It has been a good journey with art for Lakshmi Reddy. After retiring as Professor in the Department of Fashion and Lifestyle Accessory Design at the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Hyderabad in November 2021, Lakshmi is exhibiting her work in a show titled Stillness in the Soul – A Transition at Iconart Gallery Huh. His show features paintings, drawings and sculptures, with a mix of old and new works. Avni (Avni Rao Gandra, Founder, Iconart Gallery) has wanted a show from me since the gallery reopened recently. When someone is so encouraging, I thought ‘why not’ and challenged myself,” she shares. Explaining the title of her show, she says, “Painting, or any art form, is a tranquilizer. is it, isn’t it?”
The show marks the transformation of Lakshmi as an artiste. Since her first show in Hyderabad in 1993, Lakshmi has exhibited her works in Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai. Before she got busy with her academic career at NIFT. His show at the IconArt Gallery comes after a hiatus of 23 years!
Lakshmi Reddy | photo credit: special arrangement
During the pandemic, Cubism inspired her to reflect on the stationary objects around her at home. Viewing objects from multiple directions, observing elements and superimposing them to form fine compositions summarizes the Cubist concept, with flatness, geometric reduction and multiplicity of perspectives as fundamentals. “It made me reflect on how our layered perceptions about a particular situation or experience differ, but in a way, correspond to the concept of Cubism. While our perception is about emotions, the latter is materialistic. That is, dealing with things based on objects.”
His 32 works, done over the past four years, are based on still lifes and the pottery and vases from the Egyptian, Greek, Oriental and Islamic civilizations that inspired him. Recalling her visits to international museums, she says, “Greek, Egyptian, Chinese and Islamic pottery has the most beautiful forms; Each one has a different contour and the space in it is used for one or the other purpose – either for holding flowers, as a pot, for washing hands or as a hookah. These forms inspired me to express myself.”
From acrylic paintings and charcoal drawings on canvas to palette knife paintings and relief sculptures, Lakshmi experimented with a variety of mediums over the years. In 2021, when she developed an allergy while working with charcoal, she changed the medium to see how her drawing would take shape when translated into relief. In the process, he created two-dimensional carvings in Siporex murals (on stone) and then 3D forms in metal.
Still Life on Canvas by Lakshmi Reddy | photo credit: special arrangement
The pandemic was a time to review the fundamentals and explore new avenues. Lakshmi, who uses different methods of composition, says, “The element of the line is primary for an artist. This can be done with a palette knife, brush or pen on the charcoal. We need to see how one deals with it to express in different mediums. ,
At that time Lakshmi used to paint a canvas every three days. Those works create a sense of peace and connect with his soul. Grateful to her parents and teachers for being where she is today, she says, “One tends to introspect analytically, keeping things in perspective. This awareness has a calming effect. I think COVID has done this to all of us; It taught us to accept our surroundings and move forward, which is the essence of life.”
Laxmi says, “Sometimes one doesn’t get the time to paint, but that is okay; The urge to paint still remains; The desire to express is what matters to an artist.”