A Poem

The Occult
This is one of the first few poems I've written. Tried my hand it!Tell me what you think about itIt's a sonnet (that is a poem consisting of 14 lines)

I was forsaken in the midst of strife,
The tempest humbling me,
the languish bleeding into me.
Solitude and melancholy blanketed me.
As I felt tainted and wretched
I witnessed an aura
Its dazzle outshining the daystar
bringing concord to my innate senses.
Making me see the splendour of the vale
and the brook gladdened heath.
My horizon was broadened,
My jubilince regained
What was the occult I percieved
that metamorphose me?

This is the interpretation I had in mind when I penned this poem. Itcan always be looked in different shades of light!I was in deep trouble, the storms were overpowering me, I felt painand sadness. I was alone forever. I was overcome grief and a sense ofnot wanting to live.Then I witnessed someting, that changed my entire perspective.Describes as a positive light. I realised the beauty of nature. I wasmotivated to think optimistically as I felt happy and optimistic.The last two lines ask a question. A question that is left for you to answerWhat was the one incident that changed a lot for the better in yourlife! A philosophical awakening...Have you seen your occult yet? Introspect and you will find it, Ifnot...you can always start off now!

By Niveditha Sunderraj

Art Attack

Art attack!

Everyone's talking about art. What is art? Ever wondered?Art is not just about drawings or paintings or a dance form.Art according to me is a perspective, a very beautiful perspective.Art is what a peaceful mind cherishes.If you open your eyes and open your mind, you will notice how artisticour world is.Everything around us is so beautiful, the chirp of the birds, theshape of the clouds, the wind in your face, the dew drops on theleaves. The trees so green, the flowers so bright, the honey so sweet.Nature is a master artist and everything has been so impeccablyexecuted that it is impossible to find flaw or dislike it. Humans areinspired by nature to create, not the other way around. We tend toforget this fact more often than not. It is a positive force thatsurrounds us. You cannot go seeking art, it's just right there. Open your eyes andyou will find it. It's always there to overwhelm you with a feeling ofpleasure and peace. Art is that sense of optimism which can changeyour life and change it for the better.

by Nivedita Sunderraj

The Strokes of Expressions

An artist with eleven national level awards, including the Karnataka Lalit Kala academy award, and Junior Fellowship from H.R.D. Govt. of India, New Delhi under his credit is Ramesh Terdal. Born in Gadag, he is a gold medallist in his BFA graduation and has obtained his masters from Chitra Kala Parishath, Bengaluru.

Resonating with his inner quest to keep alive the innocence and purity of childhood are his works. His current show titled, “Faces Within”, exhibited at the Lakshana Art Gallery is a series of work, which propels various expressions of joy, anxiety, tranquillity among others. The faces revealing these expressions are the reflections of the inner feelings of the artist rather than mere portraits of actual human beings. “All these faces are not the model sketches of people around me. But could rather be myself in every face visible” – artist in his words.

The essence of innocence, purity and simplicity disclosed in the works of Ramesh Terdal find their roots in the villages that are closely associated with the artist. An attempt to rediscover these lost elements is visible in his works. With the medium of oil, the artist captures the rustic mood while the coarse texture and the background colours used, like shades of browns with slight tinges of earthly colours enhance the mood encapsulated.

Having participated in several national and international art exhibitions, his works are also collected by some MNC’s and private companies. Currently residing in Bengaluru, he is a passionate artist and a visiting faculty in Jain College.

by Archana B N

chitralakshana

hi,
Dear readers! We have made some minor changes to chitralakshana. Hope you will notice. I have been so terrribly laid back with the site and I know I never bothered to update anything. Really sorry about that. From now on we will change everything. I need all your comments and suggestions on how to improve it. We will be including an artist page which will contain the pictures of latest works on some contemporary artists. These will be good quality pictures which you can appreciate better and perhaps venture to buy.
The concentration however will be on articles. We request all art lovers who are good at writing to please contribute to chitrlakshana and help build the site with regard to quality content.
Also don't forget the blog!
Thanks for the support so far.
Veena Shekar

Kalidas Pattar, no more with us

I met Kalidas Pattar many years ago in Davangere. He had received my painting from Nagpur and I went to collect it. He spoke about art when I knew very little about it. I learnt that day. That was 16 years ago. When I moved away from Davangere I kept hearing about him, his work, frequently. I remembered him and all that he had said about art. I met him again at Chitra santhe,in the December of 2005, I rushed hurriedly to greet him. I said I am "veena Shekar" He said "Ah, of course you came home to collect your painting" how are you?
I was amazed how he remembered me after 15 years. I bought some cards from him that day and keep them cherished with me.
An artist is a human being first and one who shows it raises and remains in the memory of others always.

the folk experience

There is a lot of concern about the folk arts in India, that nothing is being done to ensure their continuance. In fact a lot is being done, the concern is that the efforts are not properly channelised in a way that will make the most difference. Folk fashion is very popular in India, thanks to top designers like Ritu Kumar, but there lies the problem too. The benefit reaches them and not the actual folk artisans.
There are many institutions that are set up to promote the folk arts but actually promote only themselves. They showcase the aspects of folk art that are the most commercially viable. For ex. last year at the Janapada Mela at the Parishad, folk dances from all over the country were shown. But this year it was mostly the folk dances of Rajasthan and Gujarat that were shown, obviously because they are the best known and the most immediately popular. There are over a thousand variations of folk dance in India, how come we only see the bhangra and the garba!

