Held from October 25 to 27, the event will be the first art show in the city since the outbreak of the pandemic.
The art festival, to be held in Visakhapatnam from October 25 to 27, will showcase works of around 90 artists from across Andhra Pradesh, from landscapes, paintings and the essence of divinity to the essence of solitude. The site of Hawa Mahal overlooking the Bay of Bengal, this will be the first art show since the pandemic began.
Ravi Kattakuri, the show’s artist and curator, says, “The show aims to revive the fine arts market by providing a platform to once again celebrate art in the physical realm.” “Through the pandemic, many artists discovered the digital medium of showcasing their works and showed the world that art can stand up to adversity. But the engagement and engagement between art connoisseurs and artists was largely missing. This is something that the physical arts promote,” says Ravi.
The four-day art festival is being supported by Mayank Kumari of Hawa Mahal. It will feature some prominent artists like G Ravinder Reddy, V Ramesh and Bothasa Venkat as well as 27 fine arts students.
Artist Naresh Mahanta, known for his portraiture, has for the first time experimented with a large series on landscape works in the watercolor medium. The show will feature one of his works titled Seascape depicting the sunset view of RK Beach. “During the pandemic, I can find the space and time to reflect on the mediums and topics I have long wanted to explore. In my recent works, I have tried to capture the beauty of Visakhapatnam through my watercolor works,” says the artist who is working on a big series on the landscape for a solo show.
Apart from Visakhapatnam, the art show will also showcase sculptures, graphics works and photographs by artists from Vijayawada, Cuddapah.
While the pandemic was hard on the artists, it was also rampant through the works. “The pandemic, I think, has had a lingering effect and is manifested in a darker choice of palette in my works. I found myself gravitating towards shades of gray. Guided by this unattainable affinity, I found suitable subject matter which involved portraiture. The colors of our Indian skin,” says artist Anita Rao, who is pursuing her bachelor’s in fine arts from Andhra University. The exhibition features Anita’s inclusions of A3-sized clay paintings, meant to delight onlookers—a joyful farmer (another deliberate choice of subject) and a young boy who has just emerged from a plunge.
Artist Sharmla Karri will showcase her work in the show titled ‘Divyata’ – a reflection of the forest goddess Aranyani Devi. “A few years ago, when I read about ‘Aranyani Devi’, a forgotten goddess, I wanted to put it on canvas. One of the most descriptive hymns in the Rigveda is dedicated to her, where she is described as beautiful, shy and Deserved as fond of calm glades, protector of forests and everything that lives within it,” says Sharmala. Impressed by the beauty, the artist created a series of paintings on the theme. “It is an ongoing series Which I keep working on,” she says.
Sharmla feels that the challenges of the pandemic have provided valuable lessons. “One thing I realized while adjusting to the new normal was that even with a limited palette, there was so much to explore. Before that, it would never have occurred to me that I would paint over cracked cement tile or rolling I can. Pin for that matter. And the best part is hearing so many heartwarming stories like artists displaying their artworks on windows facing the streets in New York,” she says.
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