Nature and its best creation

From the picturesque landscapes of Spiti and the colourful Buddhist prayer flags found in abundance there, to the congested by-lanes of urban dwellings like Delhi, Lucknow and Odisha, artist Srinibas’ canvases highlight vignettes of a particular area, painting a vivid picture of an entire place he wants you to see through his intricate brush strokes.

“This is my fourth show, and for this I wanted to present the emotion of a place. Using elements native to a particular place, I have tried to build an entire city, town or state on my canvas through colours that are soothing yet give out a strong feel of the place,” Srinibas, who prefers using his first name, tells Metrolife.

His works, numbering 24, were recently displayed in the city under a solo exhibition titled ‘Extended Vision’ at the Triveni Kala Sangam.

Interestingly, his canvases portray his subjects from a distance, giving it a zoomed-out effect. Ask him the reason and the artist says, “You get to know a person better if you observe him from a distance. Same is the case with cities. You do not realise its beauty and importance if you stay too close to it. Step back and you will see the difference. That is exactly the kind of view I have tried to give the viewers so that they understand the
subject better.”

The canvases bearing portraits of cities capturing their beauty during different times during a day are interspersed with paintings of human figures. Explaining the idea behind putting them together, Srinibas says that nature and its creations go best together.

“Human beings are nature’s most sensitive and best creation. If you notice, the human figures in my works are surrounded by unconscious shapes — something which is within each one of us,” the artist says pointing to one such work.

“All of us have such shapes within us which are taken from the formative shapes we encounter in our everyday lives. I have strewn the canvas featuring human figures with such shapes so that my audience instantly connects with the works,” he adds.

However, all his exhibited works – mix media on paper and acrylic on canvas – are untitled. Sharing the idea, he smiles and says, “Had I titled my works, the audience would have seen them through my eyes. They would have perhaps seen it the way I would have wanted them to. Keeping them untitled, gives my viewers a space to interpret the work in a way they want to.”