In the Shadow of Russet Roofs: Fawad Tamkanat’s journey through time and art

After 20 years, returning to India with In the Shadow of Russet Roofs is, as Fawad Tamkanat says, “artistically and emotionally… very important.” The distance has not been idle; he reminds us, “I paint only one canvas a month due to their large size and the multiple layers of colours involved,” and so each work arrives weighted with time, sedimented with patience. To bring these canvases back to the country that shaped his earliest visual memories is to return with more than paintings — it is to return with decades of looking.

Exploring the artistic journey of Fawad Tamkanat: From Hyderabad to Scandinavia

His cities, with their russet roofs and leaning silhouettes, are less mapped geographies than lived impressions. “My cityscapes blend the essence of old Hyderabad with the landscapes of Scandinavian countries,” he reflects, adding that he carries “strong memories of my childhood.” Rather than depict a single place, he has “developed a personal language inspired by travels across Europe, Scandinavia, and my hometown, Hyderabad,” and, “thousands of drawings later, each canvas is a culmination of that journey.”

Colour, in his hands, behaves like breath. “My colour palette and composition evolve organically — layers of pigments build upon each other to capture the desired mood,” he explains. “Every hue is deliberate… painting is poetry — each brushstroke whispers a tale.”

That lyricism traces back to a childhood steeped in mushairas, evenings shared with poets such as Jan Nissar Akhtar, Majrooh Sultanpuri, Kaifi Azmi, and a young Javed Akhtar. “I have a strong influence of my father’s poetry in my work,” he says; those musical nights taught him “to understand life better.”

Nature, too, enters as solace and counterpoint. “Daily walks immersed me in nature… spending a couple of hours alone in these quiet spaces brings clarity and insight into life.”

The discipline beneath the lyricism comes from rigorous drawing and the guidance of Laxma Goud. Long hours sketching in bus stops and old city lanes, alongside the influence of Pablo Picasso, shaped his etchings and forms. “In short,” he says simply, “I paint the way I live.”

His works now reside in significant museum and private collections, including the National Gallery of Modern Art, yet he remains restless, “I learn everyday something new from life… I have to go long way to understand life.”

March 5-10.

At LTC, Bikaner House New Delhi, India

Email: rupam@newindianexpress.com

X: @rupsjain

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