HYDERABAD: Rayana Giridhar Gowd may not be plastering his works often in dozens of exhibitions across the art spectrum, but when he gets ready for a show it’s serious work. The ongoing solo exhibition titled Dashavatara: Dialectics of Tradition, at the Kalakriti Art Gallery, showcases his intensity towards his profession and his preoccupation with his subject that gets coded in his paintings.
Although trained to be a contemporary artist at the Baroda School of Art, the indigenous art forms always had a special place of interest in his heart. His dissertation at college was focused on the Indian miniatures that followed with travels to Jaipur, Udaipur, Jaisalmer and other places in Rajasthan. Therefore, huge influences and inspirations from his early days have always made him gravitate towards the content, techniques, and formats of classical paintings such as the miniatures.
Dashavatara: Dialectics of Tradition showcases 23 paintings, out of which ten are acrylic on canvases of 5 x 4 feet in scale and the rest are in the miniature format executed in natural dyes and gold pigments. This exhibition becomes special as he revisits the contemporary or the modern techniques and formats, attempting to interpret the iconic stature of the Dashavatara. Says the artist: “I have visited the Lepakshi murals way back in 1996 and my large format works take reference from the mural paintings, depicting the iconic or the singular nature of the various avatars.”
The protagonist in each painting is depicted to portray the evolution of man starting with the matsyavatra when life first formed in water and progressed towards land and eventually the progress of human emotions and materialistic inventions that culminate into the technological, electronic and digital advancement related to mankind.
Composed elegantly in the manner of stagecraft the spectator is treated to a rich narrative of various dance postures and mudras. “My daughter is a graduate in classical dance. And when I visited her school I was inspired and decided to incorporate the elegance of the classical dance form”.
Coming to the understanding of the technique followed in the paintings in this show one can see each work exactly exploits the possibilities of painting in the acrylic format. “Acrylics has all the possibilities of executing wash techniques, impastos and chiaroscuros,” says Giridhar. Although the content is classical, the contemporary technique applied by the artist certainly adds onto the fine finishes and detailed planning of the work. The curatorial note reestablishes his works as “…interpretation of Puranic theme with his contemporary sensibility, sensitized particularly in the engagement with colours, which are as vibrant and energetic as they are scintillating.”
Hailing from a humble environment in Garuvupalem, Guntur, Giridhar Gowd’s attachment with the epics, Puranic and mythical narratives is a testimony that reflects in his work: says he, “I have developed an immense interest in stories, poems and historical legends from my childhood. I have always approached these legends not as religious, superstitious stories but as priceless epics, a treasure house of wisdom and as unique examples of the essence of life”. The exhibition is on till on April 1