Eclectic mix of old & new

Art -CHANDAN SARMAH

Visitors at the exhibition in Guwahati. Picture by Eastern Projections An exhibition at the State Art Gallery in Rabindra Bhawan struck an instant chord with art lovers. The show, held from March 23 to 29, was preceded by a state-level competition on sculpture making, painting and graphics, in which over 60 artists participated. The events were organised by the state cultural affairs directorate on the occasion of the birth centenary of Bishnu Prasad Rabha. The exhibits comprised a mix of old and new creations. Of the new paintings, those of Rabiram Brahma, Dadul Chaliha and Minakshi Bargohain stood out. Brahma’s Third Way, in burn plank medium on wood, presents an impression of a pair of male-female figures embracing on a bed-like structure with its legs upward. The presence of two birds, one flying away and the other looking at them from atop a bed-leg, brings another dimension to the composition. Chaliha’s Tandoori…? In Metro, a sensitive creation in acrylic on canvas, depicts the ruthlessness and anguish of life in a metro through a heartlike object amidst a heavy layer of smoke. The artist’s skills are apparent in variations of grey and black in the composition. Bargohain’s Extend to Mighty, also in acrylic on canvas, is a complex composition that depicts the cycle of regeneration. With subtle use of blue, deep red and white, the composition was truly impressive. Two other exhibits by Subhakar Laskar and Abanta Bora depicted their expertise in chiaroscuro. Ratul Chandra Gogoi’s sculpture, The Holy Flower, in wood and bronze, and Bijoy Deuri’s graphic, Who Am I, in lithograph were added assets to the show. While Gogoi’s work is a subtle criticism of religious fundamentalism, Deuri’s graphic projects a sign of identity crisis in modern man.