Painting
Misery
C K Purandare expresses his
thoughts on unpleasant issues of the society
through his paintings.
by
Omkar Sapre
ARTIST C K Purandare, a resident
of Shaniwar Peth [sic], now based in Britain
will be showcasing his unique perception
of art at Sudarshan Art Gallery till August
5. His paintings are based on subjects perceived
as ‘unpleasant’.
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‘corporeal
manipulation’ by C K Purandare
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A
layman may not understand the paintings. To make
it simple, Purandare has published a booklet
explaining each of the paintings.
Purandare says, ‘I don’t want to be called
an artist because my paintings are far apart from
the commonly perceived aesthetics of art. I am a
communicator and I have chosen this medium because
for me, verbal language as a means of communication
has reached a dead end. I aim to overcome these limitations
of verbal language through my paintings.’
His
paintings mainly depict social and political
misery. He continues,‘ I don’t doubt
the efficacy of painting as a means of communication
nor am I bothered about the value of it. There
are a lot of social issues that are overlooked
by the society. I want to communicate my views
on issues like Nandigram, Godhra, AIDS, media
onslaught, complications of human relationships,
man-made poverty, inequality, violence killing
thousands of people all over the world, people
starving to death, killing other people, trudging
miles everyday the whole life for drinking water
and many such things.’
Purandare
is not even formally trained as an artist. His
tryst with the paintbrush took shape in November
2001, after he shifted to Britain. A qualified
metallurgical engineer from the College of Engineering,
Pune, Purandare post graduated in Sociology from
the Pune University some years later. ‘After
post graduation, I was associated with social
research projects where I interacted with Naxalites,
rural female labourers below poverty line, sunset
industries, separatists in Assam and Manipur…Whatever
is written in the sociology books and journals
is meant for those few who are conversant with
the terminology. For the common man, it just
does not make sense.’
The
paintings definitely bear a poignant message
but would that provoke the immature insensitivity
of the society. To this Purandare replies, ‘I
know the society will never change but it does
not stop me from expressing myself. When I see
people coming here, after seeing the paintings
they get disturbed. My purpose is fulfilled because
my paintings make people pause and think’,
he concludes.
[Mid-day,
Metro-Pune edition August 3-9, 2007]
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