Visual expression is a moment in time, a tradition and a culture. ‘More Than Once', the recent works of V. Anamika, showcased at the newly-opened Focus Art Gallery, echoes the traditions of abstraction, pop culture and conceptual and minimalist art, but traces her progress from organic and structured abstraction in painting and relief sculptures, to the creation of visual images articulated through media related to advancement of technology.
Visual culture connects art to everyday life — the images encountered are showcased through photography, advertisement hoardings, films, television, Internet and other technologies — and, Anamika makes it the locus for her linguistic discourse.
She interfaces with technology to create personalised expressions. Her methodology of art-making constitutes cutting dots of varied sizes (of images derived from print medium or photography), ranging from .5 cm to one cm, and meticulously pasting them on paper.
Anamika has made the dot her artistic tool of personal expression. Through this labour-intensive process, which she has adopted to suit her philosophy relating to the abstract idea of the ‘seen' and the ‘unseen', she finds gratification.
Of narratives and sub-text
A glance at the works displayed on the pristine white walls of the gallery space calls attention to the sanitised quality of impersonal expressions. But, a close encounter initiates a dialogue, inviting the viewer to interact. Her every frame has a sub-text of the narrative of her experiences, which will be lost on the viewer unless closely scrutinised.
Anamika's intentionally creates an illusion of ‘seeing' yet ‘unseeing', so when the work is seen from a distance nothing is apparent except the well structured dots dotting the surface. A closer scrutiny brings alive the varied imagery that she has engaged with. Her works are characterised by unexpectedness, chance and discipline.
Paradox indeed, yet it is within this duality of conflicts that she situates her concepts. The energy flows from here, and becomes a starting point from where she begins her negotiations. The use of graphic design, integral to visual culture today, connecting art to everyday life, renders her visual language persuasive.
There is a wide range of works on display, each a narrative of her experiences — from playing a game on the sands at the seashore as a child and her icon Rajinikanth to the concern of identity while at Edinburgh. Among her works are nudes, installation of dot-cut local deities and free-wheeling organic drawings with kitsch colours.
The exhibition is on until October 30 at Focus Art Gallery, No.11, Bishop Wallers Avenue, (off T.T.K. Road), C.I.T. Colony, Alwarpet.
