BANGALORE: Kynkyny Art’s latest exhibition features two contemporary artists, Basuki Dasgupta and Madhuri Kathe, presenting their latest abstract work titled Mood and Mystery, currently on show.
Though he’s been dabbling in figuratives and various media for years, artist Basuki Dasgupta’s current work is more abstract. Dasgupta says he has been working on the collection on display alongside Madhuri Kanthe’s paintings at the joint show for about a year now. He explains, “I wouldn’t say that there was a definite turning point. There have been works of mine where the abstract aspect took precedence over the figurative.”
However, this is the first time that the latter is completely absent, and he believes that he might pursue this composition further. “That’s the feeling I get, but I’m not the controller of my art; the controller is outside of me, so I can’t say for sure yet,” he adds.
Having a palette with prominent hues of red, black and ivory, Dasgupta shares that the experience of creating the mixed media on canvas series was uplifting. “It was meditative, almost spiritual, though I’m wary of describing it that way. But some viewers who have seen the show have expressed the same, so maybe it’s true,” says the artist.
For Madhuri Kathe, the transformation from figurative work to abstract painting took place quite gradually, over the years, as she grew from a child to a woman, from an artist to a thinker. “My work is formless. It is a reflection of my soul, whereas my earlier work was a reflection of the body and various other forms.
So you could say this is a journey that I took from the body to the centre of my soul,” explains Kathe.
Her paintings are an outpouring of her mystical insights, spiritual experiences and revelations. The process through which she creates her art is akin to a meditative state where she spontaneously connects with colours and the canvas in an expressionist manner. A verse in the Bhagavad Gita, a rock, mountain or seascape – each of these shapes her free – flowing, non-figurative works.
She also takes deep inspiration from nature. Her studio, which is located in the outskirts of Mumbai, helps her channel this keen connection with nature, while she takes a stroll through the gardens or spends time watching birds and other insects.
The current collection up at Kynkyny features acrylics on canvas. She also uses surgical gauze to lend texture to her work. The colours and deep hues reflect the five elements of the cosmos, which fuels this spiritual exploration.
Mystery and Mood presents an uplifting mixture of ideas, content and experiments with form. While the works are abstract, they are not arcane, but rooted in the world, and its beauty and preoccupations. For Kathe, the source from which her art springs is nature. Dasgupta’s references are more timeless, cultural, architectural and mythical.
The exhibition will run at Kynkyny Art till September 13th, 2014.