Economical Matters are something that can
change the tracks of our lives and being a basic essential need to survive in
this world it became more important issue for artists as well. So, how can it
remain an untouched issue for artist's canvas, as artist Thirumala Madupu
Thirupathi takes it as a central theme of his paintings..
Thirumala is a Hyderabad and Bangalore based
artist who provides an inquiry centered upon a materialist interpretation of
society and a dialectic view of social change through his works. Graduated in
Painting from College of Fine Arts, J.N.T.U., Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh and a
Postgraduate in Painting from Karnatka Chitrakala Parishad, Bangalore,
Karnatka, Thirumala's works has included in many noticeable art exhibitions of
both these places i.e. I.C.C.R. Art Gallery, Rabindra Bharti, Hyderabad Art
Society, State Art Gallery, Shrishti Art Gallery, (Hyderabad) and at Institute
of Engineers, Venkatappa Art Gallery, Kynkyny Art Gallery, (Bangalore) etc.
His works are translated silhouette of his
own earned experiences and observations of the world around him, which travels
right from his personal life to his contemporary consumerist culture. That is
the point, where his works talks about the 'Money Matters' as a central theme.
Thirumala's
association with 'Money' as a conceptual theme for his works started with the
time of his father's death, because he was forced to think about money
regarding issues. And these issues got transformed into the central theme of
his paintings because there were multiple issues in periphery of this central
theme what his mind was pre-occupied with.
As
money became one of the major necessity in today's so called gentle/urban
societies, apart from the food, cloth and shelter, which were once considered
as necessary for human existence. Because the personality of a person is seen
in terms of how much money s/he earns or poses. Exactly we are living in a
consumerist world where money sets human relationships and only material for
our daily transactions to buy products.
These
all aspects of Thirumala's works could be traced over the theory of 'Marxism',
which provides an economical sociopolitical worldview and a method of
socioeconomic inquiry. As in the early mid 19th century, German Philosopher
Friedrich Engels said, 'Everything is the product of our economical structure'.
After Engels another pioneer of 'Marxism', Karl Marx added that this economical
structure makes a base for superstructure on which culture stands. And this
culture is later on recognized as 'Popular culture' which gives birth to
commodities and fetishism. Theodor Adorno talks about it after Karl Marx. These
kind of socio-economical inquires become more thought provoking and easily
reachable to a common man as well, if rendered by an artist onto his canvas.
Because image can be more direct to viewer having visual aesthetics in it and
Thirumala's works has executed it well.
For
instance in one of his work ‘For Sale’, where whole surface is divided into
various boxes containing various daily life objects presented for
advertisement. From all daily necessary things for common men and to an artist,
an image of bridegroom is also seen, which tells the story of our ‘Dowry’
system where sons are sold by their parents for the sake of money only. Thus,
marriages doesn’t happen in heaven but takes place in an greedy and varnished
world where human beings are available like objects kept in showroom’s display.
This work shows the current status of socio-economic situations and political
fetishism as well.
Thirumala
has used ‘a 500 note’ into various transformed characters, which shows the
different aspects connected to money and how it affects to society and its
belief system. His one painting of Rs. 500 note showing Mahatma Gandhi is
keeping a cloth on his nose and mouth, makes a satire of nonsense usage of
money, which has ashamed even a person like Gandhi, who is an inseparable part
of that note. In another work he has given a spiral shape to ‘500 note’ which
depicts its snaky character that can be harmful and poisonous like a snake if
misused. Similarly some other works shows the 500 notes got transformed into
shape of plants, which re-calls the image of popular household plant named as
‘Money-Plant’ which is surrounded by butterflies hovering around it, no doubt
these butterflies are metaphor of human beings those are always greedy enough
to grow an money-plant of false myths in ambition of making money. In one work
‘one rupee note’ has transformed into ‘paper boat’ which shows the role of
money into artist’s own life where he is travelling with his wife in a boat
made up of one rupee note but interestingly the river of life is without water
and they both are trying to trail this.
Apart
from the depiction of this powerful yet mythical money in form of ‘notes’
(silent yet powerful form of money), he has also used it in the form of coin
(noisy and small unit of money). Like for showing the multiple usage of money
in our life, he has made various gestures of hands playing with one rupee coin
where artist is trying to articulate the power of money from which a man is
sleeping unaffectedly. In another work coins are in cover of ‘banana’ as they
are kept like ‘biscuits’ in packet shows that money is sweet and fruitful but
could be destructive when invested in buying weapons, as in one work note is
converted into form of weapon.
Thirumala’s
works traces the different aspects of life and situations but they have
enriched their iconographical account from ‘Popular’ and ‘Traditional’ images
combined with mythical images as well which gives a pure Indian character to
them. For instance a work, where daily market is made onto a page of daily
calendar which almost every Indian house keeps and another work
‘Sanjeevani’ in which God ‘Hanuman’ is
seen holding an ‘note mountain’ for the sake of saving the life of common
people of the country. Clearly the iconography of story narrated in Hindu text
‘Ramayana’ has juxtaposed with contemporary situations which gives satirical
stance to it. Another work with the dominant image of a hand onto whole surface
says of false belief in ‘Palmistry’ where people believe in the money line
called ‘Dhan-Rekha’ but artist don’t subsume to that belief, instead of
believing in hard work, honesty and truth.
Artist's Works Courtesy: Studio Astrea
