It's time to have Marilyn Monroe in your living room, The Beatles in the dining room, and Audrey Hepburn to accompany you in the library! One can now take home pop icons, that too at a reasonable price.
Artist Surita Tandon recently held her debut solo exhibition, “Metaphors in Melody”, presented at DLF Emporio. The exhibition, which was curated by Alka Raghuvanshi, presented yesteryear icons designed in edgy avatars and contemporary art forms; there was Audrey Hepburn holding a smouldering cigarette, complete with elbow-length gloves and Marilyn Monroe at her pouting best, her dress bellowing in the winds.
On the idea behind the concept, Surita said, “I am the pioneer of this kind of art in India as faces and figures have always been my forte and I have been toying with the idea of this exhibition for over a year-and-a-half.” The self-taught artist who has always been inspired by the icons, added, “I have grown listening to and watching these icons, and everyone just adores them, so I thought ‘Why not make their faces adorn the walls of homes of their fans?'” when asked whether she has played it safe by bringing known faces to her canvas.
Surita, who has been involved in art since childhood, dips into nature as her inspirational bastion. The blaze of gold and saffron from autumnal Kashmir finds a place on her canvas as do the sombre greens of monsoonal Andhra Pradesh. The interesting play of lights in her paintings also grants a lot of freedom and space to the onlooker. The painter has used a lot of reds, oranges, fuchsia and fluorescent orange, which provides a depth to the pigments.
She signed off saying, “I am constantly looking towards nature for inspiration. It helps me establish a link with my inner self. It is almost my weakness. We as human beings have also paid the price of ignoring nature. But, interestingly, violence itself is as much a part of nature as colour. And yet each stroke takes it forward. Consequently, I am that much conscious of it in my work. Abstractions tend to dilute. But then I can't force myself.”
