Floral theme blossoms at Gallery Time and Space

Flowers have the power to make you smile wherever you see them — whether straggling upwards on the sidewalk or sitting pretty in a well-arranged vase or dotting a well-kept lawn. The Earth Laughs in Flowers, an ongoing exhibition at Gallery Time and Space, showcases the beauty of flowers in different settings as seen by different artists.

The show curated by Renu George and her team, displays the works of six artists working with varied media, each with a style solely their own. As many as 60 canvases featuring the works of Aleksandr Ibragimov, Asit Poddar, Kapila Nahender, Rekha Rao, Shan Re and Sultana Hasan, bring out the essence of floral beauty. Most of these artists are based out of the Garden City with the exception of Asit from Kolkata and Aleksandr, who lives in London but visits Bengaluru regularly.

Works such as Yellow Tabebuia, Jacaranda and Bougainvillea by Kapila Nahender depict the vibrancy of these blooms in bold hues and firm brushstrokes, while Asit Poddar’s soft watercoloursimpart a dreamy, rainy day feel to his canvases. There is a different aspect to Shan Re’s presentation of flowers — both in form and style — with her characteristic sharp delineation of texture and hues.

In her concept note for the show, Rehka Rao describes herself as a colourist, who speaks through the language of colours. “Today, in a strife torn world, flowers have the enduring power to bring joy and solace.” With vivid colours, Rekha presents flowers not as we see them but perhaps as we would remember the emotions they evoke in us — nostalgia, gladness, melancholia, success.

Sultana Hasan says flowers have always been a part of her work but the series currently on display was created over the past two years. “I would sketch during my walks and flesh them out once I returned to my studio. Flowers are something you can’t help being attracted to — they inspire not only with their colours, vitality and beauty, but also with their impermanence,” she says. “There’s that feeling of flitting time, and a little bit of melancholia.”

There is more to flowers than just aesthetics, says Sultana, adding, “It’s about the sensation of beauty; it is not just bursts of colour, but also lines and curves, there’s a sense of construction there. There’s nothing static about flowers, there’s always a sense of movement and life,” says the artist, who works with mixed media. 

Art by Sultana Hasan
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Sultana feels post the pandemic, there has been a return to nature. “Nature’s beauty is there to help us, to preserve us, but at the same time, we don’t really care for such things,” she says, adding these were the thoughts that sprang up during the lockdown and inspired her current series on flora. “Flowers are symbolic of a sense of life and something eternal, and are at the same time fragile. You can’t be indifferent to them,” she says.

For Aleksandr Ibragimov, flowers are a pure delight. “Flowers bring me such joy, I am able to capture them immediately — it does not take me a long time to paint them. I also believe I am more creative when it come to flowers,” says Aleksandr. The artist, who is currently in Bengaluru, adds that he believes most budding artists discover their style when reproducing simple elements such as flowers that also lend themselves to multiple representations.

His style closely resembles that of Impressionist masters and when asked about that, Aleksandr says this year marks the 150th anniversary of the Impressionist movement. The technique was initially mocked by art critics of the time for being crude and not serious enough, and he says his work is a homage to that period in art history.

Aleksandr believes art education is important for an artist, “to understand composition, combination, colour, shadow and perspective, especially if one is to derive satisfaction of creating from raw emotion.” His preferred medium is oil as he feels he is better able to replicate the hues in his mind onto the canvas when compared to acrylics or watercolours.

Gallery Time and Space will donate 10% of the proceeds from the sales of this exhibition to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency towards the Gaza Emergency Appeal. 

The Earth Laughs in Flowers will be on at Gallery Time and Space till November 2, 2024.

Art by Rekha Rao
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement