Still in love with a wily mistress
When you take your first faltering
strides in the world, you keep a tight
hold on the leading fingers of a caring
elder. That’s natural-even in art. One
starts one’s journey in the footsteps of a
senior artist. While still a student at the
Government College of Art, I fell madly
in love with watercolors. But this object
of love was rather tricky, unwilling to
surrender herself to the eager grasp of
my longing arms. Indeed, it is still illusive
like a mirage. Amongst those
who’ve inspired me on this adventurous
chase, one illustrious name stands out.
That’s Phalguni Dasgupta.
The first time I came across a painting
by Phalgunida was on the covers of
Desh. It was routine for the popular
Bengali weekly to have a cover by an
eminent contemporary artist. Imagine
suddenly seeing your beloved comfortably
nestling in the arms of another
in love with her illusive ways! I was
keyed up in precisely the same way.
The challenge of a watercolor lies in the
need to visualize the completed picture
even as you are gazing at the white of
the paper before you. The reason for
this lies in the technique wherein the
subsequent layers overrule what the
initial application evokes. Each new
application adds to the depth of the image
until the final reality stands before
you, bewitching in its seeming simplicity.
But how effortlessly Phalgunida
achieved this!
Today I know that I this medium you
have to take split-second, and irrevocable,
decisions. And Phalgunida was a
master at thinking on his feet. There’s
hardly a painting in whose misdemeanor
you can spot a lapse on the part
of the artist. The ordinariness of the
subject only highlights the extraordinary
handling of the medium. Look
closely, and you can discern the signature
of a seasoned hand behind every
twirl of the brush. For, the application
of color only brings to inevitable resolution
what had been set off by the casual
preliminary strokes. And the interaction
between the tones lends weight to
the composition by effecting an enchanting
play of light and shade.
Calcutta’s kinship with the tradition
that is watercolor continued, uninterrupted
and unadulterated, with the art
of Phalgunida. Quite naturally I struck
an instant accord with his art. I have no
inclination to unduly complicate the
subject or content of my painting. This
perhaps strengthened the empathy
with Phalgunida’s work. Watercolor, I
cannot help repeat, is a deceptively
complex medium. That explain why
many dabble with it for a while but
move on to other modes of art expression
as they realize they are not getting
anywhere with watercolor. To retain the
transparency that is the hallmark of
the medium, even as you build on the
initial layer of color, requires an astute
ability to be flawless from the word ‘go.’
It is impossible to mask a single error in
judgment. It might be painstaking to
bridge the distance between the peel
and the core – but one who has tasted
success is hooked for life. Hardly a surprise,
that Phalgunida is still obsessed
with exploring the mysterious ways of
this wily mistress. Nor has he compromised
with his other love – Nature. Indeed,
he traded the lure of a hip and
happening life in the Capital for the
reflective calm of the lush mountains of
Dehradun. If this is termed an exception,
it helps to remember that Phalgunida
himself is an exception in the art
world today.
Untouched by success, he still sports
the trademark jhola that never seems
incongruous with his baggy trousers
and half shirts. Not for him the pompous
ways that mark out brash ‘achievers.’
The thick lenses fail to dim the
light in his dreamy eyes. Striding away
from the rat race only proved that the
artist in him rules – untainted. Phalgunida
lives to make us view the ordinary
in an extraordinary light.
Sanjay Bhattacharya, Painter