Facing the Mirror

“These portraits are created from memory. I prefer going back in time and allowing these faces to appear on my canvas,often without thinking about them,rather than working from actual models or photographs,” says the Bangalore-based artist about his melancholic images in acrylic of street-children and domestic workers.

Today,Arakkal’s life echoes of the symbols of prosperity— he is a well-settled and respected artist,his wife runs a gallery and his son is making a mark as a photographer. However,he points out,it was not always this way. The artist ran away from his family home after both his parents died,and began working in his teens as a mechanic in a bike shop. “All this has had a bearing on my work,” says Arakkal,who has the prestigious Lorenzo De Medici Gold Medal,that he won at the Florence Internazionale Biennale,on his shelf. After working in garages,he landed a job at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited as a supervising mechanic,but gave it up when the desire to paint consumed him.

His portraits rose from his own angst— images of the impoverished waif with sunken eyes full of longing for filial love recurs in his paintings. These portraits also make cinematic references in the manner in which they are composed. “If the face is well-focused within the frame it has a greater ability to attract attention,” he says.

The exhibition is on till Feb 28. Contact: 41639000