Art @ Urban Solace — The Gallery for Creative Visual Self Expression is hosting an exhibition featuring the surrealist works of Kailash Mani and the landscape paintings of Yasmine Claire. Curious about the artists and the inspiration behind coming together for this exhibition from their very contrasting genres or areas of interest, we sat down for a conversation. Here’s what we gathered…
Surrealism sync
An English teacher by day and artist by night, Kailash Mani has exhibited his works all over the country and even in Thailand. But this is the first time he is showcasing them in Bengaluru. The artist describes his personal style as, “surrealistic, incorporating elements of expressionism, realism and pop art, though I feel the meanings are accessible.” Everyday objects and situations, both realistic and fantastical, are what inspire him. For this exhibition, though, Kailash has chosen to focus more on his works of functional art.
“Art’s meaning and values are clearly changing, especially due to AI tools and social media. Instead of lamenting this, I chose to adapt by creating functional art. I hope these pieces can help bring more beauty and imagination into everyday life, while also being affordable. Viewers also have a choice in selecting works and how they would like to utilise them; I appreciate this component of inviting the viewer into a secondary process of creation,” says the artist.
In terms of the genre, most of his works showcased at this exhibit will be surrealist. Kailash first experimented with this style of surrealism, especially in its portrayal of bizarre situations, in his early adulthood but for many years after that, he solely pursued portraitures. “In my 2014 exhibition in Chiang Mai, Thailand, I displayed portraits I had made over about five years, mostly of fictional subjects I created. Moving to India in 2018 was inspiring to me in so many ways and I found myself experimenting with surrealism again, but incorporating much more vibrancy of colour and many more nuances in terms of the meaning behind each work,” he says.
To that effect, in most of his chalk-pastel and charcoal illustrations featured at the exhibition, he juxtaposed colours and their meanings. For example, he has chosen bright colours in a piece titled Sad Tomato, though the subject matter is solemn. This attempts to create a dissonance, encouraging the viewer to delve deeper into the work.
Return to Gaia
Yasmin Claire, on the other hand, is not an artist by formal training. She grew up surrounded by art and has always dreamed of being able to paint one day. During the COVID-19 lockdowns, this dream finally turned into reality. She began to use any material or colours she could get her hand on and allowed her imagination to run wild. This, in turn, gave her a sense of calm in the midst of chaos and she made sure to work on one piece every day.
While Kailash’s work is surrealist, Yasmin creates landscapes of forests she wishes, “replace every bit of space on our planet.” Thus, it would not be a surprise that the works to be featured at the exhibition seem to come out of a longing for a return to Gaia — a cry to acknowledge the need for real, foliage-filled green spaces. On being asked about her works at the exhibition, the artist says, “A Forest Deity is close to me because I hope for all forests to be protected. This ambiguous spirit is like an aranyani, always guarding our forests. Chorao Mangroves is my attempt to capture the stunning Mangroves that make up Chorao island, Goa. Circe’s Island is me honouring the much-maligned witch Circe from the epic Odyssey.
Another theme that Yasmin explores through her works is an interpretation of characters from myths, especially those who only exist to move the protagonist ahead. “I identify and empathise with mythical characters who paid heavy prices for being who they were. One piece, though not in the exhibition, is the story of the death of Orpheus, a character whom I have mixed sympathies for,” she notes.
Her love for natural landscapes makes her explore blue and green as the most used colours in her palette. However, what piqued our interest the most was the response we got when we asked her about the materials she uses for painting. “Tea bags, coffee, salt, acrylics, cardboard, canvas, watercolours, and — last but not the least — cat and dog fur, because my furry family is also a collaborator,” she smiled, concluding the conversation.
Entry free. Till October 22. At Ulsoor.
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