Sketching The Transcendent Sundargarh – II

Two Days of our Sundargarh sketching trip had gone in a jiffy. The first day it was all about Sundargarh town and the second day the beauty of Tangarmunda, its people and the food had left lasting impression on me. Everything from how the plan changed from Sambalpur to Sundargarh, our journey from Bhubaneswar to Sundargarh and the sketching experience had just been perfect. But the best was yet to come.

Read the first part of Sundargarh Sketching Trip here

Surreal Sarabgarh

09 Jan 2019

Kedar had planned a grand finale to our Sundargarh Sketching Trip. The destination was Sarabgarh Dam, which is approximately 30 kilometers from Sundargarh town. It was also the second day of the bundh which meant we had to leave the town early in the morning once again. By now we were quite used to the chill of the hard winter and got ready well in time. But our auto guy Ashish did not arrive. He had misplaced the auto keys and just could not find it. Due to bundh getting another vehicle was not going to be easy and almost impossible so early in the morning. But somehow none of us felt flustered. Probably the sequence of events in the past few days had given us a sense of calmness. Somehow we knew things will work out. And then suddenly Ashish arrived in his auto. He had managed to start his auto with the help of some jugaad. Wasting no time we got into the auto and though a little late our journey to Sarabgarh dam finally started. But the challenges were not over yet.

In a few minutes after going out of town, Ashish realized that he was out of gas. Being a day of complete shut down he was not hoping to find any gas station open. But once again we all were at peace and were just not getting worried and asked him to keep moving. And again as if a miracle there was this small gas station in the middle of nowhere waiting for us. Ashish was the happiest one at that point, but his joy lasted only a few seconds when he realized that he did not have the key to open the lock of the gas tank. But the trend for the day continued and a solution presented itself no later than the problem was encountered. One of the gas station staff tried to open the lock with his bike key and yes you guessed it right. The lock opened as if it was the original key. Sometimes reality is actually stranger than fiction.

Only when we reached Sarabgarh dam that we realized why Kedar had planned this as our ultimate sketching destination. This place was a paradise. It was something out of a fairy tale. Sarabgarh was Surreal, quiet and enchanting. As we were soaking up the beauty, Kedar had already started looking for lunch arrangements. We happened to find two villagers passing by and Kedar asked them about eateries in the vicinity. As expected there were none and out of the blue Kedar asked them if they could prepare lunch for us. We had just met these two people in the middle of nowhere for the first time in our lives and Kedar was expecting them to prepare lunch for us! But the biggest divine intervention was just about to happen. The elder of the two instructed the younger man to get lunch prepared at his home. We just could not believe our luck. On top of that, the lone fisherman who had caught some fresh fish from the dam also presented himself to us. It was as if Biswajit’s prayer was answered. He was craving for fish earlier during our journey to Sarabgarh. I wanted to pinch myself to check if I was dreaming. But Sarabgarh was no less than a dream.

Lunch Menu at Guru's place — Lunch Menu at Guru’s place

Soon we found a great place to sketch. But problem with beautiful views is that…….. they are beautiful. This beauty can sometimes be overwhelming to the extent that one can easily get carried away by it and not pay attention to some basics of a painting like composition, abstraction and design etc. And somewhere in the middle of the painting when things don’t seem to work out you suddenly realize this and more often than not you feel like a fool. My first work at Sarabgarh dam was all about this struggle. What started in the most enthusiastic ways soon turned out to be a little more than a square foot of confusion and exasperation. But I did carry on and finished the painting. In the end it turned out to be one of the most popular works of the sketching trip; yet another miracle of the day. And for the second work I turned 180 degrees from my place and had this beautifully designed and abstracted scene in front of me. It was crying out to be painted and I obliged. And soon it was time for lunch and as we made way to our vehicle there was good news waiting for us.

Two cute members of Guru's family — Two cute members of Guru’s family

Ashish had found the keys. The keys were there in one of the pockets of his jacket while he had been looking everywhere for it. As our vehicle moved to our lunch destination he looked visibly upbeat and we too, were happy for him. As per our host’s instruction we had to drive up to Masabira village and then all we had to do was to ask anyone where Chuin’s house is. And that is exactly what we did and landed up at our host Chuin aka Guru’s place. Guru was not at home and we were a little hesitant to get inside the house, but Guru’s family welcomed us and served us lunch consisting of Rice, Fish curry and Aloo Bhaja. Sitting on mud floor smeared with cow dung under the thatched roof and having food so lovingly served to us on plates made up of Sal leaves in a person’s house we had met a couple of hours earlier and in a place that seemed to exist in a parallel reality, I could not help but feel a sense of gratitude. The food cooked so simply tasted like nothing I had eaten before, the modest house felt like the most luxurious mansion, the strangers seemed like family. A remote tribal village in Sundargarh, which I had never even heard of, felt like home. Surely this had to be the biggest miracle of the day.

