KOCHI: Like many of his sculptures, Kanayi Kunjiraman’s paintings take a symmetrical and asymmetrical form. There is the imagery of the nature goddess (an abstract figure), who is dancing between two halves -- a calm, composed world in one and a modern society constantly mired in war, in another. “However, the Devi in my painting is not judgemental.
It offers no advice nor sympathy since it knows man will learn the lesson by themselves,” says Kunjiraman, whose paintings have been exhibited for the first time at the Durbar Hall Art Gallery in Kochi. The second painting, which follows a geometrical pattern, is an abstract image of the art of his hometown.
The sculptor, whose famous works include the Malampuzha Yakshi and the Jalakanyaka at Shankumugham in Thiruvananthapuram, says his first love was paintings. “I used to paint all the time. Then, when I joined the Madras Fine Arts College, K C S Panicker, the then principal told me to pursue a career in sculpting because he felt that this was where I would make my mark. When I arrived in Kerala in 1968, I felt the state offered me the perfect landscape for sculpture, and I delved into it,” he said. Year after year, Kunjiraman would become too busy working on stone, that he didn’t have enough time to paint.
“I wish to paint further in the coming days. I have a collection of paintings kept at my house which I have not exhibited so far,” says Kunjiraman, who hails from Kasargode.
Straddling between two mediums
According to Kunjiraman, paintings offer an artist more creative space. “There are no limitations on canvas. You can translate any thought, image or passion through it, unlike in sculpture,” he said. However, Kunjiraman believes it was the space he received as a sculptor that gave him the love and recognition of the public. “As a sculptor, you are able to reach a wider audience. You are translating public emotions on a public space which help you connect better,” says Kanhayi who remembers the hue and cry that the Malampuzha Yakshi had created in the past.
Speaking on modern-day installations, Kunjiraman says people have become fascinated over non-permanent installations, a craze which is also observed in Kerala. “I think people have become obsessed with the idea and are attributing it to Western influence. In fact, much before they brought it to our soil, we have had our share of installations in our temple art,” he said.