Love gives us peace and that peace creates a harmonious life. That is the inspiration for artist Manohar Chiluveru who wows art lovers with his show ‘Amour – Paix – Équilibre’, a collection of paintings, installations and sculptures that form a colourful canvas. As Manohar walks us through the exhibition, he says, “We are losing love in our lives, for other human beings and for nature,” pointing towards an installation of a big red heart sitting in a corner. Created using lightweight material, the installation is stuffed with bits of torn fabric. The ‘damaged’ clothes are a metaphor for society and the broken people in need of love. In the background is a question mark (again of fabric) asking why these things happen. A torn heart signifies how we are suffering and misusing love,” he says and explains, “We love our physical appearance; always want to look good. We take care of things that we love, but do not realise we are losing love in other aspects of our lives.”
A cycle wheel and a mixed media installation with children’s toys takes the ‘love’ message forward. The artist’s sculptures on a pedestal depict busts of a man and a woman. Small wooden cubes on a pedestal narrate different phases of life. “There could be different issues between men and women and it is love that keeps them connected to each other and with society,” he shares. Four canvases near the entrance share a common theme; it’s one of his old works but ̥is not yet completed, Manohar used that too to highlight the need for love.
In another canvas, a modern woman is shouting on a megaphone and in another we see a Buddha lying under a tree filled with temple bells, indicating time and worship.
Manohar was inspired to create this last one after listening to Colonial Cousins’ Krishna Ni Begaane Baro... Come Back as Jesus and Save the World. “Some of the lines in the song stuck with me and it is a call to save the world,” he says.
This is part of Manohar’s travel series Odyssey. “Odyssey constitutes five elements: earth, fire, water, air and ether (space). It has involved travelling to five cities, painting in each city, involving local people in my project and gifting my artwork to that city.”
The work involves financial planning and travels. “I didn’t ask the government for financial help; I only asked them to support me by giving work. I want to create a collaboration and not sponsorship.”
It is a barter system as he has displayed his sculptress at Marri Chenna Reddy HRD Institute for free and in turn gets the studio space to complete his project. “Every year I renew the proposal.”
‘Amour – Paix – Équilibre’ is on view at Alliance Francaise till December 26 .