Relishing the lunch at Guru's home — Relishing the lunch at Guru’s home

All good things eventually come to an end. We had to start our journey back to Sundargarh town in some time and had about an hour in our hands. So back at Sarabgarh dam I sketched vigorously. I wanted to make most of the time I had at Sarabgarh. I did two sketched at the same time, working intermittently of each of them painting as fast as I could. And then finally it was time to return.

The next morning we had to start our journey back to Bhubaneswar.

A Fitting Closure

10 Jan 2019

The previous night Ashish had made sure to keep his keys at the right place and was there on time to drop us at the bus stop. We caught the first bus to Sambalpur at 6:00 AM which reached its destination at half past eight. On reaching Sambalpur we moved straight to the temple of Samaleswari or Samalai, the residing goddess of western Odisha. Any trip to western Odisha is not complete without a visit to Samali temple. So we had decided to take the morning bus to Sambalpur which would give us about 5 to 6 hours before our train left from Sambalpur station. At the temple premises we took a room at the guest house and got ready for the day.

The temple was relatively less crowded and we had a good darshan of the goddess. After the darshan and some hot and delicious breakfast from a street vendor it was time to sketch again. As we settled into different corners of the temple premises for sketching the physical exertion of the last few days was starting to take its toll. My body just wanted to rest. But my mind was getting excited at the prospect of sketching the beautifully play of light and shade of Samali Temple. I somehow forced myself to focus and started sketching. And as the sketch slowly started to develop the physical exertion also went away. As the scene was well lit I was using a lot of primary unbroken colors in the sketch and probably those colors were working their magic on me.

Or may be it was the blessing of the goddess which had been guiding us through the last five days.

Sketching session was followed by delicious temple lunch prasad. And after a short nap it was time to return back.

Sundargarh has been a revelation. It was pitch perfect in everything an artist could ask for. The beauty of nature, the simplicity and warmth of the people, the simple nutritious and mouth watering food and a feel of transcendence in the air; it had everything. But there was even a bigger revelation. It was about the working of nature.

Nature has a rhythm. Sometimes we are lucky enough to get aligned to this rhythm in mind body and spirit. And when this happens everything that a person needs just present themselves to her… at the right time. All one need to do is to have faith in this force and walk on. And what follows is what every person truly wants on this earth.

True Bliss!

En Plein Air at Sarabgarh - 1, 09 Jan 2019 — En Plein Air at Sarabgarh – 1, 09 Jan 2019

En Plein Air at Sarabgarh - 2, 09 Jan 2019 — En Plein Air at Sarabgarh – 2, 09 Jan 2019

En Plein Air at Sarabgarh - 3, 09 Jan 2019 — En Plein Air at Sarabgarh – 3, 09 Jan 2019

En Plein Air at Sarabgarh - 4, 09 Jan 2019 — En Plein Air at Sarabgarh – 4, 09 Jan 2019

En Plein Air at Samalai Temple 10 Jan 2019

Sketching The Transcendent Sundargarh – I

Plan for a sketching trip of my sketching club to Sambalpur was in place; a perfect plan. Everything taken care of including stay, food, travel and even the locations that we were going to sketch at. Personally this was also going to be my first trip to western part of Odisha. Our art materials along with other not so necessary belongings had been neatly packed and we were super ready. But as it often happens with perfect plans, our plan too came crashing down in the eleventh hour.

On the eve of our train journey we got the news that there was going to be a two day Bundh at Sambalpur; which meant no food, conveyance or any safe places to paint at. Every person we talked to advised us not to go because in Sambalpur a Bundh means a complete shut down. We were heart broken and just could not digest the fact that our sketching trip was not going to happen. But after pulling ourselves together, we got together in a conference call and Kedar who stays at Sundargarh suggested to change our destination to Sundargarh which is about 100 kms beyond Sambalpur. All we had to do was to go to Sambalpur, take a train to Jharsuguda and then a bus to Sundargarh from there. But we had no arrangements there and hence we were a little skeptical about travelling so far with nothing in place. Kedar had only about 12 hours to work out the logistics. But that was the best alternative we had and we took it.

The Journey to Sundargarh

06 Jan 2019

We traveled to Sambalpur in Bhubaneswar-Bolangir intercity express and got down at Sambalpur Road station only to realize that is not the station we were supposed to get down at. So we got an auto and asked him to take us to the station that is in ‘Sambalpur City’, without realizing that Sambalpur City is yet another satellite station and not ‘Sambalpur Junction’ where we actually wanted to go to. Hence we landed up at this small station in the outskirts of Sambalpur without any public transport in near vicinity to take us to Sambalpur Junction. But guess what! The latest train to Jharsuguda was available from Sambalpur City station within the next twenty minutes and it was on time. And…. (hold your breaths)….it was not going to pass through Sambalpur Junction. We would never have got the train had we gone to Sambalpur Junction. And that is not all; the train was relatively empty and reached Jharsuguda on time. After a quick meal at Jharsuguda we immediately got a bus to Sundargarh and it had exactly four empty seats left (there were four of us), as if it was waiting for us. As soon as we got seated the bus left for Sundargarh.

