THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Six disciples of artist BD Dethan paid respect to their guru by organising an exhibition titled ‘Datham 2019’ at Vyloppilli Samskrithi Bhavan. “It was Dethan sir who invoked my passion to paint. We are thankful to sir for helping us play with colours on the canvas,” said Bindu Gopinath, one of the artists.
The blend of red and orange paintings by Bindu stood out in the exhibition. Her series is based on her travel in Haridwar. Training under Dethan since 2011, she is happy to contribute something for her guru.
Remembering her childhood memories with Dethan she said, “During my school days, I got an opportunity to get trained by Dethan sir in Bala Bhavan. All other teachers were strict but he remained calm.”
Bindu believes in the healing power of the art. “Painting is the only relief amidst the struggles of life,” she said.
The show showcased the works of artists from different walks of life. Bindu, Gomathi, Harindranath, Sumitha Suseelan, Tomia Mary Jose and Viji Bhagavathi are the artists who paid tribute to their guru.
Sumitha has been an artist since childhood. She has been learning under Dethan for the past 10 years.
“I consider myself an ambassador of nature, thus most of my pictures represent nature. Also, I try to bring positivity in all my pictures,” said Sumitha.
Haridranath is an editor at State Institute of Languages Kerala; he is an artist by passion.
“I love to paint, but I did not get an opportunity for formal education on painting. While painting, I had a lot of doubts while choosing shades. In order to come up with a perfect painting, I joined to get trained under Dethan two years ago,” said Harindranath. Most of his paintings represent nature. In the near future, he would like to paint building and female emotions.
Tomia loves to play with texture in her paintings. Her paintings to praise the fisherman who worked during the floods has a texture of fish in the entire picture. The wrinkles of the painting of Mother Teresa represents the map of Calcutta.
“Every picture here has a unique style. Dethan lets us paint without compromising on our identity. He encourages me to play with textures,” she said.
Artist Viji prefers to portray human feelings in her pictures. She is an architect by profession. “During our childhood, we are ready to express our feelings. As we grow, we refuse to express the feelings and it catalyses to depression. I would like to convey a message on the need to express emotions through my paintings,” she said.
The exhibition, which was inaugurated by Adoor Gopalakrishnan in the presence of V Karthikeyan Nair and BD Dethan on Wednesday, will continue till May 22.