Maybe it’s the colours of the setting sun, maybe it’s the way a peacock unfolds its plumes or maybe it’s the muscular form of a bull... the complex beauty of nature’s flora and fauna has inspired many an artist. ‘A Mirror of Life’, an exhibition of painting by five artists — P.V. Nandan, Ponmani Thomas, K.K. Sasi, Sidharthan K. and Sunil Vallarpadam — is an ode to Nature of yesterday. The frames are more on our lost connection with it. Of the five artists, Ponmani is the only one who is based in the city.
Nandan’s paintings depict the muscular Indian bison. The majestic looking animal is juxtaposed against a plain white background, no elements surrounding it. The animal’s muscles seem to ripple as the bison adopts various aggressive stances on canvas.
However, the plain background has us wondering if the artist is hinting at how man is encroaching on their land, rendering them homeless.
A painting by Ponmani Thomas
Ponmani uses dots and swirls of colours dominated by bright shades of blue and green to remind visitors of the nature that we have lost or are losing. Her canvases have colours, landscapes and imagination merging as one, giving them a surreal feel like that of the peacocks with their purple, orange and pink feathers, dancing in a surrealistic environment, for instance.
Sidhartan’s set of images takes one to a world of lush greenery, effervescent water and fresh air as vibrant shades of greens pop out from his frames.
A painting by Sidharthan K.
Like Ponmani’s frames, Sidhartan’s too capture a landscape that is fast fading. A cow grazing by a guava orchard, a squirrel and a pigeon playing peek-a-boo between a cashew nut tree, a peacock standing proud in the background of a hilly terrain... one can’t help but wonder if the artist is hinting at how animals manage to co-exist with Nature while man fail to do that. Sasi’s paintings are whimsical with hints of fantasy coming in. His canvases show man co-existing with Nature. However, with the use of muted earthen tones, one wonders if like the images of Sidhartan’s and Ponmani’s, these too are from memories of Nature of yore.
The theme of Sunil’s paintings revolves around water and the fish that adorn it.
‘A Mirror of Life’ is on at Suryakanti Art Gallery, Sasthamangalam. The exhibition concludes on August 31.
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