After a journey full of welcome happenstances we reached Sundargarh bus station in the afternoon. Kedar joined us within few minutes and we took an auto to the hostel of Kalayatan Art College, where our stay arrangements had been made. It was vacation time and the hostel was quite empty. Kedar who works as a lecturer at the same college had done very neat arrangements for us in the hostel. We quickly got rid of our baggage and ventured into the town. After a couple of hours of our town darshan we moved to the studio of Kalayatan Art College and did gesture study sketches for sometime with the students before dinner. Our sketching trip had now started in the true sense of it.

Capturing Scenic Sundargarh Town

07 Jan 2019

Sundargarh experiences very cold winters and being early part of January winter was at its peak. But missing the early morning light is the biggest crime a plein air painter could do and there was no other option than to brave the early morning chill and get ready. Hardship has its benefits and some of them are immediate. For us it came in the form of piping hot dosas, idlis and vadas at a nearby eatery. Food was not only hot, it tasted brilliant too. And thus with our souls satisfied and stomachs satiated we started our walk to Samalai temple which overlooks Ib river.

Ib river was quite dried up exposing its sandy bed and giving us an opportunity to paint from the middle of the river. It was something I had never done before and hence I rushed to the middle to find my spot from where I would be painting for the next couple of hours. A couple of minutes into my sketching, my adrenaline slowly stated to wear off and reality started to sink in. There was a steady breeze blowing which was amplified because of the open expanse of the river bed. This chilly wind was really hurting. But gradually I got involved with my work and all the discomfort vanished. In under hundred minutes time I had completed my first work of our Sundargarh Sketching Trip which seemed to have a feel of the chilly wind; suffering does not go in vain after all.

I continued sketching a little more at the same place and then moved up to the temple where I took a place under the shade of the temple. As the temple is a significant landmark of Sundargarh town I thought of painting it from the place I was stationed. When I shared this work later on Facebook, one of my friends reminisced about his childhood memories attached to the temple. You never know how and when your work is going to touch people, but when it happens suddenly out of the blue like it did in this case, its always a great feeling. Many students from Kalayatan Art College had also joined us for the sketching session and all of them had done beautiful works. Our joint morning sketching session ended at the temple with some group pics and group selfies.

For afternoon session we moved to Sundargarh court premises. The court is an old British building painted in brick red color. My color intensity was not permitting me to get the actual color of the building while keeping it transparent. Hence I stepped down the tonal values of almost everything in the subject, so that their tonal relationships don’t change. This was a fun exercise to do and what I ended up with was a brighter painting. The day ended with some quick facial gesture sketching at Kalayatn Art College later in the evening.

Kid in a Candy Store

08 Jan 2019

For second day, Kedar had planned a trip to a nearby tribal village called Tangarmunda. It was the first day of Bundh in western Odisha and fearing roadblocks we left quite early in the morning for Tangarmunda by an auto. Upon reaching there Kedar booked lunch in advance at the only eatery near the village. The eatery deals with snacks and short eats, but the owner agreed to cook lunch for the five of us. With food taken care of we moved inside the village and whoa!! What a sight it was. The village was dotted with cow dung smeared mud hoses with tiled roofs. There were all types and sizes of trees everywhere; probably more than the number of residents. Most houses had stacks of hay piled neatly in their backyards for the cows. Hens and Goats roamed around freely and a few children played with them while others were busy playing cricket. The hazy winter light was casting soft dappled shadows on the walls of the houses and on the muddy roads where children were busy running alongside their cycle tyres which they rolled by hitting with a stick to keep it in motion and hence in balance. Anywhere I looked there was a great subject to be painted. This was a paradise for a painter. At Tangarmunda I felt like a Kid in a Candy store. Unfortunately I could not paint everything; I could manage only two paintings till lunch. But during this time we had managed to strike conversations with the villagers and kids. When we were leaving the location we even got an invitation for a meal during our next visit. But it was time for our immediate meal which was waiting for us at the village eatery.

We walked to the eatery and took our places inside the small shack. Soon we were served steaming hot rice, dal, tomato khata and a mixed veg dish seasoned with mustard and garlic. The meal made with very few ingredients was simple yet super delicious. We ate to our hearts content and for me it was a meal I would not forget for a long time.

