lalit Jain tells P Sharma how every shade has a different story to share. Each painting in his solo exhibition, Hues, lends credence to this belief
Hues are exquisite essentials for a painting. Everything around us is about colours. Each one has a different emotion, a different vibe, so playing with colours becomes mandatory for an artist. While others may see them as just colours, for me hues represent thoughts, moods, inspirations, moments, explorations and expressions. As an artist, I have experienced all of these — and this is reflected on my canvas,” said lalit Jain, 80, whose solo art exhibition Hues is on at Ravindra Bhawan, lalit Kala Akademi.
But talent, despite the odds life throws at it, will bloom. Jain received his early education from Hathras, Uttar Pradesh, and did his diploma in art from Sir JJ School of Art, Mumbai. However, due to monetary problems, he had to start working at an early age, designing reel labels for a small printing press near Sadar Bazaar. His hard work soon got noticed and he was appointed as the chief artist by the Archeological Survey of India (ASI). “I was appointed on a short-term basis to design pots and antiquities but was later made permanent,” he said.
At an age when people settle in for a comfortable life at home, Jain paints 10 hours a day. “Even after I retired, my paints were all I was left with. It is meditation for me and a means to pass the time. Now I just paint what I want to. Sometimes, I capture a picturesque moment in my memory, draw a few lines on canvas and fill them up with colours,” he said. “I don’t think too much about the concept of a painting — I give it a connotation after they are completed.” He loves working with earth colours and mainly uses oil on acrylic.
Creativity is a celebration of life and Jain’s mind is always brimming over with the urge to create. “Creating human forms is difficult. A human being has so many contours in the body that it has to be replicated on canvas with the utmost care. You also have to think of a message associated with it.” Women, whom he believes to be one of God’s most beautiful creations, are the central subjects of many of his paintings. “A painter will draw a nude at least once in his career. There is an inexplicable, unstoppable urge to — it’s more of a fascination, if you ask me,” he said.
Jain’s paintings are inspired from life and filled in with the colours of his imagination. “Every colour has a story to tell,” he said. “If you delve deep into them, you will discover many mysterious tales.”
Hues is on till March 16.