Samira
Sheth
‘Transit
Goa’ is the name young artist Osbourne Carvalho titles his show, that was recently
held at Panjim restaurant Malaka Spice. The restaurant formed an unusual venue
for an art exhibition, but then again, Osbourne’s work is equally unusual. He
draws upon Goa – the idiosyncrasies of its culture, its people, its language – to
paint a picture not always flattering. This is a Goa in transit. Times have
changed and not for the better and it is this flux that is reflected so well in
Osbourne’s works.
So many
touchy topics can be explored through Osborne’s
deceptively light-hearted style. The humour is very subtle and can be
quite cutting at times, drawing a point home with sharp clarity. The artist, an
alumnus of the Goa College of Art, also worked in graphic design for a while.
His background influences his graphic comic book style imagery, which works
well to marry technique with subject. His bold colours, his fun style, the
comic strip approach seem to render the works flippant at first glance and yet
the subject is serious when one takes a closer look.
In one of his paintings, ‘Proposal’, he takes
a tongue in cheek look at ‘modern’ Goa where the caste system still rules. Says
Osbourne, “If you read the Matrimonials in any local paper, you will see that
apart from the usual criteria like looks, education, etc the caste is also
almost always a requirement.” In another, ‘Anton’, he confronts a couple of
lewd eve-teasers eyeing a woman on the beach. There is a veiled critique of
modern day society with its socially praised values and its ‘real’ agendas, of
a flawed social conscience, of its way of looking at women, of social prejudice
and so much more.
Visually,
the work is startling and bold with figures delineated in strong strokes.
Osbourne puts in a line or word of text in some of his works, using Konkani to
root his paintings firmly in Goa.
He says,
“I observe people very closely to find inspiration for my paintings. I go and
sit on the beach or in a market, and listen. I find it very interesting. Sometimes, I overhear a comment and then
build a story around that. What people talk is also incorporated; I like to use
local dialogues.”
Vivid and
peppered with interesting local characters and flavour, Osbourne Carvalho’s
artwork leaves viewers with lots to think about.