The afternoon sketching session took place in the outskirts of Tangarmunda. As I was looking around trying to pick my subject, my eyes fell on Kadar who had already started working on his painting. I like sketching people in an outdoor environment. When people are unaware of themselves being sketched they stay natural. But problem is that you don’t know when they would change their posture completely or simply get up and go. So when you know that your co-sketcher is going to sit there at least for the next hour you don’t want to miss the opportunity of sketching him. So I happily sketched Kedar away in the most direct way possible and this sketch turned out to be one of my favorites of the trip.

Read The concluding part of Sketching trip to Sundargarh here

Kedar's Sketch 08 Jan 2019 — Kedar’s Sketch 08 Jan 2019

En Plein Air at Ib river - I ; 07 Jan 19 — En Plein Air at Ib river – I ; 07 Jan 19

En Plein Air at Ib river - II ; 07 Jan 19 — En Plein Air at Ib river – II ; 07 Jan 19

En Plein AIr at Tangarmunda - I ; 08 Jan 2019 — En Plein AIr at Tangarmunda – I ; 08 Jan 2019

En Plein AIr at Tangarmunda - II ; 08 Jan 2019 — En Plein AIr at Tangarmunda – II ; 08 Jan 2019

En Plein Air at Sundargarh Court ; 07 Jan 19.JPG.JPG

IIT KGP En Plein Air Diary – Chapter VII

Sin and Redemption

29 July 2017, Day 6 of the shoot

After the Jnan Ghosh shoot we pushed on to Harrys’ (now called Tikkas’). The footage of earlier shoot at Harry’s had gotten deleted by mistake. Hence we were back today to shoot there again. No one really likes it when such accidents happen. I was also disappointed albeit momentarily. My first painting at Harry’s had not gone off well. It was a little overworked and I was not happy with it at all. It kept troubling me until I heard the news about the footage. After the initial shock I felt a sense of calm putting my troubled mind to rest. A divine intervention had given me a second shot at Harry’s, and a chance of redemption.

Also read the Prologue , Chapter I , Chapter II, Chapter III, Chapter IV,  Chapter V and Chapter VI of IITKGPEPA Diary!

Before the shoot all of us did the customary breakfast at Harrys’ of Dal Puri, Sabzi, Rasagolla and coffee. I have always enjoyed having breakfast at Harry’s. In fact I don’t know anyone who does not swear by it. A great combination of taste, flavour and texture; the breakfast tasted exactly the same as it used to taste twenty years back. But what makes the breakfast unique is the ambience. I am not sure if one can get to sit under the shade of a banyan tree with huge open spaces all around to have one’s breakfast while listening to the chirping of birds (and occasional droppings) in the company of friends anywhere else other than Harry’s.

Vegies/Eggies is the lifeline of student life after dark. Harrys’ takes up this role during rest of the day. This is the chai adda of KGP. I have always loved this place. But during this visit to KGP this place made me realize how privileged I have been to spend a part of my life here in the lap of nature. While being at KGP we probably take the greenery for granted. But only when we go out of KGP to man-made concrete jungles we realize how fortunate we have been to have lived here. Dotted with old and ancient trees, the mini forests of KGP campus serve as a safe haven for many species of birds and reptiles. But with so much of construction work happening around the campus some of this natural heritage is under threat. And I hope the development work does not bring much damage to the natural ecosystem here.

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Painting in a 'C' curve — Painting in a ‘C’ curve

After a hearty Harrys’ breakfast it was time to get back to the job. And to my pleasant surprise I had the company of one of the better-known artists in the campus to paint with. Gopinath is a final year student and a well known member of the art club at IIT KGP. It was very good to have him painting alongside- painting outdoors in a group always energises me and I was very happy to have Gopinath with me today.

Today was last day of the shoot and I can’t help but wonder how things have panned out in the last eight days. It seemed game over even before the project began. It felt as if the universe did not approve of the scheme. But now it feels like things could not have gone better. Every place I made a painting of was done at the appropriate time and in the right settings and right frame of mind. I could not have got such a romantic wet scene of Nehru Museum had it not been for the rain. It was a difficult choice between my memories and the outer reality, but I am glad I decided to paint the former at Azad Hall. The timing of painting the main building probably brought out the emotionality in the painting. The accidental conversation at Vegies had settled my nerves and I ended up with a painting that surprised even me. The fading light on the first trial shoot at Kali Das’ had made sure I painted the place at a later time when it had a great mood. I could not have gotten better light than what I had today morning at Jnan Ghosh. And finally it was Harrys’ where I redeemed myself because of nothing less than a divine intervention.

The painting came together with the shadow wash at the bottom

A cynic would probably dismiss it as coincidence, but not the romantic in me. During one of the shoots the director of the film had mentioned a quote about making documentaries.

“For fictional films the director is God but for a documentary, God is the director.”

