Vaman Pai’s solo show captures the rain in all its glory

“My hometown is famous for its beaches, temples and the lush greenery during monsoons. Growing up in the midst of all this beauty inspired me to become an artist,” says Vaman Pai, who hails from Udupi in Mangalore.

The artist, whose fourth solo show is currently underway in the city, says the exhibition titled Nature Scapes is his monsoon series in abstract mode. “I stay in Manipal and can see the changes in the landscape — before, after and during the rain. My home is by the seashore and at night one can hear the waves as they rise and fall. I keep all these sights and sounds in my mind and pour them into my paintings.”

The 20-odd canvases on display have been created using acrylic, oil and watercolours on canvas. Though untitled, they are numbered and follow a Nature Scapes’ sequence. When Mother Nature is your inspiration, there is never a fear of running dry and Vaman is no exception.

Artist Vaman Pai
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

“I have a friend who lives behind the Udupi railway station and I would spend a lot of time there, as well as at Malpe Beach, Manipal’s End Point Park (a cliff overlooking the Swarna River) and the delta where the river meets the sea.”

“I bring all of that into my abstractions,” he says.

The life of an artist is not always easy and Vaman says it was his high school art teacher who first recognised his raw talent and persuaded his mother to consider an artistic vocation for her child.

“Despite her reluctance, my mother introduced me to artist GS Shenoy whom she knew, and in 1991, he began mentoring me on aluminium embossing and of course, the nuances of painting. He was my first art teacher and when he passed away in 1994, I continued to learn under his son Gurudas Shenoy.”

A work from Vaman Pai’s monsoon series  
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Providence put Vaman in the path of some of the best names in the business. “While I was at the Artisans Training Centre in Bidadi where I had enrolled to study metal work and embossing, my art teacher, A Raja, was my guide. Later, I was fortunate to work with the legendary MF Husain at Husain Sankalana in Bengaluru from 1995,” he says, adding their association over the next 15 years, helped him grow as an artist and come into his own.

Nature Scapes, a solo show by Vaman Pai, is on at the MKF Museum of Art till October 19, 2025