Rajendran Vadakkepadath has been waiting for years. Not just to see how his work will reach culmination, but also to witness whether the plantain leaf can hold the reclining Padmanabha.
He began this particular painting some years ago after a few of his experiments on the leaves won media attention. And the choice of Padmanabha’s celestial siesta was probably the product of his fascination with details.
“It is an intricate artwork. Hence, leaf as a medium fits because to paint on it, one needs to be patient and meditative. It tests our patience because the wait can last for years. I started the work on Padmanabha over three years ago. It is a cluster of 84 dried plantain leaves on which I painted the majestic reclining Vishnu of Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram,” says the art teacher at Chittoor GHSS.
The idea of painting on dry plantain leaves was not something he took up as a challenge. “Art is never that way. It just dawns on you as you enter the vast space of imagination and creativity. There can, however, be inspirations. For me, it was the lecture that APJ Abdul Kalam gave some 20 years ago in Coimbatore. He spoke of why artists should leave imprints for posterity behind as pathways towards new worlds. This got me thinking. And soon I started experimenting,” says Rajendran, a graduate from the Government College of Fine Arts, Chennai.
Another one of his experiments was Anamorphic art, a Chinese technique that was practised in the 14th century. He once read about it and just wanted to try it out. Same with the case of Name Art, which is about drawing up the picture of an object from its written spelling. “Such creative sparks come only when an artist passes through situations that hold the potential to inspire them,” Rajendran says.
The plantain leaf paintings in his stock now number 16. “This is why I cannot exhibit — not enough completed works. A painting in a usual medium takes one month, and the same work will take six months here.”
The works bear a matted look due to the treatment used to dry the leaf. It is then pinned to a board, and delicate work is done using earthy colours.
“We should avoid using sharp objects and must directly paint without sketching. Paints used also matter, because the ochre-tinted texture of the plantain leaf must come forth,” he adds.
Rajendran uses only natural colours, even though they are very limited — just black, blue, orange, red, and brown. Sometimes, he uses acrylic too.
“Then, reverse painting is done, which means we do not paint the insides. The outline is defined to convey the shape of the object.”
The use of natural colours and medium is also his way of promoting living by reconnecting with nature. “Today, most of the colours are chemically made, which does little to infuse life into the paintings. The splendour of painting with natural colours is that they speak, even after years, through their faded texture. We must go back to the ways of the earth that way. If this practice rises, the industry of creating natural colours will also prop up. And that means the raw material for this will also be produced more. Nature will benefit that way,” he observes.
The idea hence is to discover deeper ways in which nature can be replicated in its rawness in his artwork.
“I was a regular artist till the ancient mediums from rocks to leaves and anything found in nature fascinated me. I am still in my exploratory journey towards a clear destination. There are many challenges in experimenting with natural bases, especially in preservation. I do not know how to properly preserve this medium. If the process I follow works under pressure for some more time, I will apply for a patent,” he says.
As far as Rajendran knows, he might be one of the very few in the world to try out painting on plantain leaves. “The closest to this is the plantain stem art that the Masai tribe of Africa practises. I am also looking for scientific aid to help preserve the paintings,” he says.
Rajendran, hence, is watching his own art and its depth in all its naturalness. And till the time he tests the tenacity of his work, he prefers to wait.
“I can’t teach anyone these techniques till then. All I can do is inspire. I cannot answer the questions on my process till then. Art is like that — it’s about the artist’s journey through his creations and thoughts. It must emerge from his doubts and make him confident of its essence. It is an organic process. I will start speaking about it or passing it on to posterity when I feel I have finally arrived,” he says, adding he may, however, exhibit the collection sometime this year.