I can’t speak for documentary films in general, but for me IITKGPEPA project has just illustrated this point.

En Plein Air at Harrys' — En Plein Air at Harrys’

Next Up - The Conclusion of IITKGP En Plein Air Project

IIT KGP En Plein Air Diary – Chapter VI

The Insignificant One

29 July 2017, Day 6 of the shoot

When sun comes out after continuous rains of almost a week, it really does look bright and glorious. The light looks fresh and the greenery even fresher. Which is how it was today morning -the lush green Jnan Ghosh stadium washed in the ochre light of the sun was a stunner. And when nature is at its best you know who the only real artist is.

Also read the Prologue , Chapter I , Chapter II, Chapter III, Chapter IV and  Chapter V of IITKGPEPA Diary!

With grass below my feet.... — With grass below my feet….

As I approached Jnan Ghosh stadium today early in the morning, I could see NSO classes going on in full swing. The physical training coach was shouting out commands for an aerobic session and a huge gathering of students in front of him were following his movements and instructions. As I got close their actions seemed to be almost nonchalant and understandably so. There was something common between the NSO squad and me today morning. Both of us did not want to perform what we were supposed to perform in Jnan Ghosh.

It was indeed a difficult task to paint today morning as I just wanted to enjoy the fleeting beauty of nature to the fullest. I wanted to enjoy that emptiness of space around me where Mother Nature was busy playing with an analogous and minimalist colour scheme of yellow and green. But I was there to do a job. So I tried to fill up my canvas with same hues and tones to capture the rare golden ochre light which was slowly turning harsh as the sun moved overhead.

The work I ended up with was a decent one. But still it was a humbling experience to paint at Jnan Ghosh stadium today. The beauty of nature is beyond human imagination and human grasp. Every time I am faced with such beauty it makes me realise of my insignificance and the insignificance of what I do.

But I guess this realization is a good thing and one of the major benefits of painting en plein air.

Next - Redemption at Harrys'

IIT KGP En Plein Air Diary – Chapter V

Head or the Heart?

27 July 2017, Day 5 of the shoot

Painting at night under outdoor lighting is an exercise in self belief. The outdoor light makes all colors look almost same. It is difficult to gauge even the tonality of the paint. In a nut shell, the visual feedback from the painting is almost gone. So you have to get a feel of how paint flows on paper and trust your instinct and go ahead with painting. Painting today evening at Vegies was no different.

Also read the Prologue , Chapter I , Chapter II, Chapter III and Chapter IV of IITKGPEPA Diary!

People don't come to Vegies just to eat — People don’t come to Vegies just to eat

People do not come to Vegies to eat. They come there to have conversations (not discussions), wonder about life (even afterlife in some cases), introspect, plan their futures, pass time, grow their love lives, find new love, discover themselves…… Some people come there just to be at Vegies. Vegies probably is at the heart of student life at KGP. And when you know you are going to paint something so close to heart of all KGPians and that too in the night, you know you are under pressure. I was quite nervous about the painting today.

Something's cooking — Something’s cooking

But when there is a problem, a solution often comes with it.

I set myself up to paint on one corner table. There were two guys already at the table, and as it turned out they were already aware of IITKGPEPA project. So a conversation started immediately between the three of us as I started to sketch. The conversation was about the age-old tussle between the heart and the head. The path of the head is always more predictable while the path of the heart is full of surprises at every turn. But following the later is more fulfilling than the former. And those who realize that there are actually two paths to choose from are always looking for answers to make up their mind. The two guys sitting with me, at the beginning of their adult lives and standing at the cross roads of head and heart finally turned to me to provide them with some answers. I carefully avoided answering such an existential question, because I don’t think such questions really have a clear answer. And frankly I did not have any answers at that point of time. I could sense that they were a little disappointed with whatever I had to offer. However the conversation had worked its magic and the butterflies had flown out of my stomach.

The film crew had also arrived by then and my painting seemed to progress well. The painting got over around the same time when Vegies was transforming to Eggies and it was becoming noisier and livelier. Back in the room under better lighting conditions, when I checked the painting to see how it had turned out, I was very pleased. What I had in front of me was different from the way I usually paint. It would not have turned out this way had I painted this under proper lights. Painting in full light surely would have been safer, more predictable (discounting the fact that watercolour itself is not very predictable) and eight out of ten times I would have made a successful painting. But by taking the risk of painting at night under street lamps and following my gut instinct I ended up with something that surprised even myself. But it does not always happen. In fact most of the time, it is a disaster. But today was a day when things fell into place and hence there was this small little self discovery sort of thing about myself as an artist.

More importantly I guess I had found some answers to the questions that I had avoided answering earlier in the evening today.

