By Neehar Mishra
Photography: Courtesy the
artist
Kolkata-based
artist Ashok Kumar Varma gives the not-so-popular art of collage-making a new
raison d’ĂȘtre, which goes far beyond mere cutting and pasting...
Combining what is otherwise discarded in a manner so precise that the final product creates an illusion of smoothness and fluidity, Ashok Kumar Varma lends an all new vocabulary to art of collages.
Combining what is otherwise discarded in a manner so precise that the final product creates an illusion of smoothness and fluidity, Ashok Kumar Varma lends an all new vocabulary to art of collages.
At first glance,
his works may appear like another painting; but, a closer look reveals that he
is not your run-of-the-mill artist. Labouring tirelessly over every detail for
over two decades, the mechanical-engineer-turned-artist has dedicated his life
to assembling bits of paper gathered from scrap shops in such a seamless manner
that when put together, they appear to be printed for that very work of art.
His notable
mention in the Limca Book of Records for “creating collages so intricately
designed that they look like oil or mixed-media paintings, using pieces of
paper that are sometimes as small as two milimetres in size,” is evidence that there
is no defined way of characterising his art.
Bold and
unrestrained, the elements in his collages range from a mellow medley to a
vibrant motley of colours, shapes and figures. While the themes of his works
draw from his own understanding of human relations, emotions, fantasy and
mythology, the treatment is surrealistic, almost psychedelic. Any form of ink
or paint has absolutely no place here; even his signature is made from
paper-bits.
Talking about the
commercial aspect and the undervaluation of the craft, Varma tells us how, in
2013, Ripley’s Believe It or Not wanted to purchase one of his works for their
museum, but the deal fell through because of the extremely low price that they
were offering to pay.
Artist Ashok Kumar Varma |
The artist
continues in his quest with digital collages too, the medium as heady and engaging
as the allure of his works.
Superb!!
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