Artists vouch for woman power

March 05, 2013 10:05 am | Updated 10:07 am IST - NEW DELHI:

A serigraph by M. F. Husain will be up for display at a three-day exhibition, Shakti: The Strokes of Feminity, which begins at DLF Promenade in New Delhi today.

A serigraph by M. F. Husain will be up for display at a three-day exhibition, Shakti: The Strokes of Feminity, which begins at DLF Promenade in New Delhi today.

To celebrate International Women’s Day, a three-day art exhibition highlighting the need to empower Indian women opens at DLF Promenade here beginning this Tuesday.

Shakti: The Strokes of Feminity will display three art works of legendary artist M. F. Husain apart from showcasing works by Rajesh Srivastav, Vikash Kalra, Kishore Roy, Sakia, Niloy Sarkar and Sharad Patel. The exhibition aims to emphasise the significance of women’s self-reliance. The exhibition would have been incomplete without displaying the women-centric work of M. F. Husain, says curator Radhika Shrinagesh. “During the 1980s and 1990s, the gifted artist had produced a series of work on Mother Teresa, who did a commendable work for lepers and economically-disadvantaged people in the City of Joy and other parts of the country. This compassionate woman was also a role model for millions of Indian women. Luckily, I have managed to procure one of Husain’s works on Mother Teresa for this exhibition.”

Delhi art lovers generally cannot understand how to differentiate between a serigraph and a painting. “So this work will educate them about serigraphs. It is important to expose the public to different mediums,” says Radhika.

Describing other young participants, Radhika says they have portrayed how women are making a mark in different walks of life. “Though the participants have worked in different mediums, their work has a common theme which is women empowerment. Artists have created work on oils, acrylic on canvas, serigraphs, etchings and charcoals which give a positive feeling and manifest women in a happy state of mind.”

According to Radhika, women are the pillars of our society and what better way than art to send out this beautiful message. “Art speaks volumes thus the event is a perfect initiative to highlight women’s empowerment at a time when our society needs it the most.”

Artist Vikash, who lost his father when he was still a child, says he saw how his mother fulfilled her responsibilities by working for long hours. “She worked for 16 years to support the entire family and also brought me up with love and care. I feel women are superior to men because they have patience and perseverance. Most importantly, women are the creators as the Almighty has given them the power to procreate.”

Kolkata-based Kishore Roy grew up in West Bengal which was then completely dominated bylandlords, and when women were not allowed to venture out of their homes. He says, “Families insisted that women keep their faces covered with veil. It was a conservative society. But now women in my region are venturing out of their homes, studying and becoming self-reliant.”

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