The artist’s first solo show will begin on April 15 at the State Art Gallery in Hyderabad
The artist’s first solo show will begin on April 15 at the State Art Gallery in Hyderabad
The enthusiasm is clearly visible in the voice of artist Bhavani GS. “This is my first solo show in Hyderabad and I haven’t been able to sleep for the past few days due to the excitement of being in the city. I’m glad I was able to come early,” she says ahead of her multidisciplinary exhibition, Fragmented Memories, which opens April 15 at the State Art Gallery. Featuring paintings and video art, the show brings to life the memories of the past. present and vice versa.
Bhavani GS | photo credit: special arrangement
Apart from a few short videos, around 35 works done in acrylic and watercolor promise to give art lovers a unique feeling of being in the wild. The works, done two years ago, were to be displayed at the Jehangir Art Gallery in March 2020, but were postponed due to the outbreak of COVID-19 (she had been on display at the Jehangir Art Gallery two months ago). “Our lives changed in the two years of the pandemic; My jobs changed too,” she shares.
By Talakaveri Bhavani GS | photo credit: special arrangement
bond with kaveri
Hailing from the Kodagu mountain ranges in Karnataka surrounded by coffee plantations, Bhavani’s works represent the deep connection she shares with her native land and the river Kaveri. In fact, the artist has been working on a decade-long project on Kaveri and has shot a few videos on water issues. This is part of a research-based work on his journey, which began in 2012, when he traveled across the river (about 65 km) from Tal Kaveri (in Coorg district where the Kaveri originates) to Poompuhar. Reached the Bay of Bengal and observed the changing coasts. River confluence.
Poompuhar by Bhavani GS | photo credit: special arrangement
His journey began as an investigation into water issues such as pollution, ending to form a bond with the river. “I fell in love with Kaveri and wanted to travel with it. So there will always be a little river in my works.” Memories developed as COVID-19 casts off uncertainties and takes him back to his home town which was a witness to unscientific man-made changes due to disasters.
“Television and the internet kept us connected but our relationship had changed and we were separated from each other. The pandemic taught us the value of many things, especially freedom,” she explains. She linked the images emanating from her childhood memories to her current stay in Bengaluru. When she moved to Bangalore, the issue of migration made her think about her life. The elephant corridor has disappeared as people have moved in. I am in a way responsible for that disappearance. ,
Milestone 3A by Talakaveri Bhavani GS | photo credit: special arrangement
Anxieties also took her back to her childhood, remembering the consolation she had found in the Western Ghats hearing the cries of the fox and the jackal. “The Western Ghats fox is on the verge of extinction,” she says. Various images that touch his mind and soul have found a place on his canvas.
The fragmented memories of Bhavani GS will remain in the State Art Gallery till April 24