Age of Innocence

A child sleeps between cheetahs in his work, Uninterrupted V.

It is a coming together of violence and peace, traditional and modern. Babies curl and sleep amid mayhem in Roy Thomas’ solo “Uninterrupted Tales”. The newborn is the central protagonist in his work. “A newborn sleeps peacefully in any situation because their world is within them. As you get older, you are gradually aware of the issues around,” says the artist.

Comprising nine works, the collection is a continuation of his last solo in 2012, where children made an appearance. “Where I stop, I start from there,” says the 48-year-old. His engagement with news clippings also persists. A central canvas has a newborn sleeping on shattered glass. The backdrop is a photograph of the Gaza conflict zone, from last year. “I removed a man who was standing here and placed the baby instead. It could also represent a broken womb,” says the post graduate from Delhi College of Art, who came into limelight in the early ’90s for his silhouettes on tarpaulin sheets.

He later moved to realistic representations and figurative portrayals, which meld traditional and modern motifs. In the current exhibition, for instance, he has miniature tigers spread across greens with goats gazing in Uninterrupted IV. In Four Forty Winks, he invites mehendi artists to paint borders for a set of canvases with profiles of girl children. “Sometimes when a baby girl is born, neighbours end up pacifying the parents, who are worried about her marriage,” says Thomas. On his canvas, in Uninterrupted V, he gives the child saviours — two cheetahs for her protection.

The exhibition at Arushi Arts, G-114, 13 MG Road, is on till February 16. Contact: 41435491