ART - Deccan Herald

ART =

NIRALI LAL

Sculptures
with an = edge
Adolescent yet=20 spiritual, fresh, a raw surface bristling with axe marks, a = ruthless yet=20 refreshing quality--these are the words that come to mind when one = looks=20 at the wooden sculptures by Ravi Shah.

The young artist who = graduated recently from the College of Fine Arts, Chitrakala = Parishath,=20 Bangalore has exhibited 12 sculptures, life-size wooden ones = accompanied=20 by smaller stone works, at Gallery Sumukha in a show titled 'Wood = and=20 Blues' . The show will be on till August, 21, 2004.

The = figurative=20 sculptures have an air of spirituality and the elements necessary = to make=20 them complete works of art but even then props like mud, charcoal = and a=20 mattress are placed to define the works further, interpreting the = works as=20 installations. The innocent looking wooden figures, rendered with = fervour=20 have the visible traces of the artist's axe. These sculptures = portray deep=20 sensitivity and intensity, influenced by the unique and painful=20 experiences encountered by him. But the sand, charcoal droplets in = the=20 display, work as unnecessary accessories.
The wooden figures = that are=20 extremely individualistic are wholesome by themselves and with an=20 inherent, heartfelt awkwardness; Ravi's art-works balance well = with other=20 meditative activities that are central to his life.

With = natural=20 discomfort, the exhibits bring people together. The solitary = wooden forms,=20 standing or lying down, are all about communication and = interaction with=20 people. His models are people he knows and there is a subjectivity = in the=20 work that is hard to escape.

The intertwining of artist = and model=20 is so evident in many works, which consequently become an = extension of the=20 artist himself.
Ravi's faces have a sought of verve in them.=20
Either in contemplation or deeply engrossed, these still = figures are=20 full of life with questioning, blank expressions.

These=20 'down-to-earth' sculptures possess an essentialism of character, = though=20 not idealistic, placing them in exclusive realm altogether. =

The=20 show also has his drawings as exhibits. Though the stringing up of = his=20 realistic/creative life-study drawings done in charcoal and his = stressing=20 on the 'blues' music connotation, work as an added indulgence; = they could=20 also engage the viewer in a discussion, involving the process of = an artist=20 at work.
Ravi's wooden forms valorizes an awkward = incompleteness, a=20 condition of silence=85or contemplation, a sought of contraction = in=20 attitude. But in process, paradoxically, Ravi Shah and his figures = chant=20 in a direction that echo a far-reaching=20 consequence.