A recently concluded art exhibition brought six artists from West Bengal who showcased their work under one roof. Arjita Mishra reports
Paintings focussed on the divine love of Radha-Krishna with flute as a constant motif in all his paintings, is reminiscent of Subrata Das. With this, there is a constant prominence of flora and fauna in all his artworks.
As Krishna has a constant depiction in all his paintings, Das derives inspiration from characters of Indian mythology. “My paintings are based on the tunes of life and love. My paintings are based on Krishna because I believe that the Krishna is a very positive character,” shared Das.
An exhibition Bengal Art Strokes held at lokayata Art Gallery from Bengal showcased works of various artists from Bengal. The exhibition saw Subrata Das, Gopal Chowdhury, Samir Sarkar, Sekhar Roy, Shambhu Nath Goswami and Subrata Paul coming together to present their artworks under one roof.
Chowdhary presented his 3D collection of paintings. While looking at the canvas, one may find that the figure of a man and woman connected with a thread. At the two ends, the man and a woman are seen holding an apple which signifies love, as explained by the artist.
For him, “My own experience as a painter teaches me that the colour exists in three planes. The first plane is between the viewer and the canvas, second beyond the canvas and between the first and second plane, we have the third one.”
In Sarkar’s collection, one could easily find hat as a common element. He believes that those who are powerful wear hats and he readily referred to the policemen, army, pope et al.
Whereas Sarkar’s work focussed on human bonding, their interactions, complexities but above all carry a message of hope and love amidst the world of despair and chaos.
Similar to Das, Roy also draws inspiration from the divine love of Radhe-Krishna for his work. Bold colours along with musical instruments like mridangam and baul can also be seen in his paintings. Some of them also represent phases of Bengal folk. “I have chosen Krishna because I find the intellect and passion, the battle and emotion, the manliness and effeminacy, simultaneously exist in one character so, I like him the most. We all have a combination of vibrant colours in us, this also represents our different moods. This is why I have used bright colours to depict their happiness that all of us harbour,” told Roy.
On the other hand, paintings of Goswami displayed human emotions in the right way possible, which does not abide by any rule. His paintings are based on peace and flowers. According to Goswami, “I combine colour and texture to represent a liberating moment in time. I define unique styles in every work of mine.”
Along with paintings, sculptures were also put on display by many artists. One such was Subrata Paul who exhibited his collection of sculptures at the exhibition. His sculptures are conjured upon the complexities of nature and humans and their activities. It takes him at least one and a half month to make a sculpture. “It is a long process, I make the design by clay first. After that it is made by plaster of paris which is transferred into wax and then wax is transferred into bronze,” shared Paul.
The exhibition not only showcased the works of the various artists but it also provided a platform to the young artist to learn from the veterans. “We have decided to share our experience with the young artists. We told them how to showcase the collection in a gallery and we even helped them with their work,” concluded Sarkar.