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Friday, Jan 04, 2008
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Mixed strokes paint vivid messages

‘Procession, 2005’: A mixed medium painting using acrylic, pen and ink on paper by Ashok Bhowmick

An 11-day retrospective show of works in pen, ink and acrylics on paper and canvas by artist Ashok Bhowmick opens at Kumar Gallery in Sainik Farms here this Saturday.

Described as a master of cross-hatching, Bhowmick first paints with acrylics and then shades the lines with pen. A technique that has been immortalised in art by stalwarts like F. N. Souza, cross-hatching has now come to be symbolised by Bhowmick.

In this show, Bhowmick intends to create awareness about social issues. He highlights the plight of poverty-stricken street children, talks of women’s emancipation, and showcases the power of political dynasties.

Born in Nagpur in 1953, the artist in his works exhibits his close connection with the political situation in West Bengal.

Bhowmick calls his art revivalist, rooted in the old Indian tradition yet contemporary, and continues to experiment with forms, contents and other mediums.

For him, painting is not just a work of art but a medium to connect with the masses. “Urban art is often the expression of lonely or socially and spiritually uprooted individuals. The timeless symbols of the old culture are still meaningful, but they are badly in need of renewal in fresh contemporary forms. And only artists can do so, for they bring back the deadwood of abstraction to life.”

Bhowmick caricatures the bird as the protagonist in most of his paintings, making it a story-teller at times and a messenger at others. In ‘Three Birds’, it is the bird’s wisdom that sends out a message about women’s emancipation.

In ‘Dynasty-III’, the bird plays a prominent role by recording political situations of the past and relating them to the present, breaking the false truth of democracy in the country. Asks Bhowmick: “Why is it that a king’s son is always king? Even today we see that powerful families dominate the political scenario. Since money and power are both being inherited today, I paint the irony of the political world.”

Madhur Tankha

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