Next - Capturing the ochre light at Jnan Ghosh stadium

IIT KGP En Plein Air Diary – Chapter IV

A long due wish fulfilled

26 July 2017, Day 4 of the shoot

The Canteen at Nehru Museum, popularly known as “Kali Da’s”, was not on my list of places to paint; because it never existed twenty years earlier. But when I happened to be there just five days earlier, I really did not have to think about it twice. I knew I had to paint this place.

Also read the Prologue , Chapter I , Chapter II and Chapter III of IITKGPEPA Diary!

Kali Da’s is that kind of a place that transports you back in time. It slows you down completely. The canteen runs on the first floor of Nehru Museum on the rear side corridors. Big arched windows line the corridor, overlooking archaic tile roofed buildings cramped between centuries old banyan trees. The rays of the sun find it hard to penetrate the thick leafy canopy, but those that do – create a mystical ambience with the dappled light . And when it rains, it’s a sight to behold! It makes you forget about your isolated physical existence as you feel completely one with nature. And with the pocket friendly offerings of tea, snacks and shikanji, it’s a place that can inspire writers, poets, singers, dancers, and of course – painters.

I too was more than inspired when I went there five days earlier. In fact I was kind of desperate to paint this place. I did have a try on the first day of shoot in the afternoon. But the cloud cover had made the light too weak for shooting. The place from where I wanted to paint was middle of the alley that connects the front corridor to the rear corridors and the lack of light there did not make it easy to paint, let alone shoot.

The light where I painted was just manageable

Today, however, there was enough light for me to paint – though still not good enough for the film crew. But I am sure they still did get some great shots. Moreover; today not being a weekend the canteen was open unlike the last time I wanted to paint here. And there was this subtle buzz around with people enjoying tea and conversations. It really helped to build a great mood for the painting along with the sense of solitude that still hung around in the air, irrespective of the people present.

The final work was satisfactory. I think I did manage to capture the reflective and introspective mood of the place. But that was not the reason why I felt so happy and full of joy today. Though I saw this place just five days before, it felt as if a long due wish to paint in this place has been fulfilled.

En Plein Air at Kali Da's — En Plein Air at Kali Da’s

Check out what happens next when I painted Vegies under street lamps.

IIT KGP En Plein Air Diary – Chapter III

Saying a Prayer

25 July 2017, Day 3 of the shoot

It had been two days since our last shoot and the rain God has not been benevolent. To be fair, He had been kind for some time and we had shot at Harry’s yesterday under a light drizzle and fading light. But there was a goof up. The footage had gotten deleted by mistake. These were not good signs. Hence, I had prayed really hard this morning, and guess what -it was answered!

Also read the Prologue , Chapter I and Chapter II of IITKGPEPA Diary!

In the afternoon I saw sun’s rays for the first time in the last four days; and what a relief it was! The skies cleared up and within an hour I was there painting at the institute building, better known as insti building or just insti.

My fold-able palette best suited for outdoor works

It was admission time and classes were also getting over. Hence there was a big rush everywhere. The new guys were trying to find directions to various places; a few of them along with their parents. There were some parents who were leaving and hence having last words with their sons and daughters. I could catch some of the conversations and was amazed by how the parting words have not changed much over the years. The usual “have your breakfast in time, call every day, sleep on time…” stuff. Useless stuff really, but I guess all these serve well to hide the turbulence of emotions that parents go through at this point of time.

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The architecture of institute building looks deceptively simple. But its only when I started drawing out the shapes I realized how difficult it was to put it down on paper from a three quarter view. As I kept observing the structure to draw, I could not help but notice how massive and impressive it was. It stood there like a giant with the firmness of a mountain and gentleness of a mother. While the building extended a long way horizontally to keep it rooted, the library tower rose up and kissed the skies. It was like a metaphor of modern India that this very building has helped build; or at least has hoped to build.

The place where it all began twenty years earlier

With the kind of farewell moments happening around me, my mind could not help but drift back twenty years in time when I, as a first year student stood in front of this very building. Excited about being here yet, humbled by the aura of this structure I had prayed for a fruitful time for the next four years of my life. And those four years had been more than fruitful. It had been nothing less than a revelation.

My painting was coming to a closure just in time as the light began to fade. I was happy with the outcome. At the same time the memories of my KGP time were making me feel very nostalgic. Overwhelmed with the sea of emotions flowing through me, as I began to pack my kit I said a prayer for the second time today looking up at this great structure of modern India.

The film crew in action as I come close to completion

Nothing in particular; Just a prayer… I can’t even remember it now. Maybe it was for the success of IITKGPEPA project.

Read next part when I painted something that I had wanted to paint for 'a very long time'.

IIT KGP En Plein Air Diary – Chapter II

The Memory Remains

23 July 2017, Day 2 of the shoot

As predicted by the weatherman, the rain continued to pour. But we had a plan in place. And that plan was to paint at Azad hall where we would be able to get some cover. But I was not really ready for the cover under which I finally painted today.

