Artist Surya Prakash was brimming with joy as he was surrounded by art connoisseurs and students at the National Gallery of Modern Art in Bengaluru, where his retrospective works are on display.
An elegant lady, who used to be buyer of his work, jostled her way through the crowd and invited him for dinner. He politely turned down the invitation saying he wanted to spend maximum time with the art lovers in the city.
Surya Prakash's retrospective exhibition titled 'The Perceptive Eye, Surya Prakash Retrospective 1960 onwards' which is on view till August 27 throws light on his artistic career that spans across five decades. The exhibtion encompasses 99 works of the celebrated artist, including 55 paintings and some graphics, black and white works and drawings.
Here is a list of five of his personal favourites, from among the ones on display at NGMA.
1.Leaves prettier than flowers
Surya Prakash jokes that he has made a lot of money out of leaves.
This work which was the second or third in a series that went on for about 14 years was inspired by a small 4-feet pond at his home. '' The dots in this work represent water,'' he explained.
2. Fall colours
One of Surya Prakash's most recent works, this was inspired by the fall season.
''Last year, I went to the US to experience fall colours. I hired a car and travelled a lot. This is one of the results of that,'' smiled Surya Prakash.
The artist had fun working on this piece. ''It is not as complicated as it looks. I create layers on top of each layer and then the mountains, greenery, clouds and the blue sky slowly appear.''
3. Mindblowing landscape
It took Surya Prakash about three months to complete the acrylic work. ''I love it for its sheer size and also for the amount of work that has gone into it,'' said the 77-year-old artist.
Did you have this entire picture in your mind as you started working on it? I ask. '' No. It develops slowly as you work. I keep on working and at one point I'm able to decide what else can be done,'' he said. The landscape is a delightful combination of fantasy and reality
4.Water magic
Surya Prakash loves this picture because it's a bit dramatic. '' It is almost black and white. To break the monotony, I've introduced a few browns here and there. The central element is very important. It reflects the sky on the surface of the water,'' he said.
5. The Venice series
Travel has been a great source of inspration for Surya Prakash. He was so fascinated by the water streets in Venice that he did a whole series based on them. ''I like all of them. These wall structures- brownish and smoky-and the water lanes where boats are parked like cars in a narrow street in Mumbai are really interesting,'' said Surya Prakash.
