“This bull is a bull and this horse is a horse... If you give meaning to certain things in my paintings it may be very true, but it is not my idea to give this meaning. What ideas and conclusions you have got, I obtained too, but instinctively, unconsciously. I make the painting for the painting. I paint the objects for which they are.” – Pablo Picasso one of the world’s greatest artists was famously quoted as saying while creating his famed artwork, The Geuernica. At the beginning of this month ended a wonderful solo show by artist Sujit Kumar Mandya, often touted as Karnataka’s very own Sunil Das. This show was a tribute to his guru and the one who held his hand, our very own Yusuf Arakkal.
The show was spread over two galleries. More than 50 paintings and drawings of The Bull series were displayed by the artist to express the inner angst of the present human mind. Predominantly in his works, The Bull is the metaphorical aesthetics of an anxious mind. Many of the paintings were painted with oil colours, some charcoal on canvas, while others were pencil on paper and mixed media. Beginning a thousands of years ago with Lascaux cavemen’s Minoan art up until now, this enduring image has not lost its luster and expressive powers. In our times Picasso, Sunil Das and many such big names in the art world have also surrendered to this power of the bull.
Sujit Kumar hails from the quaint town of Mandya where cattle are quite evident, thanks to the milk industry there. One can see his upbringing clearly in his portrayal of the bulls. One can see and experience how he has grown up watching bulls in his day to day life thanks to his farming roots. Before he left for the heavens, Yusuf Arakkal had written about Sujit Kumar’s works and he echoed, “Young Sujith Kumar is one who seems to be inspired by the theme of bulls and has done extensive work in this direction. His latest solo show is exclusively dedicated to this theme. It is possible to trace his inspiration to Sunil Das, yet Sujit has found his own direction and method to bring this theme to life in their multifarious incarnations on his canvases, some of them large. It has to be said to his credit that his technique and approach is very individualistic and he has succeeded in many works to bring out an engaging style and direction of his own that promise an emerging artist of substance.” Sujit’s work continues to progress and inspire and as he says it is a continual process of exploration of the beast in colourful ways. What a way to pay respects to Yusuf Arakkal. The exhibition concluded at Chitrakala Parishath last week.
— The writer is an art expert and curator.
