Through his portraits of curly haired people with striking eyebrow and expressive eyes, artist Janardhan Rao Havanje captures the varied expressions of people from the hinterlands of Udupi in Karnataka.
The artist’s impressions of children and the elderly are now adorning the walls of Hotel Maison Perumal in the form of his paintings. Influenced by his memories, the artist has taken to watercolour paintings on deckle-edged handmade paper attempting to express the essence of daily interactions in and around home.
“The portraits are from the memories recollected by me,” says Mr. Havanje.
Having graduated with a Master’s degree in fine arts, Mr. Havanje says: “My artwork captures my experience of interacting with children, of playing together and listening to the stories recounted by the village elders.”
His artwork portrays this essence through a simplistic visual language through composing the rich everyday experiences with the magical fluidity of watercolours. “Through these portraits, I try to discover myself,” he says.
Tribal series
The artist from Udupi has also included tribal series painting the culture of tribal through their portraits. Through different characters, he also records the changing environment, culture and practices in his village in Udupi.
For instance, ‘Stories of Paddy’ depicts the changes in rural life in the time of globalisation.
Wanting to be an art teacher, Mr. Havanje entered art school only to discover the vast choices before him.
He has now mastered several techniques from miniatures to murals and does projects with equal proficiency in both. Mr. Havanje is also good at Kaavi art, a form of mural found in the coastal region of Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra.
He has participated in group shows in Udupi, Mangalore, Bengaluru, Goa, Puducherry and New Delhi. He has participated in many camps around the country and won several awards.
The exhibition ‘Expressions’ will be on till May 22.
