Say It Through Art

Art can help bridge the gap between the able and the disabled, writes MONA MEHTA from an exhibition in the Capital titled ‘Beyond Limits — 2018’ If you were to step into Arpana Art Gallery, New Delhi, today you will be greeted by Dashavatar. A 22X30 inches, water-colour on paper painting by Shreekant Dubey, the Dashavatar captures the divinity of the 10 avatars of Vishnu, from Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Narasimha and Vamana to Parashurama, Rama, Krishna, the Buddha and Kalki avatars. Despite losing his right hand (till the elbow), Dubey, a 49-year-old artist, refused to give up. He trained himself to paint with his left hand. His zeal to get on with life is reflected in his next painting too, an imposing work called Maa Durga showing the Goddess astride a tiger. Feeling suitably blessed, you then move forward into the gallery to allow the creative energy of the works on display wash over you. Arpana Art Gallery is showcasing Beyond Limits — 2018, a national exhibition of artworks made by artists with disabilities. It includes works by 42 artists from all over the country. This annual event is organised by Family of Disabled, a non-profit founded by Rajinder Johar, who became a quadriplegic following a shooting accident — with the objective of building the capacities of persons with disabilities. Johar passed away on February 1, 2017 but his work is being carried forward by his family, including his children, Preeti Johar and Pankaj Johar. On display are 75 works which have been carefully chosen by a jury of senior artists including artist Arpana Caur. The show is an eclectic mix of art works which capture the joys and sorrows, anger and aspirations of artists. Enjoying the Rain, 15X15 inches, oil on canvas work by 78-year-old R Venkatesh, the senior most artist, for instance captures a woman and her two children enjoying the rain. Beyond Limits attempts to connect those with disabilities with those who don’t, via the art medium as it gives plenty of room to let the artist give expression to a gamut of emotions, feelings and insights. Through her painting, B Manasi, a speech and hearing impaired artist from Chennai says those with physical disability need to be integrated with all of society, and what better way to reach out than through art? In her work Home Life 1, acrylic on acrylic sheet, 24X24 inches, she urges everyone to learn sign language, which is quite easy, if only one tries. While many of us would like to reach out and help, there are some who try to take advantage of these artists’ vulnerability. And at such times, their undying spirit comes to their rescue. Case in point being a painting titled He Fooled Me by artist Ankur Singla. What would you do if you were an artist and someone commissions you to paint him and refuses to collect the work? Well, you could ask him repeatedly to pay up, or you could lose heart, wallow in self-pity. But Singla, a 29-year-old hearing impaired artist, decided to do something different. When this happened to him, Singla instead tweaked the work and using pencil and acrylic on paper, turned it into an eye-catching work of art. In his painting He Fooled Me, the artist seems to follow the famous saying ‘if life offers you lemons, turn them into lemonade’ and that too in an aesthetic way. In the centre is the sketch of the man who commissioned Singla to draw him, but refused to collect the work, leave alone pay him for all the effort. On his left sits an elephant to show people who just sit on things, doing nothing productive; a horn blowing right into the ears of this man to no avail; horns growing out of his head with a bird perched on them show the act of fooling; a round yellow lemon for the nose makes him look like a clown, a proverbial fool; a police man offering a flower meaning the tendency of those in authority to only offer empty platitudes; slippers and tomatoes is what they all need to be showered with; and a ladder on the top right to show the need to transcend it all and move on. The message is loud and clear: Art can help you communicate, all right. But it also helps you overcome and move on.