KOCHI: A self-taught artist based in the capital, experimentation has always been the key for Robert Lopez. Starting from portrait and landscapes, the city-based artist is now perfecting his own style of abstract art through his paintings. The artist is exhibiting 22 of his recent works at Alliance Francaise in the city. The exhibition was inaugurated on Friday by sculptor Kanayi Kunhiraman. Attracted to colours and art from a young age, Robert Lopez started painting at the age of 20. “I became interested in art during my school days. My art teacher made me understand the nuances of art.
He taught me there is more to paintings than meets the eye. Going beyond portrait and landscape paintings, I found out that there is a hidden depth and meaning in them.” Starting from simple portrait and landscape art, his style soon evolved into abstracts. The artist says, while people disregard abstract paintings as meaningless doodles, it is not so.
It could have been the fascination to the same that made him follow a mix of abstract and expressionism, through spontaneous brush strokes. However, he chooses to differ while speaking on his particular style. “It is neither totally abstract nor realistic. I prefer not to use the term abstract-expressionism for the same, as the style of painting was in fact innovated by the Americans,” he said.
A resident of Thiruvananthapuram, Robert Lopez started exhibiting his work at the age of 21. He has done more than 35 group shows in India and abroad. This is the artist’s 15th solo exhibition, having conducted shows earlier in Kochi, Bengaluru, Mumbai and other cities. The series of works titled ‘Prakriti’, mostly based on the theme of Nature, according to him, is not on Nature’s peripheral beauty alone.
“I try to go in to the deep dynamics and constant energy of nature which in fact makes everything take form and sustain. For me, it is important to give form and colour to this ‘creatrix ‘. I am trying to portray the interesting conflict between nature’s upward growth and its downward gravitational force,” he said. The exhibition will be on till September 28. The gallery will be open to the public from 11 am to 6 pm.