Rukshaan Art presents two solo exhibitions — People of the Homeland and Navivasi — happening at one space.
Ajay Dhapa and Gulab Kapadiya, emerging artists from Baroda come together, each bringing their own distinctly different styles and stories. The coherently common feature in both the artists’ works are the characters they paint. Whilst Ajay Dhapa uses his to create a relevance to society, inviting the viewer to share interesting stories and situations of his hometown, Gulab’s characters are less animated though the artist successfully captures their silent intimacy with the objects they create and sell. The repetition of objects in most of Gulab’s works are meditative renderings intended to create a silent tribute to the small business holders.
The treatment of the surfaces in both their works is also intentional to portray the vintage effect: Ajay paints the floral carpet as a metaphor for our land and symbol of beautiful relationships while Gulab uses soft watercolor washes on rice paper pasted on canvas and layers these to create a distinct yet similar effect.