Garden of Night - II

This is an artist who is inspired by mythology and, however, values the contemporaneity of his work. Hanuman Kambli is among the renowned Goan artists of today.

Born and brought up in the village of Pirna in North Goa, Hanuman still cherishes childhood images of rusty but simple villagers, enchanting nature and almost still life. Classes in those days were held on the premises of a temple as the village school did not have a permanent building. While the teacher taught the lessons, he continued singing religious hymns. Masks of Kirtimukh, a many-faced Janus-like person, adorned the walls of the temple. The teacher often silenced his pupils by saying that the demon would punish them.

The artist remembers saying The devil would scare me. To me, he represented the ugly side of life. The images in my work are a residue of my earliest memories of the Hindu temples of Goa. The icon that appears again and again is the one that scared me as a child and that has obviously left an indelible mark on my mind.

Kamblis work has elements of traditional imagery, both from religious sources and artistic sources about religion. However, it is not based solely on mythology but presents themes and ideas drawn from his immediate surroundings. In his engravings, you can see his family, his home, the land of his ancestors and the Indian gods, in addition to the invading builders and developers who leave a harsh impression on the viewer. His paintings invariably deal with current socioeconomic issues. The impact of development on Goan culture is a recurring theme.

The process of delving into the inner recesses of the mind, not only of others but also of oneself, must continue, he says. The constant coiling and uncoiling of thoughts, ideas and themes keeps the artist in tune with his creative instincts. For this to happen, there must be a search to be honest with ones own spirit, even more so for a creative person. True to this philosophy, Kambli introspects himself all the time, questions himself, tries to analyze the trends of society and understands the people around him. He says We all wear masks to hide our true faces. Perhaps this has become inevitable in todays modern and mechanical era, when human beings feel repressed for various reasons. Mainly, urbanization has corrupted our self-being. We cannot even enjoy nature in its truest sense and its beauty because we are reluctant to be open and free. We repress ourselves and deprive ourselves of divine joy. I represent this confused state of mind and try to show the obstacles that prevent us from being in unison with nature.

As an uninformed child, he related good and bad virtues to an individual's appearance. It was the simplification of a complex topic. The terrifying face of a demon in the temples meant to the boy everything that was derogatory in life. As he grew up, he realized that the face says little about oneself and that appearance can be deceiving. Therefore, it is not advisable to take one at face value. Kambli paints demonic faces, which look terrifying and ferocious, in contrast to the creator, who is a calm person. The painter laughs at this suggestion of adding The Face Could Even Be Mine. He may outwardly appear calm, but he doesn't have to be. I just don't want to point out the dichotomy in society. As I said, it is also a process of self-introspection. However, the artist does not hold any grudge against any individual for the way they behave. He refuses to judge and believes that even evil is part of human nature.

In addition to the strong influence of childhood images, Kambli is deeply moved by the wide spectrum of events on a social, political and artistic level. He says: Two separate news stories about the murder of a fetus, one in the tribal regions of India and the other in the United States, shocked me. Both acts are equally gruesome, although done in different ways. This is a universal phenomenon that I contemplated, relating it to my personal experiences, which increased the intensity of my feelings. My work The Descent of the Mother is based on this.

He adds: I don't want my paintings to be a work of fantasy. Although I am committed to my roots, the contemporaneity of my work is more important to me as an artist.

BORN

18 September, 1956 Goa

EDUCATION QUALIFICATIONS

1980-82 Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Print Making, Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan

1973-78 BFA, Goa College of Art, Bombay University, Mumbai

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2001 Art Chamber, Calangute, Goa

