Rama Ratan, who works as a chauffeur by the day, has his painting on display at recent exhibition in the capital.
Rama Ratan, who works as a chauffeur by the day, has his painting on display at recent exhibition in the capital.
His evocative brush strokes captures rural themes. In the second studio show organised by Kavita Chopra Dikshit, his folk art is on display alongside oil paintings by Ms Dikshit and photographs by Aryaman Dixit.
Mr Ratan came to Delhi when he was barely eight. He began his artistic journey after the family he stayed with noticed his penchant for paint brush. Since then, he has been creating artworks under the guidance of Ms Dikshit, a Delhi-based artist.
“I am an unlettered person, but when I came across colours and a paint brush, I felt the need to express myself,” he said. With simple lines and vibrant colours, the artist captures rural themes – lush green fields, trees and birds. His artwork titled ‘Untitled’ draw memories of the village of his childhood. Talking about the exhibition and the concept behind, Ms Dikshit told ANI: “I feel such studio shows are very intimate and informal way of looking at art rather than a very formal situation of an art gallery. People tend to spend a lot of time here, look at paintings, pictures, hanging around, chatting with the artist, so that itself is a very new concept.”
Ms Dikshit, who has photographed many luminaries, including Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Kuldip Nayyar, Shovana Narayan among others, finds comfort in the “ordinary” while painting.
Her artworks at the show, which she says, are a work in progress, include paintings from two series of artworks: O My God which has paintings of different religious deities and, Abstracts that capture the essence of an ordinary way of life.
The acrylic series titled Mohalla comprises of compositions inspired from the mundane lives lived in narrow Indian streets.
“Mohallas in India are cramped urban spaces which enclose in themselves a very colourful life. There is hustle bustle of crowded markets, different sounds which attract me. So, the feeling that I get at the end of it finds space on the canvass,” says Ms Dikshit.
