In the art world, the real and surreal are two starkly contrasting styles, yet when juxtaposed in the context of our everyday lives, the realistic, dreamlike images can be interpreted and identified with. Artists have often veered into either of the pure forms and art exhibitions have shied away from bringing these two contrasting styles on one platform. But Carpe Diem at Majorda decided to break the mould.
”Basically, what I wanted to do is exhibit the surreal and real, but not in a straightforward way. Rather, in a deliberately contrasting manner, I wanted to portray living forms in a realistic and surrealistic style, so people would know and understand the difference,” avers Daegal Godinho, owner, Carpe Diem, who invited four of Goa’s most seasoned artists in both fields to interpret and exhibit their works in a collective exhibition – ‘Of Forms –Real and Fantastical’. “Very often, you have people trying to contrast the real and the surreal. What I have asked the artists to do is starkly contrast the dream-like surreal work with realistic forms,” he adds, while elaborating on the style of each artist.
“Xavier Lobo has done some very detailed surreal forms, while his wife Jacinta has brought in a more realistic form to her work, but contrasted it with the surreal. Norman Tagore, on the other hand, is an artist who focuses on the realistic portrayal of the human form. And yet again, Jacob Philips’ style of artwork blends realistic images and memories from his childhood experiences with very detailed, dreamlike textured backgrounds. The way we view our world and interpret its meaning is subjective and varies from person to person,” explains Daegal.
(Of Forms – Real and Fantastical, a group exhibition, will open at Carpe Diem, Majorda on October 31, 2015 at 7pm. The exhibition will remain open till November 8, 2015 from 10am to 7pm).
Box:
On canvas:
Xavier Lobo – A surrealist to the core, Xavier’s work often uses imagery of powerful forms (Gods, Maestros, Prophets) to take main stage while the smaller mortals struggle in the background, roaming in an underworld full of creatures to be found only in the deepest recesses of the subconscious mind.
Jacinta Lobo – A surreal artist, Jacinta excels at fusing the everyday forms, whether large (human) or small (birds and insects), with elements of nature not normally associated with them. Her images, whether of a woman in a paddy field located in the sky, or sitting on a suggestive mushroom, evoke a wide range of reactions from fantasy to eroticism.
Norman Tagore – Norman is an artist whose styles range from realistic portrayals of the human form to pop art and graffiti. Through a series of charcoal nudes in this series, he brings about a stark contrast to the surreal world with simplistic strokes that depict the human body as we know it.
Jacob Philip – A more recent artist, Jacob’s style of artwork blends realistic images and memories from his childhood experiences to stories and lullabies remembered, with very detailed dreamlike textured backgrounds. His true to nature horse forms are presented with new appendages that stem from his creative imagination while his mother and child paintings are a deconstruction of his own emotional experiences.
