Water Sculptures

By Savitha Hira

Heavy downpour, thundering clouds, lots of water and a meritorious camera, not to forget the trademark chai-biscuit, were the fundamental merry makers of an evening of ‘water sculptures’ at gallery Pradarshak…

When we see a beautiful form, sometimes, it brings to mind a long-forgotten memory; at others it may inspire, impelling one to ideate. When we speak art and design, the sensibilities are such that the aesthetic quotient is at a pinnacle and the perception is subjective; this then becomes the driver of our likes; determining our preferences and influencing our choices.

‘Water’, by virtue of its properties is mellifluous and lasting; or can be transient. Its three-dimensional form is best captured through the lens of a competent camera that not only fortifies the inherent beauty of the medium but eulogizes it.

The last rainy season in Mumbai was marked by the magic of such an experiential evening at gallery Pradarshak, notably the smallest gallery of quality fine art in Mumbai, India, if not Asia. The gallery invited its patrons to a fun-filled evening to ‘make your own water sculpture and carry it home’. The intrigued guests, art lovers and connoisseurs alike, braced the rains to the venue and gleefully participated in the child-like activity of splashing water and having a budding photographer Sumeet Singh capture the moment and the distinctive surge of water in a unique, one-of-its-kind memory.

A mock studio set-up – as raw as the weather that day – was created with a large blue backdrop. The blue plastic backdrop was intermittently replaced for a black, white and red one, to add sheen to the transparency of the medium. Splashes from a tumbler, the sheer joy of throwing water from dripping cupped hands, kids standing on a stool to throw water from a height, soft droplets, rude spatters, slim streams, water… water… wetness everywhere…

The rainy evening just seemed to add on to the fun of the event as guests shed their reserve and took several ‘tries’ at creating more robust sculptures, amidst sips of hot cups of chai accompanied by the quintessential biscuit.

The joy of uninhibited delight was contagious – cell phone cameras too got busy and the celebratory moments were archived for posterity.