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Art diary: Blurring hard lines of mediums for the sake of creativity
Artists from across India are participating in this show that is ongoing at AIFACS in Delhi. From 734 entries, 237 artists were selected to showcase their works, and 46 have even been recognised for excelling in their field.
Paintings, sculptures, graphics, and drawings come together under one roof with artists from across the country showcasing their works in the Capital. Roaming the alleys in the gallery, dwelling on new ideas and absorbing culture, art aficionados are in for a treat at the 93rd and 94th Annual All India Art Exhibition where 237 artists.
Experimenting with different styles in his two decade long career, Delhi-based artist Joyattam Dutta Roy, whose painting is exhibited in the show, says, “From oil on canvas rubbed with sandpaper to acrylic scrapped with blade adding layers with epoxy resin and later abstract photography, be it any art, I believe it shouldn’t be limited to a canvas. So, I started toying with the idea of bringing my art alive through augmented reality; what I now like to call as alive-scape. Once refined, I submitted my physical work combined with three-dimensional audio-video project for this show.”
“I want to spread happiness through my work,” says Avneet Chawla, another Delhi-based artist. Among the list of the 42 artists, she has been awarded for her drawing, Lino Opus-VI. For Chawla, art needs to reflect happiness, not just for the one holding the brush but also for the viewer. She uses graphite on paper, and explains, “One can see a lot of structures in my work along with dots that represent happiness in the architectural forest that one finds a city. I found inspiration for this technique in Australian aboriginal art. Over the years, however, I have personalised the style and brought a three-dimensional angle to it. One can observe the difference in size, colour, texture and dimension.”
For Jitendra Prajapati, a young sculptor, art is a medium to create awareness about environmental education with ecological principles. “The kind of environment that surrounds me has always been my inspiration,” says Prajapati, who originally hails from Uttar Pradesh. One of the artworks he is exhibiting at the show, highlights how forests are being converted into concrete jungles, and he opines, “Rampant deforestation has resulted in habitat damage and biodiversity loss, threatening the survival of numerous species. Hence, my work showcases a human face devouring animals.”
“From 734 entries our panellist selected 237 artists to showcase their works, 46 of them have even been recognised for excelling in the field of art,” informs Mukesh Kumar Tank, exhibition assistant at All India Fine Arts & Crafts Society (AIFACS). “We weren’t able to hold the annual exhibition last year, hence, this year, we have merged the 93rd and 94th editions. However, the number of entries has been less than what we expected as many were still sceptical due to the pandemic when we started working on the show back in December last year.”
Catch It Live
What: Annual All India Art Exhibition
Where: AIFACS, Rafi Marg
On till: April 13
Timing: 11am to 7pm
Nearest Metro Station: Central Secretariat on Yellow and Violet Lines
Author tweets @AngelaPaljor
