A dream world full of poppies

With seven solo shows in seven years, watercolourist Vijay Kiyawat has been on a creative streak, exploring a number of themes, ideas and techniques.

But what really stands out is that the 67-year-old took up painting seven years ago, after spending 40 years in the corporate sector.

His latest show, titled “My Dream Poppies”, has on display his watercolours portraying poppies in various stages of their life in surreal settings that exist in Vijay’s dream world. His world is created from memories brought back from travelling extensively across the world.

His poppies exist alongside monuments and architecture from across the world, which are in his frames alongside the gardens he has created. There is no symmetry to the arrangement of flowers that adds to the dream-like scene as the blossoms float around the painting.

In his meditation series, Vijay portrays the agitated mind with withered flowers contrasted with blooming flowers on the same canvas signifying a tranquil mind. He uses poppy pods and seeds in his works to depict the different phases in meditation.

The exhibition also has some works from his previous series that deals with seasons and is based on the poems of Kabir.

Vijay says he chose poppies as apart from roses, the flower has always fascinated art lovers and artists like Vincent Van Gough. He says the flower has lent an aesthetic touch to his paintings.

Being an artist is a second career for Vijay. He feels that after retirement people who do not keep themselves busy tend to age faster. Vijay was never an artist, but picked up the skills after attending hobby classes, watching videos on the Internet and reading books.

He says that not many people know that Rabindranath Tagore, too, started painting much later in life. In the same way, many people may have a calling that they are not aware of and only exploring the possibility helps one find it.

The exhibition is on at the Open Palm Court, India Habitat Centre, till Thursday.