Muses of a modern man

Fifty-odd paintings, ranging from portraits to sceneries, dot the walls of an artsy furniture store, Unicard Fuego.
Artist TSN, actor Sivakumar, and Dr Mohan Rajan, at the ‘Different Strokes’ exhibition
Artist TSN, actor Sivakumar, and Dr Mohan Rajan, at the ‘Different Strokes’ exhibitionPhoto | K Sham
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CHENNAI: “A beautiful body perishes, but a work of art dies not” — artist Leonardo da Vinci. Centuries after civilisations collapsed, we search for traces via coins, caves, sculptures, and most of all, art. In an attempt to freeze time and capture bodies or faces, man has turned to paper or stone to immortalise the intricacy of a smile, evocative eyes and languidness of limbs. Lines, paint, and brushstrokes on canvas.

It is the multitudes of portraits one notices on entering The Unicard Fuego — from the classic Mona Lisa, the revered Sai Baba to superstar, striking Rajnikanth. A cursive signature ‘TSN’ at the bottom of the paintings gives away the artist, TS Narayanaswamy.

Fifty-odd paintings, ranging from portraits to sceneries, dot the walls of an artsy furniture store, Unicard Fuego. Nestled in an unassuming corner of Thirumurthy Road, Unicard Fuego — which deals with workstations, artistic furniture, and complete office solutions — has, over the weekend, transformed into an exhibition space. The exhibition titled ‘Different Strokes’, TSN says, showcases the varied genre of his artwork on iPad including intricate and experimental portraits, and black-and-white caricatures.

As a child, art punctuated TSN’s every day. He watched his uncle TS Sridhar, the then editor of Anandha Vikatan, pen columns, and cartoons. “I have a family of journalists and my father’s cousins are illustrious writers RK Narayan and RK Lakshman. There is a genetic (component) in the family where they take to cartooning.”

The creative gene and eye for art continued to flow through TSN’s veins. As a student of AM Jain College, he ran an inter-collegiate magazine ‘Manavelam Puyal’ where he contributed jokes, cartoons, caricatures, and illustrations. However, art remained a hobby and he never took it up professionally. Recalling a meeting with RK Lakshman in Mumbai, the artist says, “He said don’t take it up as a profession. Artists are never recognised in India and people may go and spend money on hotels, saris or jewellery. But they will never buy a piece of art.”

Soon, three decades passed and he found himself back to a blank canvas in the last six years. TSN comments that the high point of his career was giving two portraits of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to him in person. In the coming years, he hopes to take up more commissioned work.

Chief guests, artist-actor Sivakumar and artist Shyam, highlighted the importance of art and the disastrous comings of Artificial Intelligence. “AI might replace art that is made with the hands. With AI coming, more and more artists will vanish, and originality will be lost,” the artists comment. Dr Mohan Rajan, chairman, Rajan Eye Crae was also present.

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