Paintings of artist Chandrasekhar Sethi at an exhibition in Bhubaneswar. Pictures by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, Sept. 30: Transforming human emotions and ideology into paintings, artist Chandrasekhar Sethi displayed an ensemble of his works at the art exhibition titled Chitrangshi.

His perspective towards life and people attracted art enthusiasts to the exhibition organised by Orissa Modern Art Gallery (OMAG).

Sethi’s style of art involved rich hues and unconventionally drawn figurines of human characters that strived to define a situation that is common to the viewer in some way or other.

Mostly inspired by primitive traditions of art, the painter created a dialogue with the viewer through a striking theme presented with a versatile array of colours.

At Chitrangshi, the artist displayed 16 unique paintings that depicted the tragedy and irony of life. Some also romanced the bizarre circumstances of life. His work titled The Last Dinner, for example, was inspired from the famous story of The Last Supper in which Jesus dined with his friends and followers.

However, Sethi impressively connected this theme with that of Death of Socrates, the famous Jaques Louis David painting that illustrates how the Greek philosopher gladly chose poison for the sake of truth.

Another work, The Last Touch dealt with the divine connection of man. “Though created with divine energy, traits like ego, anger and false pride take man away from the spiritual truth,” said Sethi.

In the painting Hypnotise, he took this theme a step further by illustrating the evil ways taken to by man today, to attain power.

Other outstanding works were Last Night, Ring Master, Dream and How much land does a man need, all of which referred to a story, a legend or a tale from history, to establish facets of human nature.

“Almost all the works talked about human behaviour expressed in emotions such as rage, love, bravery and others. The most remarkable aspect of the paintings was that the artist evoked a reaction from the viewer on these themes through his images,” said artist Tarakant Parida, proprietor of OMAG.

“I loved all the paintings. While the subjects were intriguing, the touch of folk art in the paintings added freshness to the works,” said Priyambada Biswal, an art enthusiast. The exhibition concluded on Friday.