20th January 2020,
5.30 pm saw the coming together of 20 artists of Unique Society of Panchkula at
recently opened underpass connecting sector 17, Chandigarh to the Rose garden. The
paintings exhibited on easels were of varied themes and styles.
‘Untitled’ Vinod Arora’s compositions
on a square format has an inter play of the
primary colours red , yellow , blue and daubs of green in varied tones ,the
white spaces in between creating an intersection of different planes . The subtle textures add an
area of interest to the painting. ‘Towards the light’ by Vishwakarma with entwined
forms of the tree trunk rendered in scarlet colour, seem to be grounded on earth, surging upward for release, is it from the clutches of the unending
cycle of time .
Arika Kapur’s water with fishes
frolicking in a pond of water lilies with an oriental background in contrast of
reds and green creates visual depth. Bharti Sharma’s ‘Afternoon in Blue ’has
melancholy overtones. A bespectacled figure seated looks up from his daily
newspaper, in a background of Blue with the figure done in monochrome. The deep
yellow of the frame and the rod in the foreground bring a perspective depth in
the painting. ‘Leap forward’ by Ritu has a frog in white silhouette all poised
to leap from its marshy green depths. Horse done in shades of umber by Kohli
gallops forth, breaking the bonds of the mesh in the background. Jugdeep
Jolly’s sculpture golden violinist adds an air of gaiety, its notes an
harbinger of many a gala event.
The new underpass provides a much
needed platform for the city artists to showcase their art works. It is a novel
way of converting an otherwise dreary, lonely underpass to a colourful livened
up vista. More so it takes the artists close to the audience who shy away from
the formal display in public art galleries, providing a much needed informal
display, resulting in close encounters with the audience. Hopefully it will
open new horizons to the artists of Chandigarh to harness potential art lovers
and provide an art connect.
