A cascade of colours awaits visitors to the Leader’s Choice Gallery in Thillai Nagar, where the ongoing ‘Book of Proverbs and Colours of Life’ exhibition showcases the works of artist Hermon Carduz and his student Lakshanyaa Swaminathan.
“Christmas season is always good to get something new into your heart,” Hermon Carduz told The Hindu . “The Book of Proverbs is from the advice of King Solomon. It conveys guidelines about how Man should live. The verse that started me off on this year’s venture was ‘My child, pay attention to what your father and mother tell you. Their teaching will improve your character as a handsome turban or a necklace improves your appearance.’ (1:8). We wanted this particular thought to be illustrated so that young children would clearly understand the message. That’s how the first painting came about.”
Some 15-20 paintings by Carduz are based on the Book of Proverbs. The ‘Colours of Life’ section explores the message that colour combinations convey.
For the first time, the artist, who also multi-tasks as a teacher of architectural drawing, French and guitar music, besides being a soft skills trainer in colleges, has collaborated with Lakshanyaa, a Class 8 student of Alpha Cambridge International School whose work shows immense promise.
Carduz’s preferred medium this year is liquid acrylic paints on canvas, using the palette knife. “It was quite tough to work with liquid acrylic, because the paint tends to dry within 5 minutes, and the palette knife is normally used for paste-work. Most of the canvases had to be finished in 40 minutes,” said Carduz.
Lakshanyaa’s 10 paintings, have various interpretations of sailing ships and nature scenes, using acrylic paints on canvas with sponging technique. But she has a higher purpose in exhibiting her artwork. “I am blessed by God to have food on my table every day. But there are many children who are going hungry. Every year, for my birthday, I feed poor people, with my parents’ help. This year, I want to sell my paintings to sponsor at least one meal for 50 orphaned children,” she said. Her work is priced from Rs. 500 to Rs. 4000, and the young artist, who has been attending formal classes only for a little over one year, has managed to sell four paintings already.
Lakshanyaa said it was important for Indians to respect and preserve native art forms. “We tend to look down at our work, while admiring foreign artists. But I think we should work harder to appreciate our own forms of art techniques,” she said.
Leader’s Choice will host a photography exhibition for students next year, said Carduz. “We are also planning an exhibition of works by 20-25 school art teachers,” he added.
Art can bridge the ideological gap between children and their parents, said Carduz. “Parents are pleasantly surprised to see their children’s talent in art. Art could be a common meeting ground for families growing apart due to the pressure of studies.”
With Tiruchi sorely in need of public spaces that encourage art appreciation, the future will have to be interactive, said Carduz. “An art gallery’s use of technology will definitely be different from what is used in schools. The city has to come up with more galleries that can explain art through audio-visual presentations.”
'Book of Proverbs and Colours of Life' is on until January 2, 2017, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Entry is free.
