Bengaluru: Artist S.G. Vasudev's association with the Karunashraya - The Bangalore Hospice goes back many years - ever since he lost his sister to cancer, he has visited the cancer hospice each year on October 14, the anniversary of her death. He organises an hour-long musical programme, visits the centre, distributes sweets to the patients and the staff and bears the day's expenses.
“I lost three people I love to cancer,” he said. “My late wife, Arnawaz, my mother and my sister. When my sister was sick, she happened to read a story on Karunashraya and thought it was a wonderful place. She wanted to go there, but couldn’t make it in time.”
These annual visits didn’t quite cut it for Vasudev, who has now contributed 30 paintings to Karunashreya. His solo show, which will take place at ITC Windsor starting May 27, comprises about 24 paintings, handpicked by the Karunashraya team. “They will be sold at discounted rates and all proceeds will go to the trust,” Vasudev explained. “I felt I needed to do more, so I asked them if they would accept my works. They said yes.
They came to my studio and chose the ones they liked - I wanted them to feel comfortable.” If all the paintings are sold, the donation could amount to as much as Rs 70 lakh.
The exhibition is aimed not only at art collectors, but long-time patrons of Karunashraya as well. "Eight paintings are being sold only on the Karunashraya website," he said. The idea is to reach out to the trust's significant international donor base, too.
"Every time I go there, I find myself completely moved," he said. "You can't ever tell that people are dying, every face wears a smile. The patients are given everything they ask for and not one pie is taken from any of them. It doesn't matter if you're rich or poor, at Karunushraya, everybody is equal." Artists have been donating to charitable causes for a long time, but these are mostly group efforts.
"The community has done a very good job in that sense. For instance, eye hospitals sometimes commission large group of artists from all over the country to raise money. but it's rare for an artist to do so on his own. I personally felt that I should do this, because I am so overwhelmed by the work they do."
The paintings have been taken from Rhapsody, Tree Landscape and She - some of Vasudev's best known series. They range from between Rs 13 lakh and Rs 75,000 in price.
