Thara Ganesan’s recent solo exhibition, Psychedlic Enigma, which was on at the Cholamandalam artists village until recently, is one that will not be forgotten in a hurryThe lady’s creations, which were more than impressive, clearly seemed to have a distinct identity to them. “I have used knives of varying sizes and my hands as well for a number of these pieces,” says Thara as she points towards a stunning Cosmic Ocean for effect.“The speed of each stroke reflects the intensity of emotion at the time.” The cosmos on an elaborate canvas with hues of purple, blue, aqua marine and white in a haze of darkness is one of her many depictions of nature and it’s five elements of power.“I like to think that I am one with these elements and they are a part of me,” she explains. “Mother earth is in me (the creator), fire (passion), space (thoughts and mind), water (inside the body) and air (every breath) — they are all perceived as within,” she elaborates.So when Thara paints, she puts herself on the canvas as well. In several of her works, one notices a single red stroke of paint placed prominently at the centre of the abstract dish of colour.What is it? “The mark of a woman is in her blood, from the time she attains puberty,” she responds.“That’s me, taking it all in,” the artist smiles.One of the pieces titled, Five Elements, a fiery cocktail of them all, and much in contrast to this one, the serene and chaos-free, garden of Eden was equally interesting. “I’ve had all kinds of interpretations to my work,” Thara confides.“One lady looked at a painting and said she saw the 10 heads of Ravana, another person looked at the same canvas and saw Sputnik!” Evidently, neither were expected.However, a must see is the Tsunami series (five paintings in all), a dense darkness of black, white and grey and nothing else. Perceptions may vary at a glance, but the statement is clear — loss, suffering and above all, darkness.
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