‘Time and Being’, a landmark exhibition at at Shridharani Art Gallery, Triveni Kala Sangam, Delhi has begun here with artist Aparna Bidasaria showcasing a tapestry of evocative paintings of the Banyan Tree, an enduring symbol of wisdom, protection, timelessness and civilisational antiquity.
Painting titled 'Anugrah' from the Banyan Series 2016 (Acrylic on Canvas)
Indore-based artist Aparna’s paintings, glimpsing the tree in the time zone of sunrises and sunsets over seasons, are being displayed at the exhibition.
Curated by noted art scholar and critic Uma Nair, the ten-day exhibition, which began last Monday week, has a total of 30 paintings in monochrome and colours that stand out for artistic exquisiteness, meditative quality and compositional harmony. It is both a visual grandeur and an experiential delight that compels the viewer’s attention on the entrancing nature of paintings.
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Painting titled 'Bodhi' from the Banyan Series 2017 (Acrylic on Canvas)
Adwaita Gadanayak, Director General, National Gallery of the Modern Art (NGMA), the chief guest, said Aparna’s paintings are a celebration of the power of Nature in an aesthetic manner.
“Nature is powerhouse. We need to go back to it to learn more. It is interesting to know that Bruce Lee learnt his martial arts from water…. Trees are like messengers of our prayers to the Supreme Power,” he noted.
The April 17-26 exhibition was first held at Bharat Bhavan, Bhopal in February with lesser number of entries. It is set for a replication, with some more additions, at Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai from August 14.
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Installation artist Puneet Kaushik said Aparna’s paintings are defined by a sense of abstraction, openness and pointillism. “Through her paintings, she talks about Nature in an extremely refined sensibility. All artists have their own uniqueness. Aparna’s uniqueness lies in her robustly creative obsession with the Banyan tree and nature,” he observed.
Painting titled 'Dhavala' from the Banyan Series 2017 (Acrylic on Canvas)
The banyans of Aparna, who has been painting for the past ten years, have also an urbane feel and manifest a startling modernity that looks more at abstract expressionism, bringing to mind techniques of surrealist photography.
She also uses the tree as a metaphor for her spiritual odysseys as well as her sense of solitude. In doing so, she creates an art that transcends national and cultural boundaries and attracts audiences in both the East and the West.
“The splendored banyan is a testament to her continued search for her own cultural foundations in which the banyan is considered both sacred and profane and also the tree of enlightenment,” Uma Nair said.
The exhibition concludes on April 26.
