“Don’t think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it’s good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art.”
— Andy Warhol
With the same passion in their art, five artists are showcasing for the first time at the Venkatappa Art Gallery. How many people would have the guts to leave a well-paying job, and focus their energy towards the betterment of art.
One such individual for whom, art is everything that he feels and experiences is Thrilok Chakaravarty. Artkradle, the art platform has been the brainchild of Thrilok. Thrilok is an engineer and founder of Artkradle. For him, the journey into the world of art was aroused when his father took him to the same gallery out of the blue at age 10.
In spite of the fact that he never learnt drawing or painting professionally, he often paints. His journey so far has been very humbling, thanks to the support he has received from the fraternity. After dedicating his life to art, Thrilok has been consistently visiting artists, galleries and art curators. This process of connecting with creative people not only gave him a way to proceed, and an impetus to do something for art, it also got him up close and personal to several young artists whose art he felt deserved a bigger platform. Keeping that in mind, in his debut curatorial exhibition, he has scouted five raw maverick artists from remote parts of Karnataka. Artkradle is a community art platform which is creating an art ecosystem in India.
The artists have been their original and creative best. Hailing from Puttur in Dakshina Kannada district, Lohith Kumar arrived in Bengaluru to pursue an art education and holds a MVA degree from Bangalore University. His work is synonymous with humour and imagination. Another artist who Thrilok met in Hampi accidentally is Muttu from Ingalagi in Ilkal taluka. Muttu’s works represent his proximity with his surroundings near the university ie pigs roaming freely at a nearby village and the landscape of the area painted with elan. Hailing from the remote Koppala, Gangadhar has explored Togalu Gombeyaata, a puppet show in Karnataka.
An engineering dropout, Nagaraj Bakale hails from Gadag. His works are centered around the often misunderstood Aghoris and Indian spiritual masters. Praveen Gaylkar’s works are heavily influenced by Kinnala art and are a representation of his surroundings and ambience. The art show highlights the rich talent that remote places in Karnataka have. It’s appalling and sad to note that many of these artists do not get a platform to display their art. Thrilok has managed to get them together, and one can only wish they move to bigger leagues.
— The art show is on at the Venkatappa Art Gallery till June 13, 2018
— The writer is an art expert and curator.
