Bringing Art into Homes Across India: Naresh Agarwal's Table Calendar
Artist and academic Naresh Agarwal, hailing from Gangtok, Sikkim, has launched a unique initiative a table calendar featuring a curated selection of twelve of his paintings. This endeavor aims to bring his art to people's homes, not just in Sikkim but across India.
The Artwork: A Reflection of Indian Life and Culture
The table calendar showcases twelve paintings that depict various facets of Indian life and culture, with three works set in Sikkim. These paintings span Agarwal's artistic journey from 1997 to 2022 and include ten watercolors, one oil painting, and one acrylic work. The sizes range from 9x12 inches to as large as 2x3 feet.
- January: Goddess Saraswati, symbolizing wisdom and knowledge, is depicted with a lotus crown and peacocks forming her necklace, earrings, and bindi as she plays the veena.
- February: Lord Shiva, the destroyer in the Hindu trinity, is portrayed in the painting titled Shivoham I am he, drawing inspiration from Adiguru Shankacharya's eighth-century poem Nirvana Shatakam.
- July: Lord Jagannatha, the Lord of the Universe, is depicted during the Rath Yatra festival, flanked by Subhadra and Balabhadra.
- August: Tiranga A Taj called India, an oil painting started in 1997 in Gangtok, marks fifty years of India's independence by featuring the Taj Mahal surrounded by the national flag's colors.
- September: Padharo Mahre Des, a portrait of an elderly man playing a long bamboo flute in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, references a folk tune based on Raag Maand.
- October: Ekla chalo re Walk alone, an imagined scene of Mahatma Gandhi walking through the forests of Barsey in West Sikkim, takes its name from Rabindranath Tagore's famous Bengali song encouraging moral courage in solitude.
The Inspiration and Influences
Agarwal's paintings draw inspiration from Raja Ravi Varma, who made affordable lithographs of his paintings available to the public in the late nineteenth century, turning them into familiar images in Indian households. Two paintings in the calendar are inspired by the nineteenth-century works of William Simpson during his travels through British India.
Relevance to North East India and Beyond
Agarwal's table calendar is a testament to the rich cultural heritage of India, with three works set in Sikkim. This initiative also underscores the growing prominence of artists from the North East region, who are increasingly contributing to the cultural landscape of India and beyond.
Looking Ahead: The Future of Naresh Agarwal's Art
Naresh Agarwal's table calendar is a significant step in making his art accessible to a wider audience. His artistic journey continues to evolve, with ongoing training and workshops with contemporary Indian master artists. As he continues to create and share his work, Agarwal's art will undoubtedly continue to enrich our understanding of Indian life and culture.