Sometimes, when you look at something you’ve created and it appears perfectly fine and then later, other things happen to come along that say the work needs something more- that is alright! During my recent visit to look after my sick and elderly parents, I found many newspapers that reading now, suggested something darker was happening then- things that would be unacceptable now. So upon return, I decided to use those historical references to my painting of the city of Jaisalmer in North India which I had made in January 2009. I decided it was perfectly fine to revisit memories and through my art, to be exorcised of that past. Although upon first glance the painting glitters and there are flags reminiscent of festivities and brightness, but when one looks carefully at the newspaper cuttings, darker images emerge out of the surface.
Here is a reminder of the painting looked like for almost five years before-
I know I can’t take it back to where it was and now it reads differently, so I have to accept it is now where I am. Art is an expression of one’s life and one can’t be too precious about it. This work is also a representation of my eye problems because now my art has to be more tactile and contrasting. Have you done something like this?
A Value Creating Life 