Hyderabad: The confluence of bronze, copper, brass or silver is daubed with snatches of enamelled colour, a shade of vivid red or azure blue complemented by slender structures and a skeletal anatomy.
Sculptor S. Nandagopal’s signature style is a blend of traditional and contemporary. The Metaphysical Edge which is currently being showcased at Art Musings, Mumbai, is a collection of narrative sculpture on metal, playing upon the theme of religiosity. “The concept of religiosity is different from religion. When I stand in front of a huge installation of American abstract art, I feel a sense of awe. That, according to me, is religiosity,” says this artist.
Nandagopal’s sculptures often have a frontal aspect one of the defining characteristics of the Madras Art Movement, started by his father K.C.S. Panicker. “The frontal element is very important in the Madras Art Movement. Most of the Indian sculptures be it the Ellora or Arjuna’s Penance in Mamalla-puram, are frontal sculptures. I make holes in the sculpture to ensure that it can be seen from all sides,” he explains, adding that he uses colour only if it adds meaning to the work. “I was a little cautious in using colour because colour has to have a meaning of its own. It has to stand on its own. So I have utilised only two contrasting colours,” he adds.
Though contemporary in form, Nandagopal points out that he’s used traditional techniques to create his sculptures. “Enamelling is a very old technique, which I have used. I have also used engraving and silver plating, which are slowly becoming hard to find. I was lucky that as a student, I was exposed to crafts techniques at the Government College of Art & Crafts, Chennai. It is sad that our age-old techniques are being lost in today’s world,” he rues.
Nandagopal, who is the recipient of several important national awards and has been on the advisory board of the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi since 1998, says that knowing our rich past is of vital importance to any artist.
“How else will you know what is happening on the art scene? What you have been working on for a decade may already be done before elsewhere. It is a waste of time and effort. Nowadays, many artists don’t want to know about the past. I think that you need to know your past and if you find a sense of order there, you will find that order in yourself. In the Madras Art Movement, the most important thing was art is it a good piece of art? That was the first consideration. Only after that, the artist’s nationality would come into the picture that it was done by an Indian artist,” he says.
