Inspired by the dreamy landscape of Badami, Manjunath Wali unveils his series, ‘Allure of the Land’

The serene grandeur of the landscape of Badami, Karnataka, has been a muse for poets and artists for years. Be it legendaries like artist J M S Mani, in his seminal Badami Series, or contemporaries like artist Manjunath Wali in his latest series, Allure of the Land, in show at MKF Museum of Art.

“I'm inspired by many artists, but mainly three for this particular series: J M S Mani, G S Shenoy and Samir Mondal,” tells Manjuanth. Having lived and studied in the region for three years, the artist found his inspiration in the landscape and monuments of the Chalukya empire at Badami (erstwhile Vatapi) to create 22 paintings. Each of these features different wash methods with water colour on Arches. However, what really surprises you is the colour palettes used in the series.

A glimpse of any monument or rock formation in Badami would predominantly evoke warmer tones. Yet, Manjunath, who is known for his earlier series of Hampi that featured a warm palette in earth tones, has created Allure of the Land as a paradigm shift to a cool palette.

The limited yet effective colour palette includes blues like cobalt and ultramarine (for the water and mountain), yellows and oranges (for the sky), and dark greys and blacks (for the mountain). The colours are somewhat muted, creating a sense of atmospheric perspective and perhaps hinting at a diffused light, possibly of early morning or evening.

The subject of most of the paintings depicts a landscape with a prominent dark mountain (or large rock formation) overlooking a body of water with several small boats. The sky always feels dramatic, whether due to the presence of swirling clouds suggesting an impending storm or in a mellow burst of orange suggesting a sunset. The dramatic contrast between the darker central focus (such as a mountain) and the lighter surroundings creates a strong sense of depth and drama. On the other hand, a key tool used to create a sense of dynamism, which impressed us as a standout, was that the compositions were largely based on diagonals – a sloping shoreline, angled clouds, or implied lines of the boat sails.

Unable to choose one as our best pick, we asked Manjunath about his personal favourites. He says, “ I would start with the Agasthya Lake. The lake has been the centre of the monolith caves that were carved leading to the Bhootnath temple. This structure had created a natural dam without additional construction. This work expresses the aspect of simplicity in the design. Then there is also Mena Basti. A part of Mena Basti shown in my work was composed keeping in mind the smooth finish of the sculptures in those caves carved out of very hard rocks, which can be found only in Badami.

Before calling curtains on the conversation, we wondered what was next for the artist. “I want to experiment more with water colour and use the medium in ways that are different from what I've used so far. It's still a process,” says Manjunath, leaving us pleasantly anticipating the surprise of his next successful experimentation with water colour.

Entry free. Till February 16, 11 am onwards. At MKF Museum of Art, Lavelle Road.