The first batch of students at LISAA School of Design’s new branch in Bangalore presented a collection of selected work at Open Days. The exhibition, organised on December 7 and 8, was the first public display of their designs at the Hosur Road campus of the French art school that has centres elsewhere in India too. A screening process was held for all their work done over the course of a semester of which the best were chosen.
“This was a means to understand the potential of the material we worked with, be it clay or mesh, and also understand three dimensional space,” said Nihas R Prasad, one of the students, while pointing at the perspective drawings, clay sculptures and mesh-made bird models hung from the ceiling. Since the first year at LISAA is a foundation course, all the exhibits displayed were fine arts products. Tagged under Creativity, paper models showing sinuous animal movements, life drawings, studio and outdoor drawings were some of the themes for the designs.
Neetu Agarwal especially liked the architectural models of imaginary buildings made of ice-cream sticks and abstract models made out of thermocol. Standing next to her daughter’s clay sculpture she said, “When she was in nursery school, her teacher told me that she has the potential to be a good artist. I don’t know what she saw in her art, but I never forgot her words.”
Emphasis was laid on the importance of light and its ability to play with objects and people. A matchbox placed against a source of light had the students presenting different three dimensional perspectives of it on paper. Charcoal drawings of people similarly highlighted expressions through well-placed lighting. The students had also created original comic strips to show change in natural background light through variation in colour.
“Being a good designer is not just about creativity, it is about technique and patience. We train them to be patient and articulate their ideas through a new perspective. Open Days is important for the students to get exposure to others from the industry. We will definitely have more in the future,” said a proud Laurent Guichoux, academic director of the School.