Beyond Blue Skies

His colour palette has no code of conduct and that helps him paint with abandon. The colours flow on the canvas with ease — similar to nature’s ways of being. Hills,mountains,rivers,boats and trees come alive on Abhimanyu Pratap Singh Sekhon’s canvases. “I paint by dipping the brush in my soul,’’ says the 21-year-old self-taught artist,as he takes us around his first solo exhibition.

Titled “Silent Metaphors”,the exhibition with 40 canvases in water colours and acrylics,depicts washes of myriad hues,landscapes and cityscapes that breathe and exude life. The ever-changing colour of the sky,in different moods,fascinates him the most,and it’s a facet that’s clearly visible in a lot of his compositions. Sekhon paints in a manner that leaves the canvas uncluttered,with each aspect of the work showcasing a distinct identity and the larger picture not overshadowing the smaller elements. These include wild flowers swaying with the winds,sheep grazing on the manicured hill-sides and small hamlets in Spain among others.

Sekhon suffered a spinal-cord injury in a motor accident some years ago,which left him confined to a wheel chair,but it hasn’t hampered his passion. Painting and colours,says the artist,give him a new view of the world — be it seeing the villages of Himachal Pradesh or the countryside of Switzerland. He has translated it all on canvas. A student of Human Rights,he also represents Punjab at the national level.

“Silent Metaphors” is on at Punjab Kala Bhawan till October 17.