Lost In The Green Countryside

Sunday, October 18, 1992

Very many factors have gone into making the young artist feel so strongly about nature. In nature he is as much attracted to the awe it evokes as to the peace it provides. A raging thunderstorm is as attractive as the quiet that follows. And this is what is effectively conveyed here in acrylics on canvas and oil sheets.

An exhibition of painting by Animesh Roy was recently put at the Capital’s MEC gallery. Called On the Roads it consisted of some 40 odd works which the artist accomplished in the last three years while travelling through countryside. Roy is a painter in mind and a poet at heart. Lot many of his works here are influenced in theme and titles by poetry in English, though not all flow as smooth.

Autumnal Leaves I is a fine work. Hare nature is in fury. The raging storm is uprooting the smaller of the trees while the larger ones are just about able to withstand the impact. This is brought about by casual and thick strokes of dark brown, yellow and green. In contrast is another beautiful work Lost in the Green I wherein nature has laid out a carpet of green all over, with a few small white flowers twinkling in between.

These small white flowers are a favourite of Roy’s and he has put these to good use, particularly in Left Blooming Alone series and In Between. Occasionally the white flowers are replaced by orange ones, to an equal delight.

The Pathless Woods is the heart of a jungle. Blue sky yonder, with shrubs to the front and a few trees being gently ruffled by the blowing wind. Except for the irritant of a few red spots the picture captures the essence of the wild wood. The shades of green and brown are very effectively used. Red interferes even in an otherwise good work called The Brook II and to a great extent ruins the uninspiring Coconut Trees.

Lane I and II are deviations from the rest of the works here but are interesting compositions. The impression is that of an uphill countryside, quite desolate. The focus on the lane (I) is brought out by two figures walking on it and what seem to be deserted houses alongside. There is an eerie quiet about the place brought out by contrasting colours and lengthening shadows.

Roy’s works are marked by a definite spontaneity; an impulsiveness, which probably explains his choice of medium — acrylic. He finds oil tedious. Besides he’s essentially an outdoor artist — most at home when out of home. With acrylic you just ‘dip in and splash’, he says. This was his first solo show and one looks forward to more.

Shekhar Mehra
Herald New Delhi