(Please read the Prologue and Chapter I of IITKGPEPA Diary before continuing!)

Painting of Abul Kalam Azad at entrance of the hall

After a hearty breakfast at TGH I started off towards Azad hall with my umbrella. As I walked towards my hall of residence memories were starting to come back. The film crew had not reached our rendezvous and I had some time to kill. So I started to move around in the hall. As I walked around the hostel rooms, basketball court, play grounds, mess top, common room and corridors, everything around me were starting to play tricks on my mind. I was suddenly transported back in time. I was standing there not surrounded by buildings, but by memories. Memories that had lain dormant for a long time, but today they were so fresh that they felt more real than the physical reality around me.

I was shaken out of the trance by Ashok Da. And then I met up with Govind Da and Sam D. Azad HP (both ex and current) joined me soon and to my surprise they already had arrangements in place for the shoot. While painting at Nehru Museum yesterday I met with Piyush (Azadian) to whom I had casually mentioned about our plans of painting at Azad hall today. Meanwhile he had gotten in touch with Sashwat (Ex HP) who borrowed a multicolored picnic umbrella from the canteen at Krishna tower, so that I could paint under it.

Now painting under a multicolored picnic umbrella is really not simple. You have these different colors of light tinting your paper while painting which make judgement of colors quiet tricky. But that was the best arrangement that we had today and it is only such unpredictable challenges which makes painting en plein air all the more interesting. So I went ahead. But another challenge popped up even sooner.

The camera crew busy with their work as I am busy with mine

I was there to paint the scene in front of me. But my memories had completely overwhelmed me and I wanted to paint my memories. And in this tussle finally the latter won. I guess I had lost interest in the outer reality today as I was in deep touch with my inner reality. So eventually my brushes painted a scene from my memory. A happy memory of coming back to the hall after classes, having snacks at mess and having conversations with everyone. That was the time of the day when I would feel exactly like how it feels to be back home.

Painting displayed in the mess during lunch

And today while painting at Azad hall I was back home.

Next - My Experience while I painted Insti Building

IIT KGP En Plein Air Diary – Chapter I

The story always begins here

22 July 2017, Day 1 of the shoot

Today was the day when shooting for IITKGP En Plein Air project was planned to begin. And it did begin today, but not as planned.

At least that’s what I thought.

(Please read the Prologue to this story first!)

The shoot was supposed to begin at Jnan Ghosh Stadium at 6:00 in the morning. With butterflies in my stomach, all I could do last night was to keep turning sides in bed. Trying to check the time every now and then also did not help my cause. And then, around 5 in the morning, I heard the first drops of rain. Soon, it had turned into a relentless downpour; and all I could do was to stand against the large glass window of Technology guest house and look at the skies in desperation. There were no signs of the rains letting up.

nature too painted nehru museum — Nature too painted a picture of Nehru museum

It was 9 in the morning and the rain was still coming down, albeit much weaker. I checked the weather report for the day. The weather man’s prediction was not good at all. It was supposed to rain the whole day. Then I checked the weather report for the next seven days. And if I were to believe the report, the only time when we can shoot would be only after six days. KGP is supposed to have continuous rains for the next six days. At that point devastated would have been an understatement to describe how I felt.

camera crew in discussion — Camera crew in serious discussion

It took about an hour to gather myself and I started looking for possible solutions. A sudden passing image of chemical department came to my mind, which I had visited yesterday to find a possible aerial viewing point for Nehru museum. The cycle-stand of chemical department was covered and it had an open view of the Nehru museum. And hence I could paint from there even in rain. Suddenly energized with this new possibility, I packed my painting kit and started off. Soon the film crew joined me; and according to them the light was perfect for the shoot. But that was not the only thing that was perfect that day.

The cycle shed of chemical dept turned out to be one of the best spots from where I could paint Nehru Museum. It was drizzling and the wet roads and moist air created one of the most perfect romantic rainy moods for painting. As clichéd as it may sound, the atmosphere was magical. Hijli detention camp stood there nonchalantly like a graceful danseuse bathed in the rain and glowing in the faint warm sunlight trying to break through the cover of clouds. While it was difficult for anyone to miss her beauty, she made no airs about it. She just stood there today(as she had been doing all these years), watching rickshaw puller dada go about his job as usual while students came and went. She had stood there watching generations come and go. She had seen history being made and repeated. She stood there when IIT was born in her. And she stood watching even today as the IITKGP En Plein Air project took off.

Back in 1951 the story had begun here. And for IITKGPEPA it had to begin here.

Just as planned by the universe.

