ART

I didn't expect my last show at Jehangir Art Gallery to be so well-received," says Radhika Varma Hormusjee. The great-great granddaughter of India's illustrious and legendary artist, Raja Ravi Varma, Radhika is the newest name on the art block. Married to a Parsee, Radhika has taken on the mantle to continue the family legacy of significant contribution to Indian art. And every time she is asked whether Raja Ravi Varma's work has inspired hers, she has a ready retort: "Our work doesn't have much in common. The rough settings are similar sometimes. We've both painted women in various postures, but my works are my own."

ARTY FACTS

A graduate of the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Chennai, Radhika's works are contemporary in execution, content and visual appeal. While she admits there are always comparions and parallels drawn to her work and that of her great-great grandfather, Radhika has carved a niche of her own. When did the ?Aha' moment occur? "Drawing and painting come naturally to most of us," is what she believed in her growing up years. But while in High School, she realised that "art is not meant for everybody." Hailing from a family of artists, she has been surrounded by generations of art. Radhika, in a reflective mood, says, "Even though I've grown up with my great-great grandfather's paintings around me always, my work is not like his ? likenesses, in a pose or tilt of the head, are purely coincidental." Radhika Varma still signs her paintings with no last name.

Radhika who lives and teaches art in Bengaluru drew a great deal of inspiration from watching her mother paint. "I found myself sketching everything, including fellow classmates and family members. I realise now that I was fortunate and privileged to be a part of a great tradition." After finishing school, she wanted to go to the J.J. School of Art in Mumbai because Bengaluru had no art institutions to speak of at that time. Her mother instead carted her off to Chennai's Government School of Arts and crafts. "I explored human figures in all their fascinating complexity and experimented in different medium and styles. Impressionism was a common path followed by most fine arts students at the institution. I found myself enjoying this approach where colours were applied with spontaneity, blending more on the canvas than on the palette," she explains. In her final year of college, Radhika had her first solo exhibition in Chennai.

BIRDS AND BEES

A visit to a bird sanctuary drew Radhika to the world of winged creatures. Cranes and swans filled her sketchbooks. "I began to identify myself with these wondrous creatures. Alone or in a crowd, they conveyed the same feelings ? loneliness, seeking to communicate and ultimate fulfilment in union." Birds and bees, Radhika points out, are among her favourite subjects, in contrast to Raja Ravi Varma, who didn't paint nature or animals.

After a long hiatus, cut away from the art world, post marriage and children, Radhika felt a burning desire to explore her creative side once again. "The urge to hold a brush again led me to set up my own studio, Arambh, in 2000, where I could work and nurture young talent as well." Works in oil were soon followed by charcoal, water-colour, pastel and chalk. While Ravi Varma's portrayal of women had mythological contexts, Radhika reached out to communicate feelings of belonging and attachment in connection to the female form. Her series, Woman in Nature, emerged from the existential quest of what is real and what is not. "In my paintings, the woman moved out of her comfort zone to explore the world around her, finding new relationships and establishing wider connections. The ground beneath her feet no longer pulled her down. She could finally rise above her physical limitations? and joyfully transcend," explains Radhika. In her earlier series on Women in Nature, Radhika used lighter skin tones and gentle shades. As the series evolved, different colours replaced the body tones with flatter application of colour. The surreal has now crept into Radhika's recent works. She uses bolder skin tones like blue, green and lets imagination take over realism. In June 2010, Radhika was one of the eleven artists whose works were exhibited at London's Nehru Centre.

As we go to press, her series, Encounters: a Sequel, is being exhibited at the Cymroza Art Gallery, Mumbai. "My last show, Encounters, at Jehangir Art Gallery, had so many sell outs that I had to quickly paint more on the series for my current show at Cymroza," she says with a sense of pride.