An exhibition of sculptures titled Constructing Forms opened at Kalakriti Gallery, Banjara Hills, on Saturday. Behind the brilliant display of forms and ideas that struck art aficionados is a group from Chennai that works in unison. Ganesh Selvaraj, Elanchezhiyan Pichaikkannu, Janarthanan, Kumarasen, Saravanan Parasuraman and Yuvaraj are among the sculptors from an artist collective called Kinetics. “Basically, the members of the group are from the same college, although we passed out at different times. The idea is to come together and have a platform, where we can exchange ideas, which is very important for our artistic pursuit,” explains sculptor Kumarasen.
In the history of art, such collectives have been instrumental in bringing in fresh movements into the traditions. The most famous one being the Bombay Progressive Artists’ Group, which included the legendary founder members F. N. Souza, S.H. Raza, M.F. Husain, K.H. Ara, H.A.Gade, and S.K. Bakre.
Although there is no binding tenets or philosophy for the group, the works are heavy in philosophy. Kumarasen’s Hundi for instance, is made of aluminum coins. “The idea is to portray the irony of how one needs to spend money to buy a Hundi that is used to save money,” explains the sculptor.
The mixed media show has everything from wood, metal to fibre glass works. “As a group, we all focus on bringing out our individual bests in terms of stylisations. In a way, we all bring a kind of balance,” says Yuvaraj, whose works of wood were on display. “Most of my expressions are on the positives and negatives of life and the failures and success. I work on the daily struggles of survival and the conflicts we face,” he goes on to add.
Meanwhile, Ganesh Selvaraj’s Inside Out series stood out for its aesthetic quality, while raising pressing and profound questions. Elanchezhiyan Pichaikkannu’s simpler sculptures on traditional festivals like Jallikattu and mythological references to Krishna were well received.
