Art Exhibitions (Bangalore)

(By Nalini S Malaviya)

Eleven artists from Gulbarga, now residing in Bangalore come together with their recent paintings in one of the exhibitions at Chitrakala Parishath. Titled ‘The Journey Within’, the paintings are varied in nature with abstracts, figurative and surreal works. “At the outset this is an exhibition showcasing the prevailing contemporary trends and beliefs of my fellow artists from this region,” writes Virendra Shah, one of the participants. Virendra Shah’s minimal abstract is along similar lines as his earlier series, while abstracts by Devaki Rao are striking with good use of color. Mixed media works by Avinash depicting a knife on a platter, and others showing a fish and a boat respectively are interesting renditions, while Pawan R’s imagery is surreal in nature, bordering on the bizarre. Vivek Rao’s assemblages are on different themes and Sunita’s works using acrylic on paper are brightly colorful. Overall, a good concerted effort to present works from smaller towns in the State; however, most of the paintings are quite unremarkable. There are forty-two paintings priced between Rs 8,000 and Rs 50,000.

In this other exhibition by artist Paritosh Das from West Bengal most of the works are watercolors on silk. The paintings are full of detailing and are based on folklore and memories of rural Bengal. He presents dream sequences and traditional themes through a combination of motifs and figures in bright colors. Most of the works are in small format and there are about fifty paintings priced between Rs 9,000 and Rs 25,000.

Both the exhibitions are on view till March 27 at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath Art Gallery, Kumara Krupa Road, Bangalore - 560 001

(Published in Financial Times, Bangalore)