Crafting Art

CF John
Following the course to fulfil his creative passion, John has been an artist for the past 30 years. Talking about the artwork that he showcased here, which is part of a series in oil and canvas, he tells us, “It’s is a series that I started 10 years ago. It basically looks at stillness and silence in the context of today’s life that is filled with a lot of aggression and violence. I felt that there is a great need to focus on these two aspects.” Next, John will be collaborating with four artists for his upcoming project. He elaborates, “This project will have art installations that will be based on the culture of agriculture with four people from different genres of art. It is slated to come out in January.”

Naina Maithani
After dabbling in hotel management and finance, Naina discovered that her true calling lay in art. She shares, “I learnt abstract art from an artist in Vietnam, who just gave me a canvas and paints and we went from there. The artwork that I showcased is sort of like a 2.0 version of the one that I showcased in 2015 at The New Romantics, organised by KYNKYNY. Using the colours black, white and red, the piece was called ‘The Concealed Love’. This time around, ‘The Unveiled Love’ is similar, but Love is more visible.” Naina has a number of shows in the coming months, where she will displaying her artwork. Talking about her new project Shakti, she shares, “This series is based on women and it will showcase the strength and emotions of women.”

G Subramanian
Having completed his education from the Government School of Art, Subramanian gave up the well-paying job of a graphic designer to follow his passion and become a full-time artist. He shares, “As part of our syllabus, we were all taught all aspects of art, from painting to sculptures. For this show, I did a combination of both. I learnt the art of sculptures from people whose ancestors have been doing this since the Chola dynasty.” Subramanian mentions that he mostly does paintings and sculptures of girls, a tribute of sorts to his daughter that he lost when she was just nine. “For this exhibition, I focused on a girl playing the violin, a singer and two sisters and Lord Krishna, all sculpted in bronze,” says the artist, who will soon be collaborating with Singapore-based artist P Gnana for a joint travelling exhibition that will go to cities like Hyderbad and Chennai too.

Gurudas Shenoy
Growing up among artists, Gurudas says he knew he was bound to become an artist himself. Coming from the southern city of Udupi, the landscapes were what inspired his early pieces. He admits, “I started my career as a landscape artist. As an avid traveller, I paint what I see and this series is inspired by my visit to Hampi.” Gurudas loves using oil paints as he is able to build layers with it and give his work a distinctive effect. And yes, he strongly believes that art must be made a mainstream subject in education so that the next generation takes art more seriously.