Art, Culture and style

You first have to understand how cultures evolve. The culture of any civilization, old or new, is comprised of its people, their way of life, their traditions such as their beliefs in religion. The Gods, Goddesses, customs, rituals, practices etc., make a culture strong or weak. Many civilizations have evolved based on the cultural changes that they undergo. Some have just died too, after foreign invasions. A few civilizations such as the Indus valley have undergone huge cultural changes in the 5000 years of existence. Bearing all attacks on its character it has still emerged as a fully grown and developed modern nation called India.

Different cultures evolve along a different time pattern depending on their birth. Some advance faster towards technological modernity, while some, although being older pause behind. Modernity as we presume today is also the social outlook the people have towards life, the freedom they enjoy, their independent social set up (social security, parenting, relationships, marriage etc). Cultures that are not strongly bound to their traditions advance faster. And cultures that have their traditions strongly rooted take time to progress towards this modernity. In the Indus Valley culture, which is today the Sind culture or Hindu culture, the belief of the people is so strong that tradition and modernity are linked together. There is technological advancement but the attitude and social set up is strongly traditional.

As regards to style in the arts, the style of any art form is based on many factors that rule it. The economic factor, the social factor (the social conditions of the people, their approach etc) cultural factors (religion, beliefs, heritage from the past) and Geographical factors. All these are important when you study the style of a particular art piece from a particular direction. So, one concept, for instance the concept of contentment, will be treated differently in different cultures. The style of the art work differs according to the period in which it was created and will not necessarily evoke the same kind of response in people belonging to different cultures and time frame.

I would like to quote one example to you. The concept of ‘the kiss’ (a common emotional exchange in people) has been treated differently by artists around the world. You can look up works of Brancusi, Munch, Klimt, khajuraho temple in India on the subject. All these artists deal one subject differently. And the style of the work is not just that of the artist but that of the time and culture he belongs to.

As for Bollywood, again the style is so different from Hollywood film making today. Most of Indian cinema (Hindi and other regional languages) is packed with sentiments. An European or an American of present day will never find the ‘contentment’ he is seeking in these movies. But an Indian surely will and does too. As these movies cater to the traditional beliefs of an Indian, his lifestyle, his preferences, his emotions, they provide him all the satisfaction he wants. So in a technically advanced media, traditional themes prevail.

I would not call this as lagging behind as far as modernity is concerned, but people’s choice of living. Indian cinema (if you care to see a few) is very advanced technically. Directors vie with each other to come out with new innovation in film making to match that of Hollywood., but the themes are always about interdependent joint family, mother sentiment, marriage sentiment (belief in marriage to one person only) etc., these rule the roost being the prevailing culture. To conclude we can say art alone truthfully reflects the society in which it exists.

Tribute to another Artist

Ganesh Gudi- A name Karnataka artists wil remember fondly. I had the opportunity to be taught under him for sometime during my stay in Davangere in 1989. He taught me oil painting for two years and those were the most interesting days of my artistic life. I would look forward to each afternoon with him. He is unfortunately no more with us but he was one of those special people who was selfless and sincere. Destiny has taken him away from us but his art lives forever among patrons. I will always remember him as my first guru who initiated art into me.

More on Chamkur

I found this on Google search and thought it might be useful. This piece was published in the Sunday Tribune
S.N. Chamkur, the Andhra artist, graduated from the J.J. School of Art in 1920s. While specialising in portrait painting of the rich and famous, he also made his mark in depicting mythological episodes. One of his works shows the enchanting flute-wielding Lord Krishna captivating the gopis. It was awarded the best pictorial composition prize by the Bombay Art Society Exhibition in 1928. A disciple of Damarala Ramarao, founder of the Andhra School of Art, Chamkur not only carried on his guru’s tradition but enriched it with his innovative works.
Chamkur’s album of 24 beautiful pictures under the title "Art and Beauty", published in 1937, was hailed as a masterpiece and an admirable contribution to the Indian art of the day. The enchanting female figures executed with rare skill are charged with emotion and ease, the lines flow harmoniously bringing out the essence of life with its joys and sorrows. A mere glance at these figures is a visual delight. One marvels at Chamkur’s techniques and imagination. An amazing feature of his work is the illusion of a colour scheme in spite of the drawings being in black and white. We also notice a rare blending of the traditional Indian concept of visual expression and western academic art.
Chamkur’s extraordinary depiction of women in different moods was also recognised as a part of the renaissance in art experienced by the country at that time. He is, perhaps, the only artist of his time to give a visual expression to the formidable subject of woman and her moods and that too with such vigour and sincerity.
He succeeds in infusing life in his figures. Their innermost feelings and emotions are conveyed through his unique treatment of the subject. A contemporary art critic observed that ‘if a thing of beauty is a joy for ever. Chamkur has quite a number of perennial joys packed in his album.

A long remembered artist, Chamkur

I remember a long long time ago when I was a little girl of 4 , I used to live in Madras, with my parents and brother, on Apparaswamy koil street and I would often play in my neighbours house. It was the famous artist Chamkur's house and his daughter, Ravi, ( i think i am right) and others would pick me from my house and take me to watch their father paint. I remember him sitting nonchalently on his easy chair, brooding and yet would give a faint smile as he saw me. I remember his white dhoti and kurta and above all his beautiful painting of Mahatma Gandhi sitting and leaning on a soft cushion. I remember the tall building they lived in and his studio was on the top floor. Now after forty years I am reminded of these days in the artist's house. Chamkur is an artist from AndhraPradesh. I do not know where he or his fly are now but I have pictures and a strong memory of those pleasant days.