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FASCINATING VISUAL LANGUAGE One of Karl Antao’s sculptures

He took up the hammer and chisel after he had mastered the use of brush and paint, acquiring a degree in Applied Arts from the J. J. School of Arts, Mumbai. He started his career in advertising and corporate filmmaking in Mumbai only to realise that his calling was ‘sculpting’. Meet Karl Antao, Ahmedabad-based sculptor, whose bronze creations are showcased at Gallery Sumukha.

His foray into the world of sculpture was dictated by an urge to create individuated imagery not influenced by designers in the advertising profession. His first experience with sculpting started at the Kanoria Arts Centre when he came to visit his father in Ahmedabad in 1992.

Karl’s identity before he ventured into bronze making was wood sculpting and the bottom line was “hugeness”. Carving posed him a challenge, being a subtractive process where a wrong mark or cut was not rectifiable. And like Michelangelo who saw an image in a block of stone, which needed release by the sculptor, Karl too finds the process of carving and chipping a method of releasing the trapped form, making visualisation magical, fantastic and cathartic. Working through ‘moments’ of intense communion with his material, which disallows privileged form in his mind to dictate the image, rather he engages with the emerging form that enthrals and equally challenges him.

The fascinating dimension of his work is not only the distinct and original imagery but the colours that one hardly associates with bronze. With masterly strokes, he has created colours and textures as a painter would do with juxtaposition and dramatic contrasts. The patina varies in range from green to yellow to brown to bluish grey. The colours are a result of intense experimentation with different acids such as nitric, hydrochloric and sulphuric. The seamless dialogue generated between the artist and the material is the synergy of total communion that enables Karl to create his sculptures, underpinned by his “Unseen Truths”. His sculptures cannot be taken at face value because they are loaded with metaphors that connect to life and experiences. He explores the dominant theme of life through plebeian objects such as the frying pan or a handi that morphs into a face. The life here concerns the loved ones and the extension of their reach quoting a mother whose cooking is not a potpourri of ingredients described as a dish, rather she adds that extra ingredient of herself/love/emotions to make it richer and meaningful. Or the quote from Mahatma Gandhi that implies fostering love of truth. And truth as a virtue is losing its valence because of fear of speaking it. This Karl has translated visually through an interactive installation created in a corner of the gallery space, beckoning the visitor to sit on the wooden plaque and read through the eyes literally, made of huge lenses with a smaller magnifying lens to read the written message placed on the traditional low writing desk. The message is about the decision an individual takes when witnessing violence, crisis, and death, whether to become an active participant by protesting or remain passive. Indifference is not an option he is willing to buy, since he says that is for the cowards. So one sits on the wooden plaque, and writes his/hers unspoken truth, and drops inside the writing table box. According to Karl, “When the box is full I will open, remove all the papers and publish it as the book of “Unspoken Truths”. Equally fascinating is his visual language which is minimalist, simple and forthright. He does not confuse the fragility of his concept through messy details, but communicates through his personally evolved visages that are bald, with closed eyes, sharp aquiline noses and thin lips in an eternal smile. In this respect, the enigmatic imagery intrigues with its appendages that make disparate connections. For instance, the hair from the head becomes inspirational and metamorphoses into an eye that takes a curved trajectory to the nose, the olfactory organ seeing the inner reality than would an open eye.The show is on till November 7.

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