The pandemic may have pushed many to learn something new but artiste Ganapati Hegde used his time to observe and reflect on the lifestyle it created using art. His new collection of paintings called ‘Into The Forest’ is now live on the website of art gallery Kynkyny.
Born in Kumta, Uttara Kannada, Hegde grew up with the Western Ghats around his region. Perhaps that’s where his yearning for expressing the beauty of biodiversity comes from. This has now taken shape in his new art collections.
‘Into The Forest’ is a blend of Hegde’s admiration for biodiversity and his observation during the lockdown in 2020 and 2021. From a frog logging on to online classes to an owl wrapped in a shawl, the meanings of these artworks are voluminous. His works depict a riot of colours and a cacophony of the wilderness. It also reveals how humans can make the environment conducive for different species of animals to live and mate.
In one of his paintings titled ‘Tree of Life from Life in Nature’, he documents how different the life cycles of different animals and birds are interlinked and whose existence is a major source of sustaining biodiversity. The art collection is a combination of canvas painting and sketches. Hegde has predominantly used acrylic and oil colours for canvas painting, while he has used handmade paper, ink pen, pencils for detailing in the sketches.
Into The Forest is a result of my year-long journey and admiration for nature. The very thought of diverse species of flora and fauna inhabiting different terrains is just fascinating. The lockdown gave me time to reflect on many aspects of nature that I wanted to express through my artwork. Some of these works also address the problem of the climate crisis that is impacting the existence of many birds and animals and at the same time is linked to the celebration of the nature around us,” says Hegde.
Interestingly, his artwork titled ‘Pulmonary Wings’ is a symbolic representation of the lungs in a human body through the wings of a dragonfly. “Covid-19 has a direct impact on our lungs. Hence, I wanted to address this fact through art by using the wings of the dragonflies and drawing it upside down, so that it looks like our lungs. This is because the pulmonary veins actually flow through our lungs and I felt it was my responsibility to create awareness around the same during the pandemic through my work,” says Hegde.
His sketch work includes portrait pictures of birds and animals wrapped up in a shawl. This is yet another representation of how shawls are used during special occasions to honour and express gratitude to individuals. “I felt that shawls used during events as a mark of respect to honour people must also hold true for our birds and animals. I wanted to depict this using sketching and adding intricate details to the designs of the shawl,” says Hegde, who has also painted pictures of a frog logging onto the computer as symbolism to online learning.
“Art derives its core value and meaning only when it is in tune with the real world. This is why I ensure my work always holds relevance to contemporary themes that are shaping us today,” adds Hegde. Hegde’s artwork can be viewed and purchased on Kynkyny’s website. It will be available till Dec 31.