Still Life Study

At Chennai8217;s Art College students come and go but the woman who models for their classes has been there for two decades

THE students of Chennai8217;s Government College of Arts and Crafts have a model problem. For years they have been demanding new models for their art classes. Since models have to pose in the nude for these classes, not many women are willing to give this profession a try. So, college authorities are yet to find a replacement for their model who8217;s over 45 years now and has been a fixture on the campus in Egmore for more than two decades.

8216;8216;Our problem is this. We are so used to the anatomy of our model that we do not find variety, which is the lifeline of an artist. Unless we get younger models, mastering portraits and painting becomes difficult for us,8217;8217; complained Saravanan, a third year student of painting. Students find it odd that they have to study the same anatomy year after year.

Sargunan, a fellow student adds that this unchanged scene has affected creativity in art. The model is paid Rs 200 per session.8216;8216;We need others for our study but the college authorities are not able to pay the young models who charge a heavy fee per session. On some occasions, they managed to get amateurs who could not pose in a particular posture for a session. Mid-way through, they would change the posture affecting our concentration,8217;8217; points out Saravanan. Fresh models, who would have the patience for the job are difficult to find.

A model has to pose in a particular posture at least for three hours at a stretch. 8216;8216;To that extent, our model has been very cooperative. She knows the job well and even if she takes a tea break during a session, she would come back and sit in the same posture as directed,8217;8217; says Madan.

There is another model-related problem at the college. Male models are equally in demand among the students of painting. 8216;8216;In the absence of professional models, we hire rooms and pose in the nude for our classmates,8217;8217; says Saravanan.

College principal G Chandrasekharan says funding is not the only constraint. 8216;8216;Getting nude models in Tokyo or the West is not a problem where it is accepted as a vocation. In India, it is a social issue. There is a stigma attached to it. Even if we pay better, how many of them would come forward to pose?8217;8217; he asks, adding that 8216;8216;art classes were different from acting in movies where artistes come forward to enact the role given to them.8217;8217;

Chandrasekharan also points out that 8216;8216;life models8217;8217; were a feature imported from the British concept of art. 8216;8216;In our own Mahabalipuram, we followed the traditional art form. Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvathi were sculpted out of creative imagination,8217;8217; he says.