Mrinal Mandal’s exhibition of drawings titled ‘A Passion for Pencil’ at Gallery Katayun is fascinating. Great exponents of graphite drawings like Bikash Bhattacharya, Tapan Ghosh and Laxma Goud have experimented with this medium, but their flirtation with it ended as soon as they understood its limitation compared to charcoal, conti and Chinese ink. Mandal should understand this. He has a strong draughtsman’s fist, a rare ability to translate natural scenes into artistic landscapes. His large and small works celebrate the virgin beauty of the dense jungles of his native Jhargram. Like a nature-worshipping bard he gives them a visionary intensity.
Sandip Sarkar
Dakshinee’s recital at Kalamandir (December 11), featuring some of its illustrious products over the past four decades, was much more than a collection of songs. Conducted by Sudeb Guhathakurta, the recital scripted the development of Tagore as a composer by showcasing numbers chronologically. The compactness was exemplary, but the performances superseded expectations. Daskhinee’s female products could be a grammarian’s delight, yet their adherence to the scorebooks did not claim the soul of a song. Kamalini Mukhopadhyay and Nilanjana Sarkar were the best among them, with the former rendering a mesmerising E ki karuna. Among the males, the Guhathakurta brothers, Rano and Abhirup, stood out with brilliant performances.
Anshuman Bhowmick
Instead of pure mediums like watercolours, tempera and oils, artists are currently opting for a melange of media. Kanchanmala Ghosh’s third solo exposition at the Chemould Gallery follows this current trend. Her compact and spacious compositions are a blend of charcoal and acrylic on canvas where she explores the shades of gray in between black and white. At times she breaks up the monochromatic monotony, using the subdued glow of a hue. There are also grayish dribbles that slide from the left to the bottom. Not satisfied with white natural canvas, she paints snowy acrylic that turns chalky like a whitewashed wall. Ghosh excels in academic naturalism and depicts young women sitting depressed in a room or out in the garden. There are also upright female nudes or crouching feminine figures writhing in pain. However, her bare-bodied males are bereft of erotic intensity.
SS
