Weaving Dreams

Kantha,a wonderfully elementary form of running stich used by women in Bengal to make light blankets or bedspreads for children,is Mukhopadhyay’s chosen medium. “It’s an effort to revive this art form. It’s my tribute to the villages of Bengal,” says the artist. Though Kantha emroidery in its traditional form has found a place in the gaudy collections of some Kolkata-based fashion designers,Mukhopadhyay had the vision to think beyond quaint flower patterns and paislet motifs. “My works are representation of nature,but I choose to depict it in my own way,” says the Shantiniketan-based artist. His individualistic pieces of works are remarkable because of the functionality. Besides being works of art,they can also be used as scarves,stoles or even wall-hangings,as was evident at his recently concluded exhibitin at the Academy of Fine Arts.

His childhood,which was mostly spent in Shantiniketan,was coloured with “intimate exlorations of folk traditions”. “I used to visit villages nearby and be mesmerised by the way art merged with everyday life there. From alpanas to wall paintings,there is hidden meaning in everything,” says Mukhopadhyay. That is probably why his works are riddled with typical symbols associated with folk art. One can see the circular movement of warli tribal paintings in his kanthas,and the colour palette used in most of his works is akin to that of pattachitra paintings. “Quite a few of my senior artist have observed that my work is a confluence of different artictic traditions of India. Maybe subconciouslly I am infuenced by these traditions,but when I start stiching I just let go,” says Mukhopadhyay.

The creative process for Mukhopadhyay is more like meditation. Unlike painters,Mukhopadhyay doesn’t have the advantage of swirling his brush on a canvas and expressing his emotions “impulsively”. “If I’m moved by something,I have to internalise it and then express it through needle and thread. I need to meditate on things,” he says. This very fact can also be seen as an advantage. “I have seen my work evolve in front of my own eyes. At times the work I started off with ends up being something altogether different by the time I am over with it. This luxury of time makes my work more complex,more dense,” he adds.

Mukhopadhyay’s abstract experiments with kantha,needless to say,is aneffort unlike any other in this country. Yet,no concrete effort is being made to document and archive it. “Though I don’t have any students I do entertain those artists who have keen interest in my work. I do make it a point of taking photographs of each of my work. I don’t know how else to go about it. If anyone wants to write a book on my work,he or she is most welcome,” he says.