23 Mar 2018 | 06:13am IST
CAPTURING THE BEAUTY OF GOAN HOUSES
Every Goan home has its own charm, and through her paintings, Japanese artist Akeru Barros Pereira is bringing oft forgotten houses back into perspective. Giving Goan houses a second life in the world of art, Akeru will be showcasing her exhibition of paintings that celebrate Indo- Portuguese architecture. Café speaks to the artist to know more about her working style
Akeru Barros
Pereira is no stranger to Goa. She is
a writer, teacher and artist by profession, who lives and
teaches in Japan. Married to Joao Barros Pereira from Cansaulim, Akeru has been
visiting Goa since her marriage and finds Goa exotic compared to life in Japan.
Her fascination and love for painting Goan homes goes back nearly three
decades. Her first sketch was her husband’s ancestral house in South Goa. “For
somebody from Japan, Goa is very exotic. When I visited Goa for the first time,
the Indo-Portuguese houses captured my attention. I was fascinated by the
combination of houses and coconut trees. I wandered around the neighbourhood of
my husband’s house with my cameras. I am simply happy to draw or paint,” says
Akeru. She loves to draw Goan houses because these houses are a mixture of
both, Portuguese and Indian architecture, and the fruit of Goan peoples’ hard
work.
She is currently showcasing her works based on Indo-Portuguese
Goan houses in an exhibition called ‘Casas Goesas’ at Carpe Diem, Majorda. The
exhibition will be open to the public till April 1, 2018. She works with the
unique combination of Chinese ink, watercolour and colour pencils on Japanese
paper. “The materials I use are simple; colour pencils, watercolour, and ink
and paper for calligraphy. Every elementary school kid in Japan uses them at
school and the materials are available in ordinary shops. If I can have an
exhibition using these materials, anybody can do it.”
Akeru is a comic book
writer who has written several storybooks for children in Japan. “I was a manga
writer. I did both stories and illustrations. I haven’t been to any art school
but I’ve always liked drawing. After bringing up my two children, I started to
draw and paint again,” she says.
Akeru’s first
exhibition was ‘Houses of Goa’, which was held at Kala Academy, followed by her
second exhibition at Arossim Beach. Gerard Da Cunha, architect and curator of
Houses of Goa, was very supportive in bringing out the exhibitions. He has
featured 50 of her sketches in his book ‘The Indo-Portuguese House’.
“I am not a full-time
painter. I have to go to school to teach and also have to do all the
housekeeping work. So I don’t have much time to draw or paint. But there are so
many beautiful houses in Goa, so I will continue to draw them when I have free
time. I hope these houses, big and small, will be preserved.
I’ve
come across different houses, cute little ones and even rundown ones; the latter
I have painted unbroken. Some pretty houses have disappeared after I’ve
sketched them. When I see old houses, I feel the feelings of the Great Goan
masons and carpenters who created them and the people who lived in them. I feel
the joy and tears. That is what I try to capture in my drawings and paintings,”
says Akeru, who will be featuring more of South Goa homes in ‘Casas Goesas’.