Lines of Thought

College of Art’s 62nd annual art exhibition offers an insight into the trends and thought process influencing art students today.

A graffiti piece, the works adorn the exteriors of a room that invites visitors into the exhibition.

The recent passing of cartoonist R K Laxman, the creator of the famous bespectacled Common Man in a checked coat, acted as a trigger for a few students studying visual communication at the College of Art in Delhi. At the institute’s 62th annual art exhibition, the balding old man can be seen creating a sculpture, ready with a brush in his hand for his next painting in an adjoining corner, and somewhere nearby, also viewing the artwork on display with curiosity. A graffiti piece, the works adorn the exteriors of a room that invites visitors into the exhibition.

“Laxman was a role model for our students. He worked till the very end, even when he was unwell. The passion he had towards his work is quite inspiring for our students,” says Soumendra Nath Lahiri, principal of the institute. The much-awaited exhibition in Delhi’s cultural calendar has paved the way for the showcase of more than 2000 works of sculptures, installations, paintings, photographs and drawings by 1,100 art students.

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Through her painting, Travelling With Insecurities, BFA student Ritika Sharma, highlights the everyday struggles a woman faces while travelling on public transport. She has painted herself, surrounded by starry-eyed men standing beside her, en route her journey in a bus. “I travel a lot by buses and therefore, my work talks about the challenges women face during everyday travel,” says the 20-year-old. Samrridhi Kukreja, a printmaking student, has created two figures — of a man and a woman — on a beach, the arteries of their hearts replacing their face in her etching titled Crimson Kids. She points out how it serves as a reflection of the number of times human beings tend to think from their hearts, instead of following their mind.

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Twenty-eight-year old Lokanath Pradhan, pursuing his masters in printmaking, appears to have anticipated in advance, his fate of being interviewed by journalists for his piece 31st December, as a similar scene features on his canvas. His interview reveals the chaos he faced on the night of December 31, after a heartbreak, which appears similar to the state of confusion that occurs after a tsunami. As replicas of tiny human figures appear falling from above onto his canvas, the metropolitan high- rise buildings are clasped under the tight grip of an octopus, fish and other marine creatures. Final year BFA student Deepak Kumar has created his self-portrait using paper waste and wire mesh, in what looks like a replica of the poster image of a reigning actor from Bollywood, a far cry from the lean, petite man we see in front of us.

The exhibition is on display at 20-22 Tilak Marg, till March 17, between 11 am and 7 pm

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