lithographs and sculptures by Bhaskar Hande are a tribute to Sant Tukaram of the Bhakti movement
Your Form is My Creation, a title conceived by Bhaskar Hande, has an interesting connotation to it. This expression, which would generally be attributed to God’s creation of mankind, is a take from Namdev’s verse Tuze Roop Maze Nayani. With the play of words, the artiste recreates the expression. Hande’s artworks are impressive.
The colours used are soothing. One can feel the wonderful waves of subtle colours that emanate from his paintings. Although Bhaskar has an obvious respect for the physics of the colour and the juxtaposition of one colour with another, he introduces a subtle nuance of colour within each painting. Hande prefers small format on canvas where he can control the artistic processes. Acrylic paints are his preferred medium.
The lithographs and sculptures are a visual tribute to Sant Tukaram of the Bhakti movement, the paintings have drawn inspiration from mysticism of sufi Vankari tradition as expounded by Bulleh shah and Namdev respectively. Most of Hande’s early works stem for ideologies of spiritual thinkers and poets. The imaginary in his later period paintings, especially the current exhibits, represent contemporary influences. The transforming environment, be it social, cultural or geographic, take shape of geometric forms and merging colours on his canvas.
The artist also seems to be equipped with the possibilities for an unlimited experimentation. In his paintings, there is an intense exploration of the material instead of technical and artistic refinement. Figuration, which often disappears from Hande’s paintings, is indicated or sometimes reappears imperceptibly. The surface is treated as a crime scene, target, dance and soundboard, space, battlefield or tender skin. It often seems to be pitch-perfect choreography, the traces of which, without space coordinates, compress. In Hande’s images, the colour becomes the stretchable primary matter.