It takes a disciplined hand to complete a canvas within a single brush stroke.
And Hyderabad-based graphic designer Poosapati Parameshwar Raju is probably a rarity, because he uses calligraphy to create abstract images drawn from sacred iconography, rather than doodle with letters or words themselves. As he put it, “I’ve used the same tools to write new kinds of alphabets.” He picked up the art while learning design during 1982.
And up to 2006, did not hold a single exhibition, until he began to use light-proof paper colours. Before that he said, “The tones would fade within the space of a month.” Raju is showing icono or ethno-calligraphy at The Metropolitan Hotel & Spa’s gallery called Art Spice.
It’s an extensive collection featuring Oms and Ganesha, which was how he began, gradually broadening his spectrum to symbolic images inspired by Shaivic and Vaishnavite traditions, as well as Christianity and Buddhism. The show has the rather lumbering title, Sacred Is The Passion Of The Sacred Integrity, which is in contrast to the works in ink and archival paper. They are exquisitely sharp and minimalistic. You could gaze and gaze for hours at this simplicity which holds so much.
He explained that one could go on practicing versions of the Om symbols (“over 280”). The graphic style he uses is described as being influenced by ‘poti writing’, referring to the script that was applied to a stylus with palm leaf centuries ago.
“The horizontal vein of the stylus slips, so it produces certain characters,” explained the artist who is working with craftspeople, so the designs can be applied to metals, jewellery and textiles. He shared that he was taught Devanagari, English and Urdu typography. For the first there is a right slant nib. For the last, there is a left slant nib.
One series he did was on trees. It happened during his visit to a forest in the BR Hills in Tamil Nadu, near which is located a Venkateswara temple. “The unique aspect of the forest is that there is a mix of trees. They don’t belong to just one group.” Apparently tree tend to be tribal like human beings.
Working on the trees involved a discovery, as Raju began to use walnut ink, which has a brownish hue and “gives more tonal value because it changes from dark to light.”
This show features plenty of red colour — a crimson and vermilion combination.There is a section based on ashtavinayakas at a Pune temple, (where images of Ganesha appear on granite). He also inked the Puri tradition of sacred iconography, referencing the Jagannath Temple.
Poosapati has focussed more on South Indian traditions vis-a-vis Hindu iconography. He has also personally visited many of the sites based on the images, participating in the Rath Yatra for instance. He reminded that amongst the erstwhile rulers of India, “It was the King of Puri and King of Travancore who considered themselves the dasas of Vishnu.”
He also recounted nuggets relating to the idols of Krishna, Subhadra and Balabhadra, taken during the chariot procession, like the question, “Why take the sister on holiday instead of the wifeIJ”
His Buddhist symbols include the Swarnamatsya and Kalasa, as well as the Srivatsa, (indicating the never ending cycle of life and death). It was new to us that, “Buddhists use cloth instead of flowers as offerings.” Apparently this might be the influence of Tibetan Buddhist traditions, in a region where flowers aren’t found in abundance. Other symbols include the umbrella and the flag, which are reminders of places of worship.
In the South, Shakti, the Goddess-figure is represented as the Bindu and the artist draws on that, for an image of the feet of the Goddess. He also references navagrahas, lotuses and vajras. Between all these is a calligraphic work based upon a shivaling in his mother’s village. Apparently it has stones whose colour keeps changing. There is part of a series on Mahabharata — he earlier showed his Ramayana series in Delhi. Poosapati Raju is also working in collaboration with Andhra’s Paithani weavers on a complete sari incorporating his design sensibility.
Text by Shana Maria Verghis