Whenever a well-known personality visits any school, it is customary for the principal to present him/her with a painting by the most promising artist in the school. Surendra Pal Joshi fitted perfectly into this category.
Now in his fifties, Joshi has matured into an award winning artist. He recently exhibited his works in Visual Art Gallery in the Capital.
The seasoned artist who has served in the field of art for the last three decades did a stint with figurative art first. Gradually, he shifted to semi-realistic paintings before finally moving to his current love — abstract art.
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“God is the creator of this world and has shaped many beautiful things around. If I merely copy and portray the same then it will hardly be anything new,” Joshi says. “Through my paintings I want to present the nature and realism but in an unusual way.”
Having spent his formative years in Uttarakhand, he draws inspiration from handloom weaving. The use of vibrant colours reflects the influence of Rajasthan, his current residence.
One can find the use of acrylic on canvas along with embedded wool fibre in his paintings.
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His work “Symphonies of Memory-II” depicts the life of people in Miami through the use of bamboos with impressions of handloom weaving. “When I visited Miami, I got really awed by their life and bamboo houses built on water over there,” shares Joshi.
Another work “Basant-III” is inspired by the mustard fields of Rajasthan, synonymous with innocence and rural beauty.
Joshi is currently working as an advisor in Bhorukha Charitable Trust, Jaipur, and wants to facilitate projects that improve the education system in rural Rajasthan, keeping art as a medium of expression He also plans to construct 20 to 30 ft. sculptures in the form of swings and rides in a school in Rajasthan, giving it a feel of a live museum.