BHARATI PAWASKAR
Trees mesmerise her. She identifies faces in each one of them. For her, trees are like human beings, with feelings and emotions. Full of vibrations, they breathe and speak of life on earth. And self taught artist Nandini Raikar is all set to share the lessons that she has learnt through her new Tree series consisting of drawings and paintings which will be exhibited at Achies Art Gallery from April 12 onwards.
Achies Art Gallery sits within a heritage home, a Portuguese villa amidst Goa’s former capital, Chandrapur (today’s Chandor) - engulfed in quietness and tranquility.
Curated by Swetlana Cardoso, an art dealer of Indian modern and contemporary art - Nandini’s art show is the first in a series of such art events that will commence on a Thursday and go on for a month or more, at this gallery.
“Different kinds of art events will be held with different artists involved,” shares Swetlana. “Personally I have liked Nandini’s nature of work and proposed to promote her. This started off initially when I held a few group exhibitions which featured her, with one of Goa’s senior artist, Mohan Naik’s help at Achies Art Gallery, back in 2016. From then on, I have been following her work which gets more creative every time. Her body of work is also very striking and her stories tell much more than what can be seen on her canvas,” states Swetlana.
What inspires Nandini is the pleasing beauty of nature. “I am trying to convey messages that when we connect with nature, we grow more creative and this brings peace and joy,” she points out. She observes that trees like banyan offer us so many lessons to learn. “The entangled roots and branches symbolize strength and unity. It continuously shoots out new roots from here and there. These roots are inspirations for us to grow individually like them in life but still be rooted to the spot to support our family,” she states. In some of her paintings, a serene woman is entangled with family attachments, entwined with duties and responsibilities, but she still keeps hope in her passion and seeks to grow even more creative.
Nandini’s own journey in the world of colours, ideas and imaginations is not different. She had no formal training in art. But being wooed into the world of art, through her passion for colours, canvas, brush and ideas and ideologies, Nandini’s identification as an artist was a gradual process. It was the recognition of her talent by fellow artists that encouraged her to continue with commitment.
“Having no proper guidance, neither support to go through education in fine arts, I pursued my passion for art as a hobby and kept experimenting untiringly,” she admits. “Thankfully, the divine grace of God touched my life and I was blessed forever. Life took a U turn. I recall, it was a contest where I was awarded for my creative excellence at National level. It was a turning point that initiated my entry and indulgence in the world of art. Ultimately I took it up as a profession.”
The artist is also inspired by the work of others. She states, “If not for the mentors and other works of great artists, I would not have been what I am today.” Her ideas derive from the colours, her pencils and brushes are tools of expressions, and canvas is the image of the vision and dreams captured in her mind. And the inspiration is the same as the spiritual and physical satisfaction that one receives from the exhibit of any work of art.
“There are moments that drive us through whether or not our hard work receives reward of labour, but I must admit that it is only when the fellow artists recognise our work, that an artist gets true joy,” she says.
She finds that her skills in creativity, the expressions of her inner emotions, her thoughts about the wellbeing of the society, her humanitarian flaws and failures and the social ethics and morals of the society in which she lives get sharpened, as she goes on placing these observations on canvas. “Now that I’m blessed with this knowledge and talent, I feel privileged and honoured to be in this sacred field of art,” concludes the artist who has participated in several group exhibitions in Goa and abroad.
(Curated by Swetlana Cardoso as part of the Art Thursday event, Nandini Raikar’s ‘Tree Series’ will be on display from April 12 to May 31, 11 am to 7 pm at Achies Art Gallery, Chandor)
