BENGALURU: Have you ever imagined how the bustling flower market of K R Market in Bengaluru amidst the backdrop of the Pier 39 market of San Francisco would look like? Artist Samiksha Adukia, who currently resides in New York, captures various places in Bengaluru and merges them with different places in New York and San Francisco in her watercolour paintings.
Titled ‘Blending Borders’, this particular series of the artist is an ode to the experience of moving out of comfort zones and also embracing the unfamiliar. In her words, it is an ode to loving the new without having to stop loving the old.
“Having moved across cities and countries, I have an intimate connection with this series where I have tried to capture my imagination and merge the souls of different places, evoking limitless emotions. I have covered places where I have personally lived as well as other places which I know very well and feel deeply about,” says Adukia.
It was through her partner, Kartik Lunkad that the artist explored Bengaluru before moving to the US. “After visiting Bengaluru and hearing countless stories from Kartik and our friends from Bengaluru in the past eight years, I started conceptualising the Bengaluru series in 2018. However, the actual execution of the work took around seven months from July last year till January this year,” the artist shares.
‘Namma Bengaluru USA edit’ under ‘Blending Borders’ is a set of paintings that capture the colourful KR Market, the charming Blossom Book House, the classic Vidyarthi Bhavan and MTR, the popular Toit and Corner House in the heart of New York and San Francisco. Speaking about the painting ‘Blossom in the Bay’, the artist says, “Blossom Bookstore has been imagined in place of City Light bookstore.
The late evening SF sky is contrasted with the warmth of the lights inside the store and the iconic Transamerica building is seen in the backdrop. The painting celebrates Blossom completing its 20 years anniversary last year.”
Similarly, the artist has portrayed the mornings in Bengaluru by merging it with Pier 39 and NYC Subway. She says, “In the San Francisco version, I have captured the energy and colours of KR Market amidst that of Pier 39 market. In the New York version, I have shown the Bengaluru morning scenes in New York subway.
As the Bengaluru series would look incomplete without representing the love for the vernacular language, I found my muse in my friend’s father, Nemiraja Kanti who can be spotted in a white, cotton panche with a traditional red border, vibhuti on his forehead, vintage golden watch and stone ring reading the newspaper. Sitting next to him is the Hassidic Jew recognised by the custom black, double-breasted suit made of wool and white shirt, curled earlocks hanging down from under his hat and descending into the beard, and ritual fringe showing at the side waist.”
Although Adukia tried her hand at various art mediums during her school days, it was after moving to the US in 2017 that she realised a newfound love for watercolours.
“Watercolors are unforgiving – an artist cannot take back what is once splashed on paper,” says the artist, who is currently working on the 25th piece of the Blending Borders series.