War’ also promulgates his relationship with one of his closest friend, penning how after having some misunderstandings a cold war began between them. She has some resemblance with Mona Lisa, so Rahul portrayed her as Mona Lisa while erasing her facial features. Same whittling of the facial features is indicated in his sculptural portrait of that friend (in one portrait among a set of four portraits). Before portraying her as Mona Lisa, Rahul had created her portrait in clay and sequence of these four portraits shows the creation to destruction of a relation.

Hey! What's Up?, A Set of 9 Portraits by Rahul Gautam

In the work, ‘Babu, You will be a star one day’, an old family photo with his father and siblings but one who is wearing Shaktiman’s costume is Rahul himself. He ‘edited’ his dress in the old photo while converting it into a large painting. The title is taken from his father’s refrain. In another painting he portrays himself as Shaktiman; it is a sort of searching for the self therefore an act of self-discovery.

Cold War by Rahul Gautam

His selection of the pictures that he paints has a similarity. The gaze of his characters look directly into the eyes of the viewers as to create a relation with them. Technically Rahul is inspired with hyperrealist artists, but his concepts of portraits are more near to the contemporary aspects of it as ‘selfies’. The selfie is a smartphone-produced version of the self-portrait, which has been a staple of art and photography history since artists first began seeing or examining their own images in the mirror. Shot mostly with smartphone cameras, a way for the one shooting the picture to see themselves the way they would like to be seen. Thus far, the selfies have concentrated mostly on the philosophical implications of disseminating them via social networks and the internet, wherein the selfie can receive validation from their social circle.

Babu, You will be a Star one day

This is the fourth exhibition by Art Heritage Gallery in the exhibition series of ‘On the Threshold of Time’, which majorly includes the young artists or fresh graduates from fine arts colleges. All these artists have portrayed the image of their alternative self that shares and reflects their intramural core, just like the words of Pablo Picasso that, ‘we are to paint what’s on the face, what’s inside the face, or what’s behind it’.

Picture Courtesy: Art Heritage Gallery & Rahul Gautam

The exhibition is on view till 29th May, 2014.

(First Appeared Online in CartanArt Magazine, Issue-IV, May 2014)

Of Creative Diligence

Interview

The art world today witnesses a rapid change as artists tend to move towards creating quick, commercially palpable art work, rejecting their conventional art practices. Veteran artist Paramjeet Singh, teaches by his own example and stresses the need for consistency in art practice for ensuring longevity, in an interview with Nisha Aggarwal.

Recipient of President of India’s Silver Plaque Award among many others, veteran artist Paramjeet Singh has been an active member of Group8 and Delhi Shilpi Chakra. Presently he is an Executive member of All India Fine Art and Crafts Society, New Delhi. Paramjeet’s consistent and persistent work in painting and printmaking, and contributions in art education as Principal and Professor at College of Art, New Delhi, begets a pry to recognize him as Paramjeet Singh the artist. Here he speaks: 

Artist Paramjeet Singh

Nisha Aggarwal: You as a prolific artist, worked untiringly both in painting and printmaking with variety of media. Artists often feel themselves astray in initial phase of their career due to availability of various options. What are your suggestions?

Paramjeet Singh: I started silk screen printing in late 60s, to find out what is a silk screen print in fine arts, I studied print media that was European, but I wanted to find out it in an Indian context. It was the time when graphic arts such as lithography and etching were carving a niche and silk screen printing was being diminishing. In such an era I stuck to serigraphy by practicing it consistently for 30 years. Print medium requires a lot of stress and physical hard work. In 1979, I got a National Award by Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi. Gradually I shifted to oil colour medium and afterwards to acrylic. But present scenario is little different. People are hunting for the change to avail the demand and opportunities. Artist’s mind is polluted. The shift to one medium to another should be piecemeal. One should take a medium or style seriously for certain time period and should master it. The development will come successively and conclusion point will be sought for a shift in medium or style. Then only one could be able to mature one style of working and master it.

Blue Vision, Silkscreen 1974

NA: Would you put an emphasis on the gradual development or shift in your style of working?

PS: Late 60s marked the beginning of my artistic career with abstracts. For 8 to 12 years I continued with abstracts that may be as a symbolic phase with geometrical shapes and lot of in-lighted colours. That time’s work emphasized on geometrical shapes. In forms I preferred squares, ovoids and floral motifs. In the 80s I started adding clouds, leaves, butterflies, birds, rainbows and human figures in my compositions. In 1983 I started using a very coarse 60-80 mesh screen with conventional printer’s colours through which I succeeded in producing exceptionally flat opaque surfaces and delicately gradated shadings rarely possible with a brush. 1984 I attempted silk screen on canvas combining a painterly effect with serigraphic technique. In the last decade of my artistic life my endeavours have moved towards reconciling the human world with nature. My human figures notably the female figures set in indoor scenes with mundane household objects. I have been delving into the human form on and off for over two decades now.

Passage to Hermitage, Silkscreen 1983

From basic shapes to natural elements and afterwards human figures, was an experience in itself. It was a journey exploring my inner self. I gradually started realist after abstract but basic study was always there that converted one style into another. The process of unifying birds and human beings with geometrical shapes came with constant experimentation. As thoughts and images change as the experience grow but the stagnant application with technique and images is the reason behind achieving the signature style.

Blue Mountains, Silkscreen 1986

NA: From your earlier work on symbolism and geometrical shapes, nature and form related, to human/ female forms, how are you able to create such ‘personal space’ and to find the serene surroundings while living and working in restless world of Delhi?

PS: See Delhi is not just a wild area (laughs) or concrete jungle only. You see landscapes everywhere. You can’t ignore that among the buildings, gardens are there. You can make your own subjects. Even a single tree can make a beautiful composition. It is so decorative and balanced. So, one has to have observation.

Green Carpet, Silkscreen 1995

NA: Do you feel any impact of your teaching career on the artist in you?

PS: It helped me and gave me a support. It never bound my creativity.

NA: What are your views about Art Education in India in today’s perspective?

PS: We cannot say exactly as its very mixed now. Many things are done and more is needed. Art education today is growing and a manner of precipitation is there. People think that they have to learn faster and faster. But I believe that art cannot be learnt so rapidly. This way sometimes you feel that education remains incomplete. But if somebody is clever enough to learn and mature cursorily, one can hold it or carry on. So some sort of deficiency in art education is there.

Camp Observer, Silkscreen 2002

NA: What are your views about contemporary art practices in India?

PS: It’s good and growing. It’s a kind of documentation of the society. So many people are hunting here and there thinking what to do and what not to do. They are incorporating a lot of modern technologies in it. And I think there is a need of time also because one has to work with time. One cannot go with the convention which was created by our forefathers and mastering in all those. With modern times, modern technologies and modern instruments has to be interflowed. I think experimental works are coming out.

Lady on Green Sofa, Oil on Canvas 2007

NA: Would you like to convey any message to young artists/art practitioners of India?

PS: My message to artists and students is that they have to work. They have to work and work and work. The time will come when a certain development and maturity will be there. Understanding will come by working only. That is more important instead of running here and there, finding sources, finding market and all those things. That is what I feel and want to convey.

(First Appeared Online in CartanArt Magazine, Issue-III, May 2014)