A glance at Laxman Aelay’s latest collection immediately prompts the question, “Who are all these people?” as the subjects from his canvas leap out at you. The self-taught artist simply responds, “In my artistic journey, these people are my fellow travellers.” Titled, ‘Fellow Travellers’, his paintings are a canvas of nostalgia, traditions, urban-rural interplay and folk art.
Basing his work heavily on realism and hyper-realism, Laxman expresses himself in bright colours, figures, animals, and mythology. The figures are set against an urban background in most of the exhibits, while the bright colours draw attention to the clothes and the animals in the painting. There is also a strong presence of mythology that he draws from memory and knowledge. “I have also incorporated excerpts from my work ‘Metamorphosis’ that can be seen in the background, hidden on a turban or a plastic bag in the paintings,” shares Laxman who hails from a small village in the Nalgonda district. The detailing done in the background, the various social, political and economical issues addressed and use of folk art are also evident.
Since he began his own journey from the humble beginning as a signboard painter to his first show in 1999, Images of Kadirenigudem, based on his native place, these 14 years have lent an extraordinary inspiration bank to the 49 yearl-old. He brings out the same with a child-like excitement and enthusiasm in his art as well.
With his own story tell on one side, Laxman tries to bring the urban and the rural in one frame on the other, wherein he flyovers and mobile phones is symbolic of the modern while a women clad in traditional attire and wearing a bindi is as rustic as it gets. Hidden beneath this imagery are the struggles of the common-man trying stay afloat among poverty, corruption and caste differences. Interestingly, he uses some very intricate detailing in the background to exhibit this theme. “One kilogram of rice today is priced at `50-60 but a SIM card is free,” he said.
The dozen or so canvases that adorn the wall of the gallery, also seem to be telling a story of their own.
“My style is that of narration and figurativeness where every painting tells a story and all of them come together to represent a central theme, in this case the urban-rural contrast,” explains Laxman, who is currently pursuing a Ph.D at EFLU in Nakashi Painting and Dalitbahujan performing art forms. In several pieces, one notices the background features the flower ‘Palash’ (the flame of the forest) that represents a revolution, significant of the steps the oppressed have to sometimes take.
But amid that stark reality are the rainbow of colours that the artists uses to further strike a chord in his patrons mind.
Dealing with social issues like the dark-fair complex Indians seem to be obsessed with, he says, “In South India, people have a darker complexion. I used bright colours like red and yellow, a contrast to the complexion of the subjects, to show the beauty of my subjects.”
A man with a daughter of his own, also an artist, who is more than comfortable with her skin tone, it is perhaps also a personal statement the artist is trying to make.
Fellow Travellers is on display at the Kalakriti Art Gallery till October 15 from 11 am to 7 pm.