Next - Find out about my struggle while painting Azad Hall

Watercolor Workshop for School Children at Ahmednagar

I have always conducted watercolor workshops for adults only. Well, there have been young people in my workshops before. But never below the age of 15. I don’t believe in ‘teaching’ art to kids. I think when you teach art to children you take away their imagination and originality. So my workshop for children always has been more exploration and fun oriented. I don’t stick to a particular painting medium when conducting workshop for children. It more dynamic and fluid in terms of mediums. But in February this year, for the very first time I conducted a watercolor workshop for school children in Ahmednagar.

It was a two day watercolor workshop for about 30 school kids with their age varying from 9 to 13 at Col Parab’s school. However there were four more children who attended the workshop not belonging to this age. Two of them were six years old while the other two ‘children’ were sixty+ ladies. The ladies wanted to learn watercolor and they were really enthusiastic about attending the workshop. I was very happy to learn about the participants. But at the same time it was going to be a challenge to design something for such an audience and additionally it had to be such that it does not curb the natural instinct of the kids.

The Workshop Design

Demonstrating a technique — Demonstrating a techniqu

I had a a day free before the workshop. So I decided to meet the participants informally and learn about them which would help me design the workshop for them. I spent the entire day at school and went around seeing what the children were already doing in their art and craft courses. I happened to see some of their paintings and managed to talk to a few of them personally. What I noticed is that the participants were a hand picked lot who were already very good in drawing and painting and all of them really wanted to learn watercolors. That made my job easier. I decided to re-introduce watercolor medium to them focusing on the simplicity of the medium. My workshop was going to be about

Simple yet most important techniques of watercolor
Guide participants to handle watercolor in a better way
Making participants explore watercolor with good technique and handling

Watercolor Workshop – Day 1

The youngest participant in the workshop

The first day of the workshop started with the inauguration formalities. But it did not take too long and by 10:30 AM everyone was ready for the workshop. I started by explaining the difference between watercolor and other medium stressing on the transparency of watercolor medium. Next was a brief talk on the tools and materials of watercolor medium. The next couple of hours were spent in exploring different wash and glazing techniques.

I first demonstrated how gravity is used to lay down transparent washes of paint on paper. The children were used to paint with their paper placed flat on the ground. For washes they had to put the paper at around 20-30 degrees to the ground. It actually took me some time to get everyone to paint with an angle as they were habituated to paint with paper placed flat on the ground. But as soon as they started painting with a sloped paper wash technique became very clear and everyone could execute it successfully. Once the participants were comfortable with different washes I demonstrated glazing technique and soon they picked up that too.

The two 'young' ladies in the workshop along with Mrs Parab — The two ‘young’ ladies in the workshop along with Mrs Parab

After lunch I demonstrated how the wash and glazing techniques are applied in a painting. The subject I picked up was the tom of Salaut Khan which is a local tourist spot. So everyone could immediately identify with the subject. The participants then went ahead and painted the same subject. Though they were supposed to apply the techniques they had learnt I did not force it on them. But I was surprised to see the kids actually working with the techniques to paint. By the end of the day everyone had produced a good watercolor painting with very high degree of transparency. And I was a very happy man.

Watercolor Workshop – Day 2

Encouraged with the grasping power of the children, for the second day of the watercolor workshop I decided to go one step up. Along with exploring a few more techniques I decided to push the kids to paint from a live still life setup. The techniques that we explored on the second day were wet in wet, subtraction and dry brush work. Wet in wet technique was a little tough for the participants compared to the other techniques as one has to really have a feel of the paper wetness and paint consistency to get a desired effect. This is not a very easy technique, but I was sure the children would get a hang of it. We spent quiet a bit of time practicing this technique and many of the participants were successful in producing good wet in wet wash. But the real challenge for the day was yet come.

I set up a simple still life setup for the participants to paint. It was a simple setup, but painting from life is never simple. But I wanted the children to get introduced to the concept of painting from life as this is the best way to improve painting and drawing skills. Many of the participants stumbled in drawing out the still life itself as they were all used to drawing from photographs. But with some encouragement and a little guidance everyone finally finished their drawing. I then demonstrated how to apply all the techniques we had learnt over the two days to paint the still life. When it was time for the kids to paint I could sense they were a little wary of the challenge in front of them. So I told them to paint without fear and have fun without worrying about the outcome. It took a little bit of probing and coaxing, but finally the participants slowly settled into a groove and started going about their paintings with lot more confidence. After all painting is about confidence, self assurance and assertion and I wanted to see that in the works more than anything else. At the end of the workshop some of the participants were unable to finish their paintings due to lack of time. But in almost all the works I could see confidence and a carefree attitude along with decent application of the techniques. With such outcomes I could not have been happier.

For me this watercolor workshop was a very unique experience and a very fulfilling one. I hope I have been able to inspire some of the children to take up watercolors. Sometime in future I hope to get an opportunity to go back to Col Parab’s school and see it for myself.