Forms of transience

'I want my paintings to be thought-provoking, not pretty. In an era of technology, the meaning of beauty is changing ... I see beauty in a negative perspective,' says Amitabh Sengupta. ANJALI SIRCAR profiles the artist.

ASENIOR painter from Calcutta, Amitabh Sengupta, returns to the city with new paintings on display at "Artworld". These works have overlapping images of his earlier series - "Interiors and Exteriors", "Walls" and "Surface of Time". There is no specific story, no specific man but quite a number of the canvases and watercolours, which when seen together, point towards a theme - human life. The symbols on the pictures never seem to leave the level of man's sensate existence. Undefined forms, forms that snarl in reality tell about the life of man in transience. Or whatever the viewer's eye sees in them. He has not, therefore, titled these works.

Sengupta has had a distinguished career in art. He took his degree from the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Calcutta, went to Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux in Paris on a French Government scholarship and subsequently, went to study at the State University of New York under a UNESCO Fellowship. Between 1977 and 1987, he worked as head of the faculty of visual arts in two Nigerian universities and also studied at the State University of Buffalo, U.S.. In his paintings one can see the reflection of western sophistication that blends with strong, indigenous impulses.

A cerebral painter who is not swayed by what he sees on the surface, there is a deliberate attempt on his part at disturbing the superficial identity of objects till he accepts absurdity as real and surprise as an essential factor. He believes that meaning is a happening caused by much deeper and more intense actions begun in an infinite zone - beyond his control.

The artist wants to depict the inherent contradictions in today's world. Terms such as globalisation and liberalisation are creating various cultural identities like masks and we are changing these masks at our convenience. The same man who is very traditional, suddenly becomes modern. This is a reflection on society.

Elaborating on this theme, he says: "In our life, which is nothing great, no true change is happening. There are various elements coming in the form of change but their rhythms and purposes are not clear to many people. For example, you may find people whose daily routine has not changed for 30 or 40 years - in fact they have become poorer - but they see elegant houses coming up, posh cars coming in and out and shops glittering with glossy goods. This kind of urban life creates inherent contradictions. The paintings I do now, while trying to define a recognisable logical environment, come out with the most illogical shapes which negate this environment and cry out, as though, for a choreographer who will appear and tell them how to bring about an order to their chaotic life. This expectation is a kind of speculation - a hypothetical assumption."

He makes his point that the man who is waiting for any change to happen, stands outside the power group which is playing its own role in society. People who have the power are not waiting - they are acting and changing things but their action does not touch the life of the common man. The artist would not like to make an ideological statement and hold anything against any class of people. Society, as a whole, is responsible for this state of affairs, and society is not an institution or a leader. It is a totality, and the success or failure of man is part of this totality.

Yet he will not put the stamp of finality on his opinion of society and people. He does not believe that any such commentary can be absolute. "As I have included my observations in my paintings, I also believe that my audience will observe my work, develop hypothetical views and create their own explanations. It is quite legitimate for the audience to develop their own meanings. Even if these are beyond my meaning, I would not mind so because the main purpose of my painting is not sending out a message but creating a pictorial record. My visual language and forms have the liberty to get away from the exactness of my opinion and enter some obscure or unknown areas".

As a painter he has discovered that the studio is a versatile, meditative area where many ideas take shape. Some of them are realistic, some of them do not exist in the room but elsewhere, in the imagination and they do not explain themselves quite so obviously. Known ideas and objects get mixed up with unknown ideas and objects and pass on into the paintings, thereby transforming apparent reality into a point of reference. It is like a sojourn from canvas to canvas, from watercolours to prints, tempera and mixed media.

He has stopped thinking that his works have to depend only on exploring techniques. Styles and techniques are appropriate vehicles for certain ideas - never to be conspicuous or imposing. He searches for essential materials, straightforward and less distracting from the flow of his work. He often deviates from the academic style of three-dimensionality and switches over to the two-dimensional flat space. The use of enamel paint over oils heightens every original combination. Watercolours are derived from the staining process - he does not begin painting with any specific idea - and gradually the stains bring out forms which he follows and develops, and a theme grows. In some of the watercolours, nature is slowly enters as also human faces - at the same time, various symbols such as funnels and telephones get superimposed on them indicating that the stability of man is being disturbed by a continuous invasion of ideas and information received from his surroundings. His human beings are thereby tortured, confused and angry.

"I want my paintings to be thought-provoking, not pretty. In the new technological situation, the meaning of beauty is changing. I do not need the exactness of the earlier harmony - I see beauty in a negative perspective and it is important to create good art in such a situation for this will give us a kind of strength to understand and appreciate what is positive and powerful."

Born in 1941, Amitabh Sengupta has exhibited his paintings in all reputed galleries in India and abroad. His works are held in private and public collections.

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