1999 Space Gallery, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, USA.

1998 Alliance Fracaise Gallery, Panaji, Goa

1997 Ralino Gallery, Panaji, Goa

1996 British Council Division, Art Gallery, New Delhi

1996 Chaze Art and Craft Center, Margao, Goa

1995 Wimbledon School of Art, London

1995 British Council Divisional Art Gallery, Mumbai

1993 Art Gallery, Menezes Braganca Institute, Goa

1992 Art Gallery, Menezes Braganca Institute, Goa

1991 Artistic Heritage, New Delhi

1985 Art Gallery, State Academy, Goa

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

1999 Fado, Group Exhibition of Goan Artists presented by Fundacao Oriente at Jamaat Art Gallery, Mumbai

1999 Goan Art Forum's Tempestivus Group Exhibition at Casa Goa, Calangute Goa

1998 Four Goan Printmakers, Atelier 2221, New Delhi

1997 Miniature Museum of Modern Art, Amsterdam.

1996 Alliance Francaise, Panaji Goa

1996 Box Print Show, Hardware Gallery, London

1996 Mini Prints Exhibition organized by Gallery Espace in collaboration with British Council Division, New Delhi.

1996 Exhibition of Prints, The National College, Oslo, Norway

1995 Degree Exhibition, Wimbledon School of Art, The Morley Gallery, London

1995 Engraving Exhibition, Bremen, Germany

1995 Organized by The Goan Art Forum at Cymroza Art Gallery, Mumbai

1994 Six contemporaries from Goa Chitram Art Gallery, Cochin Kerala

1994 Continuum art exhibition by Goan Art Forum, Panaji, Goa

1993 Kala Peetam, Kerala

1992 Backyard Ritual, art exhibition, Goa Art Forum, Goa

1992 A search meet camp and art exhibition of paintings for the visually impaired by Naquab, Panaji, Goa.

1990 Working Artists Exhibition organized by Lalit Kala Academy Regional Centre, Chennai

1988 Art and Life, traveling exhibition in India organized by Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi.

1989 Fine Arts Exhibition organized by INTACH, Goa

1985 Duo Exhibition, Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai

1981,82 Birla Academy of Arts and Culture, Calcutta

1981.82 Academy of Fine Arts, Calcutta

1979 17th Goa Group Art Exhibition

1978 Chitrakala Parishad Art Exhibition, Bangalore

1978.79 Artists camp and exhibition organized by Kala Academy, Goa.

PARTICIPATIONS

2010 National Print Portfolio, Marvel Art Gallery, Ahmedabad

1992 All India Graphic Camp Exhibition organized by Lalit Kala Academy, at Garhi Artist Studio New Delhi

1991 VII International Triennial Camp and Exhibition of Goa Painters

1988 Kala Mela organized by Sanyogita Bangalore artist group

1987 Graphic Camp and Exhibition organized by WZCC, Udaipur and Kala Academy Goa also worked as a specialist to conduct this camp.

1998 International Miniature Engraving Exhibition, Barcelona Spain CAMP AND WORKSHOP (BY INVITATION)

1997 International Printing Triennial Society, Carcow Poland

1997 International Triennial of Graphic Art, Bitola Macedonia 9th International Biennial of Printmaking Varna Bulgaria International Biennial of Graphic Art Ljubljana, Slovenia

1995, 98th Tokyo International Miniprint Triennial Tama Art University, Tokyo, Japan

1995 Seventh International Biennial of Prints and Drawings, Taipei Taiwan

1995 Third Kochi International Triennial Print Exhibition, Japan

1995 Circa, National Contemporary Art Exhibition, Chaze Centre, Goa

1994 and 2000 IV and VI Majdanek International Art Triennial, Lublin Poland 1994 International Print Exhibition Minature 7 Gallery, Gamblebyen Norway (by invitation)

1994 F B A National Print Exhibition, Mall Gallery, London

1993, 96 1st and 2nd International Triennial of Egyptian Prints, Giza, Egypt (by invitation)

1992 All India Graphic Exhibition and Camp organized by Lalit Kala Academy, Garhi Artists Studio, New Delhi

1992 N S Bendre Memorial Art Exhibition, organized by Individual Cultural Centre, Jammu

1991 First independent art exhibition, organized by Goan Art Forum, Goa

1991 Contemporary 91, Goa Goa Art Forum

1991 7th International Painters' Triennial, Camp and Exhibition, Goa

1991 Exhibition of All Indian Arts by Vijaya Fine Arts Society, Gadag, Karnataka.

1991 Mini Print International Cadaques, Barcelona, Spain and many cities in Japan

1991 First International Postal Art Exhibition, Sao Paulo Brazil

1991, 97th Second and Fourth Bharat Bhavan International Print Biennale, Bhopal India

1990 Regional Art Exhibition, Chennai

1990, 92, 95 International Print Exhibition, Kanagawa Japan

1989, 90, 91 All India Art Exhibition organized by All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society (AIFACS), New Delhi

1988 III International Graphic Art Exhibition organized by AIFACS Delhi (By invitation)

1987 Contemporary Printmaking in India is a traveling exhibition in many US cities.

1987 Jamini Roy Centenary Art Exhibition, Calcutta

1986 Represented India at the II Havana Cuba Biennial (By Invitation)

1986, 90, 92, 94, 96 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Bharat Bhavan Contemporary Art Biennale, Bhopal

1983, 85, 88, 90 National Art Exhibition, New Delhi

1983, 84th All India Drawings Exhibition, Chandigarh

1979 State Art Exhibition, Goa

1979, 81, 85 All India Prints Exhibition, Chandigarh and New Delhi

HONORS AND AWARD

1999 Fulbright Scholarship for the USA.

1994-95 Charles Wallace India Trust Art Prize

1994-95 Artist in Residence at Wimbledon School of Art, London

1989-90 Lalit Kala Akademi Research Fellowship, New Delhi

1985, Group 8, Medal, All India Prints Exhibition, New Delhi

1981 Honorable Mention, All India Prints Exhibition, Chandigarh

1980-83 Goa State Academy Merit Scholarship

1978, 79 scholarships from Goa College of Art, Goa

1978, 85th Awards State Art Exhibitions, Goa