City-based artist Koilpichai Prabhakar has turned his terrace into a gallery as an experiment to make art more accessible
City-based artist Koilpichai Prabhakar has turned his terrace into a gallery as an experiment to make art more accessible
Artist Koilpichai Prabhakar went to the terrace of his rented house in Perambur one morning and looked around. It was a typical Chennai fat lady, with views of parched roofs, peeling walls, lines of clothes and potted plants as far as the eye could see. Then he had an idea: Why not turn this warm, cozy space into an art gallery? He did the same for his latest show Mottamadi.
He works with acrylic on canvas. photo credit: special arrangement
Koilpichai studied at the Government College of Fine Arts in Egmore and since 2009 has been showing his work in various galleries of the city besides places like Delhi, Nagpur and Coimbatore. “But the gallery is a place that excludes ordinary people,” feels the 39-year-old, speaking on the phone from Chennai. “When I was a student and first entered an art gallery, I remember being intimidated by it,” he says.
Koilpichai documents his scenario. photo credit: special arrangement
Today, nearly two decades later, he can still remember that feeling. “I have seen many emerging artists disappear for lack of opportunity to show in a gallery,” he says. This is the reason why he decided to host a show on his terrace as an experiment. “It’s the second show on my roof and I honestly don’t know how it will go,” he feels. “But it is an attempt to show fellow actors that they can do the same. They can use their space for a show; Or even a park, for example, with permission from the corporation.”
Koilpichai is from Tirunelveli and most of his work – he does acrylic on canvas apart from ceramic sculptures – depicts his landscapes. “I document the changing phases of my hometown,” he says. For example, the ‘thinnai’ culture, in which people sit on a friend’s porch for long periods of time talking or simply listening. “This is becoming a thing of the past as a lot of people are migrating to the big cities,” explains Koilpichai. “It could be for better work opportunities, or to escape persecution at the hands of influential people in their village.”
Koilpichai Prabhakar | photo credit: special arrangement
He paints these ghost towns and their crumbling tile-roofed houses; Wells which are the lifeline of the farmer; Just-plowed land with plants in front of the sky; Whitewashed house with old grilled gate. “My work is photorealistic,” Koilpichai says. “What distinguishes it from a real image of the landscape is that in the painting, every thorn, every texture on the wall, every leaf has a little bit of mine.”
Mottamadi is on 10th April, 6 PM to 9 PM at No. 35, E-2, Subramaniam Road, Perambur. It is open to all. For more information call on 8608834286.