Artist By Design

In the pristine white setting of the gallery,Dutta’s creations — be it black figurines on white canvas or printed birds on coloured cloth — lay without a set order,which seemed deliberate. One of the rooms showcased Beautiful Garbage,a work which is essentially a heap of black polythene garbage bags scattered around with a white dress. Little wooden printing blocks with cockroach and dragonfly designs were also placed in a haphazard manner.

Dutta also explained why he chose an art gallery over a five-star venue for his maiden solo venture. “I’ve been to a lot of art shows and exhibitions where people are more interested in heading towards the bar — screaming and fighting for their favourite cocktail — rather than taking a look at what the artist has showcased. You can’t appreciate art fully in such a glitzy setting,” says Dutta,who also plans to write in the near future.

Each of his installations has been given a spunky title — Bambino Series,Body Farm,Remission,How to make a Paper Plane,This Is Not A Garment and Migration. “Creatively,the most challenging was the garbage bag thing. I usually use such bags to store junk and even personal belongings. People might think it’s nonsense but I love it,” added the designer.

However,How to make a Paper Plane came across as one of the most visually appealing works. In a room,black and white paper kites were hung in a series — with a set of instructions on how to make a unique set of planes. Colourful papers were kept for visitors to try and make one by following the artist’s path. Many tried — most failed and a handful succeeded. But the planes refused to fly. “Maybe,that is the purpose of the design — to create beauty which is not meant to soar high,” remarked one of the visitors,after his ninth attempt to make his green plane fly.