Depending on whether or not you're an avid fan or a critic, art affects everybody's lives. Even if it's a painting of something as simple as everyday domestic objects or something more complex and evolved such as democracy and over-population, who has not been touched by good art?
On display
Saraswathi Menon and Rohit Kumar, two talented Visual Arts students from MCTM Chidambaran Chettyar International School, Chennai, showcased their artistic streak recently. They exhibited a myriad collection of paintings, photographs and abstract art with personal influences and inspirations.
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Saraswathi and Rohit dabble in a mixed range of subjects starting from political science to farmers' suicides to more personal concepts like their opinions on social networking sites taking over our private lives and rights. And all this amid the pressure of studying for exams and keeping up with life. They say their parents have been a constant support and though they cannot help them with gaining a better understanding of art or help improve their skills, they have quite literally been the backbone by encouraging them, giving them the time, space and freedom to explore and engage in what is still quintessentially an unconventional and relatively unfamiliar field.
Observing the world
Their approach is fairly simple. Observe, be inspired and reconnoitre. Though they are young, they seem to have grown tremendously with each project, says Anisha Verghese, their Visual Arts teacher. “The experiments have now evolved to exploring the mind, raising social awareness and beyond. They have always been filled with ideas and visions, I just had to help them hone their technical skills and find a way to diversify them as the course is pretty rigorous and requires one to be creative and keen to learn,” she says enthusiastically.
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Today advertising is emblematic of the modern world. The viewer is convincingly lured in to relate to the subtle messages incorporated in the picture and the need for the product replaces the moral message of why it's even drawn or depicted in a certain way in the first place. That's what happens when you step inside the exhibition hall. An overwhelming amount of daring portrayal of enticing colours and concepts makes you wonder if they really are as young as they appear to be and if this really is just a final exam project they're adhering to.
Pragadish is a Multimedia student with Arena Academy.