IN SYNC Recent works - Anand Gaddappa Nirmala Bulika 23 - 31 March, 2010 Having been inspired by ‘folk’ performances/theatre of Andhra in general and pup- petry in particular, my subject matter becomes a symptomatic narrative but with more of a wittiness infused in it. The characters often are depicted as marionette, being engaged in amusement at an indistinct spatiotemporal arena that mirrors the state of affairs in every day life around us. My present series of watercolors embody peculiar affiliation between male and fe- male and the preeminence of woman in a constructive sense. Some of the works also are associated with various deities that belonged to ancient cultic practices; sen- timentally they are representations of fantasies born out of fear, love, and sensuous pleasure. The ancient cult of goddess adoration is correlated with primeval ideas of fertility, regeneration and the cosmos. For instance, Cybele, an ancient fertility goddess, whose worship is thought to have spread from Anatolia to Greece in the Archaic period (c. 800-500) and further during the Hellenistic period (c. 300-50), is associated with tiger or lion. In Indian context, she is known as Devi, the great goddess, who is concurrently influential, ferocious, seductive and gentle. Similarly, Devi is also a synonym for a beloved lady (in Sanskrit language), who is adorable, stubborn and possessive. I am immensely fascinated with these epitomes, which re- sulted into a theme/resource for my visual space. Thus, here in my paintings, the female character is depicted as goddess/Devi, who is trying to tame the beast, a male counterpart. Anand Gadapa My art has permitted me a sort of ‘autonomy’ to express my emotions through these physiognomies, while preserving the humor in portraying people and situations. My caricature-like images also ignite the viewer's imagination and contemplation and his or her emotional and vulnerable side as my nostalgia poetically and sym- bolically integrated in my paintings. In fact, it’s my desire to stimulate the viewer's frame of mind and wish to create a reality in which the viewer can live in. Formal- istically, the composition of figures is inspired/borrowed from ‘traditional’ imagery, which demonstrates the aesthetic/visual pleasure, and generates ambiguous mean- ings. I deliberately made an attempt to show the ambiguity via metaphoric rudi- ments, gestures, and the formulation of visual vocabulary to obscure my intentionality and interpretation. Adoring Venus 40 x 28 inches, water colour, 2009 Artemis 40 x 28 inches, water colour on paper, 2009 At an evening party 28 x 40 inches, water colour on paper, 2009 Bastet, the Goddess of protection 40 x 28 inches, water colour on paper, 2009 Blowing one’s own trumpet 40 x 28 inches, water colour on paper, 2009 Cybele 2 40 x 28 inches, water colour on paper, 2009 Diane 29 x 21 inches, water colour on paper, 2009 Do you love me? 29 x 21 inches, water colour on paper, 2009