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Tea Time Under The Blue Sky: An exhibition of art, nature and tea
Artist Alka Mathur uses tea bags to write her personal diary. At an upcoming exhibition, she will display her journals on tea bags along with her abstract paintings.
Some Indian contemporary artists these days are experimenting with tea. For Delhi-based artist Alka Mathur, tea bags are pivotal to her art. Apart from writing on tea bags, she uses tea stains to add a tinge of colour to her artworks, which are mostly abstract in nature.
In the show titled, Tea Time Under The Blue Sky, on display are 40 works. About the idea of writing a diary on tea bags, she says, “Initially, I was just using tea bags for colour and then one fine day, in 2006, when I couldn’t find paper to write my diary, I used a tea bag instead. That stuck with me, and here we are... ”
This exhibition features abstract paintings and her journal entries on tea bags. “Most of my paintings are inspired by nature, as the love for it comes to me very easily. I’ve been photographing the clouds, trees and the earth for as long as I can remember. My works also are layered in texture. They will appear to the viewer like they are seeing landscapes from an aircraft. I’ve used a lot of traditional methods. Also, natural dyes and kantha stitches,” says the 60-year-old mix-media artist.
What inspired her to include her personal diaries in the exhibition? “My diary is not something that was intended to be an artwork. But I realised that a lot of people connect with what I had written considering they’re like an inward journey and thus, I don’t mind sharing them,” she says.
Catch It Live
What: Tea Time Under The Blue Sky
Where: Art Gallery, Bikaner House, Pandara Road
When: November 17 to November 30
Timings: 10:30am to 7pm
Nearest Metro Station: Udyog Bhavan on Yellow Line
