The exquisite collection of modern art promises to take visitors at the North East State Exhibition of Art on a journey of visual delight. The monthlong exhibition organised by the Kalakshetra is a sincere effort to nurture the talent of the artists of the region.

The exhibition showcases 106 works, including paintings, drawings, graphics and sculpture, shortlisted by a jury. These works also include the award-winning works of Kamal Mahanta, Khundongbam Ojit Singh, Madhuri Bhattacharjya, B. Banamali Sharma and Krishnakanta Basumatary

Once inside the gallery, a viewer is at once drawn to a bronze sculpture, Let Me Li-ve, which is easily recognised as a reflection of a war-like situation. With a touch of convention, the piece portrays a child pleading for life before a Mughal warrior while another dead figure lies aside.

Another unique and self-consistent style may be witnessed in Srikanta Sinha’s Passage of Motion dwelling on man’s endless fight against infinity. Krishna Kanta Basumatary’s Dragonfly is a cynosure for all eyes in which he manoeuvres wood and scrap metal into an interesting form of a dragonfly. The artsist uses everything, from pieces of rods and levers to wheels and springs, as raw materials but the manner in which they are put together to give an easily recognisable form indeed speaks volumes of the sculptor’s inventiveness.

Senior artist Madhusudhan Das, known for his dexterity with woodcut prints, has in the same medium glorified the image of a goddess in Devi V. A single thread binds Boidukhi Mushry’s Om, Upasna Bora’s Freedom and Waiting for You by Pallabi Jiten Sharma, in which one senses an intimacy with nature and spirituality.

Another etched piece, Life by Manipuri artist Naorem Rajesh Singh, hints at the impact of social turmoil in the lives of common man.

Though artists from Assam and Manipur are gradually emerging on the contemporary art scene, the lack of exhibition space creates an obstacle in their creative process. However, exhibitions such as this provide the much-needed platform to these artists.

The exhibition, under way at Kalakshetra till December 28 with a huge spectrum of artworks, should boost the sensibility of the visitors towards fine arts.