Thursday, February 14, 2013

Self-realization is the key to great art, believes this veteran

SH Raza’s practice is greatly influenced by his love for the rich Indian culture and belief system. On the eve of his recent visit to India, he quipped: “There used to be a great influence that of European realism. It was not keeping with our rich tradition. We later realized that painting is not something seen merely with our eyes, but that it is a sum total perception of the universe visualized with mind, heart and all human faculties or antargyan (knowledge of inner self).”

Mumbai-based Art Musings presented a solo of his wonderful works late last year. Entitled ‘Vistaar’, it underlined how his oeuvre encompasses mystic aspects of Hindu philosophy. An accompanying note stated: “His art lends itself to such a quest for intensity: the compass of its scale meets the eye in an intimate encounter; the linear stroke, the chromatic pitch and the unspoken sound explode, not at the distance set by the frame, but within our minds.

"In his favored vocabulary of motifs, alongside cosmic references as the bija or seed, the bindu or focal source, the divya-chakshu or inner eye, and the kalpa vriksha or cosmic tree, the artist also dwells on the twinned nagas, the interlocking serpents emblematic of regeneration, and the yoni, the locus of the female principle.”

Raza is in constant touch with the art scene in India and runs a foundation to promote young artists. He describes the contemporary Indian art scene as ‘very encouraging’ and is happy about the fact that contemporary Indian painters are fast rising in stature. Akhilesh, Manish Pushkale, Seema Ghuraiya, Sheetal Gatani, and Sujata Bajaj are among his favorite artists. The passionate painter believes if there’s truth in the painting, it will expose and assert itself, which in a way, forms the crux of his own practice.

The zestful octogenarian refuses to count his age in terms of the years he has lived, and continues to create art with same energy and vigor as he did almost sixty years ago. 

No comments:

Post a Comment