I love sketching. Scratch that; I pull out my plus size notebook whenever I can and try to trace a landscape or draw a portrait. I don't claim they are perfect; I have spent countless hours watching tutorial videos to get the technique right. Art is hard. I can only imagine the effort it took for the sculptors of our medieval temples to get the figurines spot on. The same sculptures that I gaze at and hours go by. I fear that such perfection is no longer possible.
All kids love to doodle, paint, mould or even make a mess for the sake of it! It is a natural human instinct. Now, with all of us hooked to our phones, slaves to technology, we have no patience for stuff which takes time. We are used to things happening in the blink of an eye. So things like painting, sculpting, weaving etc are taking a backseat. It has taken me years of practice to be able to sketch a human face which wouldn't be laughed at!
I visited Hampi recently, you know the living museum with its stone temples of breathtaking architecture. Admiring the pillars inlaid with intricate carvings, each depicting scenes from the Ramayana, my mind went back a few centuries. I could almost see the gifted artists chipping away at the stone, not rushing, painstakingly bringing them to life. An achievement which stands even today, so that we can admire what they created. I feel inspired when I look at the temples of Hampi, or when I admire the bold colors of a landscape painting hung on a wall and forgotten. Isn't it incredible how several generations of artists devoted their lives so that they could bring to life the caves of Ajanta or the temples of Somnath?
I wonder in the middle of a difficult art project, what is the point of it all? Is it even worth it? Who will bother with painting and pottery in the age of Netflix and Snapchat?
Then I remember the glorious view of the sun setting into the Tungabhadra river, behind the immortal temples of Hampi, and I get back to work.
Image credit temple-ruins-at-hampi-india-dominic-piperata.jpg (900×675) (fineartamerica.com)
True words!!! Very well written piece. Patience is a virtue which is rare..very few people recognize it. Art is an important aspect of life,it will go through metamorphosis and will keep making its presence felt in our lives, irrespective of the times we live in.
ReplyDelete