Rooted in romanticism and shaped by journeys
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Artist Subin Abrahams paintings are rooted in memories, emotions and self-reflection. And his latest solo exhibition, Sole on the Soil, on display at Vyloppilly Samskrithi Bhavan, stands as a testament to that. The exhibition brings together paintings that represent the natural world and the essence of village life. Though Subin portrays the realities and hardships of rural life, they appear nostalgic and serene. Maybe he was trying to convey, the hardship behind the idyllic. A sense of quiet melancholy runs through most of his paintings, reflecting what the artist calls a personal take on the Indian village life. Subin says he is strongly moved by the ideals of romanticism and the Barbizon school of art, particularly by the works of Vincent van Gogh, Jean-Francois Millet and John Constable. For him, these paintings are not merely scenery but something that has to be paid off with a emotional connection. Drawing from both personal memory and artistic traditions, his works try to articulate a connection between rural life and nature, always away from the chaos of busy city life. Subin has returned to painting after a hiatus of around five years, following his previous exhibition in Kozhikode in 2018. During those days, he used to work as an art teacher in a school and took on freelance assignments that came his way. Quoting Henry David Thoreau he notes, I would often find myself sitting quietly, pondering this marvel called life. For him, painting is a personal activity, born out of his many travels across the country. It is from this wanderings that Sole on the soil was born. The title, he says, implies his way of realistically portraying nature. And it is a way to bring his thoughts and feelings to the light. Most of the paintings at the exhibition emerged from his observations during travels and everyday, mundane encounters he made in the villages. I am always a person who loves to visit different places and meet the people who live there. It is not just about enjoying the architectural and aesthetic beauty of a place, he says. His works bring back an element of the classical to the Renaissance, especially the pastoral paintings that were prominent in the 18th century. It is not just the West, Subin is equally fascinated by the 10th to 14th century Chinese paintings, where landscapes are spellbinding in their beauty. However, he adds, Indian art does not have landscape painting traditions compared to the West or China. Instead, nature often appears as a miniature element supporting the Mughal and Pahari paintings, he informs. Through his works, Subin is attempting to engage the audience with nature as a central emotional space. Apart from the village beauty, the last session of the exhibition also portrays a few rough sketches capturing the lives of fisherfolk in rural Thiruvananthapuram. They are from real-life observations. A product of visits to the coastal areas that left deep imprints on my mind. There is something common about the uncertainties faced by both the rural farmers and the fishermen, he says. That is why he wants to concentrate on the realities faced by the fisherfolk in Kerala in future. The exhibition concludes on December 24.
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