Monochromatic splashes and broad, black-and-white sweeps on a huge pictorial plane are discernible in the paintings of Subhabrata Nandi. Wild Concrete (Academy of Fine Arts, April 5-12) jolted the viewers' consciousness, forcing them to confront the harsh reality of the urban sprawl. A burgeoning population is putting pressure on built spaces, thereby disturbing the balance of city spaces. Nandi's Frightened City exemplifies the bleak and daunting imageries of the cityscape. The fiercely protruding red amidst the bold and broad hatches of black, brown and white represents the vicious loopholes of the urban agglomeration itself. The composition in random white splash, displaying the ravages of the concrete skeleton, mocks the so-called advancement of civilization.

In the painting Wild Concrete I, the city resembles a gluttonous creature. The city-frame - shaped like a predator - appears to devour the city itself, reminding the viewers of Goya's Saturn Devouring His Own Son.

The architectonic dimensions of Nandi's canvas are suggestive of the story of the serpent eating its own tail - the clutter of concrete wreaking collateral damage on society as a whole, starting with the physical space and then going on to adversely affect the inlayed social connections that constitute city tradition. The red dot amidst all amplifies the eeriness of the compositions. The Window offers a penetrative gaze on to the towering verticality of the cityscape. The white pane symbolizes an open window that allows the eyes to soar up to the horizon. Ironically, in this composition, the window does not open up to an unending light. Rather it leads to the distortion of perception and creates a cerebral clog. This psychic clog, represented through content, composition and colour - the accentuation of red - delineates the phenomenon of contemporary urbanization in an apt manner.