Dynamic visionary
ASHRAFI S. BHAGAT
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Remembering A.P. Santhanaraj, a genius who defined a different trajectory in the art world.
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He drew his sustenance from life around him.
Regional sensibility: Santhanaraj’s “Two Women”, 1993, Acrylic on Canvas.
Death marks an irreplaceable void and this truth dawned on Chennai’s art fraternity, connoisseurs and critics with the passing away of the stalwart of Madras Art Movement Professor A.P. Santhanaraj last month.
As an artist he was dedicated to his artistic research, passionate in exploring different mediums and materials; as a teacher enthusiastic about his students’ progress and restless in his desire to make a difference with his pioneering vision. A. P. Santhanaraj has been described as a genius, an exemplary teacher, a pioneer and innovator and exerted tremendous influence on his students. He was one of the pillars of the Madras School of Arts and Crafts; the other being L. Munuswamy.
Early years
Born on March 13, 1932, at Tiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu, his predilection for drawing manifested at the impressionable age of four. His mother was instrumental in kindling his interest in the world of visual perceptions. His life revolved around his mother — a powerful, influential and a dominating personality. She distracted him with drawings and picture alphabets when he became irritable and tense. This became his baptism into the world of art. The activity absorbed him so completely that he considered going to the local Danish Mission School a major hindrance. He considered school teaching and learning “artificial”.
Having heard of the Madras School of Arts and Crafts, Santhanaraj wanted to begin his artistic journey from that institution. However K.C.S. Paniker, the principal informed him that he was too young. At the age of 10, Santhanaraj was indeed too young and he returned home disappointed to wait patiently for six more years. Eventually he joined the school in 1948 at the age of 16.
Two authoritative masters — Devi Prasad Roy Chowdhary and K.C.S. Paniker — were responsible for contouring his artistic persona. Both shared a commonality of approach in their teaching; namely a policy of non-interference and freedom for students in experimentation with techniques, materials and formal elements.
Yet, when Roy Chowdhary attempted to correct mistakes by physical intervention, Santhanaraj did not find it acceptable. This defined Santhanaraj’s temperament; given as he was to total creative independence, but also driven by his intuition and emotional urges. Even as a student, Santhanaraj firmly believed that originality of vision and newness of ideas should be the index of a student’s approach to learning and assimilation.
Formative years
The formative years at the institution shaped his vision and he was simultaneously drawn into the creative vortex that was developing under Paniker’s regime — namely the idea of ‘Indian identity’ within mainstream internationalism from the margins of Third World nations.
Said Santhanaraj, “Paniker induced his disciples to think on a national level rather than on purely modern styles. He wanted identity of Indian tradition as inspiration. He wanted them to be very conscious of Indian culture.” His contribution towards this debate was considered seminal.
Santhanaraj played a dominant role in the growth and development of the Madras Art Movement. His regional sensibility manifested in the primeval quality of his line drawings, the strong reductive simplicity of his forms, the iconic frontality derived from folk and tribal arts and the brilliant juxtaposition of colours. He drew his sustenance from life around him. His style approached the cubists and expressionists particularly for their fractured fragmented forms and emotional distortions conveyed through folk inspired imagery.
Santhanaraj’s originality and novel approach to picture making was identified in the ambiguous definition between the foreground and the background space that imparted a mystical aura or ‘atmosphere’, which he equated to music.
His works were first shown at the Kumar Gallery in 1958 and later in 1998. A retrospective of his exhibition was held at the C.M.C. in Delhi in 1990. Santhanaraj was not concerned with organisations or systematic working methods. Because of this, his works were never exhibited and, since he never desired it, as buyers came directly to his studio.
Admirably Santhanaraj, who suffered bouts of consistent ill health in the last few years, never gave up his paints and brush. He continued to paint till his last breath. And this restlessness has now finally found its final rest.
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