A series of sculptures of cockatoos and tea-stained paintings of mythical birds and creatures emulate a world of fantasy in Bipasha Gupta’s solo multimedia exhibition, titled ‘Mythical Gibberish’, which previewed at Carpe Diem Gallery, Majorda, on March 25, 2023.
A CHILDHOOD FASCINATION
The inspiration for this collection of cockatoos was from childhood memories of poetry-reading sessions with her bed ridden grandfather. One of his favourite books was Abol Tabol with children’s poetry written by Sukumar Ray in Bengali in 1923.
Loosely translated, it could mean ‘Whimsical Rhymes or Gibberish.’ Among the many characters in the stories were those of a cockatoo, with very unique traits and habits. Bipasha figures, in this imaginary and magical world, there would exist one such bird, which loves butterflies, another pickpocket who steals fish, an arrogant cockatoo and more.
These wonderful creatures and their colourful unrealistic and nonsensical surroundings fascinated her as a child.
While travelling around the country with her parents in the armed forces, she saw temples with various birds, and was exposed to folk tales and cultures, which reminded her of those poems.
Though the table sculptures of cockatoos are repetitive, their varied expressions and optical forms never become dull – they become something more than their visual effects.
She attains this through painstaking application of paint in perfect gradations, as each one has a distinctive configuration in tandem with a sense of deliberation of the world of fantasy retained from the vivid childhood memories, and hold the viewer’s attention.
MYTHOLOGICAL MARVELS
Alongside the display of sculptures, there is a series of tea-stained, intricately painted Indian mythical creatures, with an input of some contemporary energy, in order to create the image in the mind. What is important is the beautiful spirit she achieves.
Indian mythology has numerous stories about the same character, passed from generation to generation, by word of mouth or through carefully stored scriptures. The paintings aim to convey stories which are subtly frivolous, yet educational.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Bipasha has a Bachelor’s degree in Education, and is an alumni of the famous Delhi Blue Pottery Trust. A self-taught artist, she has been painting and working with clay for years, and has had many shows nationally and internationally.
Settling in Goa recently, she finds, “Goa has a certain charm, and my creative juices bloomed in this ambience, and with the warm people. I have been thinking of doing this theme for quite a while, because I find today’s children are only involved with technology and sci-fi related stories; folklore is a dying art which needs to be revived. Children don’t know stories of the olden days, and this generation needs to be aware of those stories to connect to their roots.”
She’s an environmentalist and educationist, and in addition to conducting corporate sessions on mindfulness, Bipasha is the founder and coordinator of the annual Goa Potter’s Fest, held over the past two years. She also conducts regular wheel throwing and hand-built pottery classes at Carpe Diem Art Gallery, Majorda.
Bipasha Gupta’s solo multimedia exhibition, ‘Mythical Gibberish’, will be on view till April 15, 2023 at Carpe Diem Gallery, Majorda, South Goa
