Page 106 - Eye of the beholder

PRABHA B B [1933-2001]: THE THE FEMININE AESTHETIC
"It is my aim to paint the trauma and tragedy of women“
B Prabha preeminently was an artist who developed her feminine aesthetics with a a a a a a a a distinct signature style Her women were beautiful dark complexioned elegant tall stately and accentuated by colourful saris and accessories that often reflected their social status Her imagery of of women also marked an an ode to her spirit and celebration of feminine energy which served as a a a a a a a trope in in in in signaling their hardship struggles and angst as they ploughed through life silently but carrying the the the pathos in in their their large eyes that ultimately becomes the the the mirror of of their their soul Speaking about her body of of work Prabha once said "The core theme of my paintings was always women and their sufferings I have seen them them and observed them them closely I did not just think of the the the urban woman but also those in in rural areas who were as as creative They exude so many emotions to portray " Before arriving at at her figurative idiom Prabha worked in an an abstract abstract language Yet these abstracts were the the distillation of forms derived from nature and and rustic habitation engaged through lines colours and and textures The essentialization of of forms was the result of of her her study and experimentation making her her canvases stark and and restrained with the the generous application of paint in in in the the background and and subtle nuances of monochromatic shades in in in her her forms and and objects Lines dominated her her abstracts and and generally engaged with with with one dominant hue with with with its tints and shades with with with background covered in in in in sweeping broad brush strokes It had strong resonance to Post-Impressionist artists particularly Cezanne Born in in in in the village of Bela near Nagpur in in in in Maharashtra in in in in 1933 she grew up in in in in a a a a a a a a a close knit middle class family She studied at the Nagpur School of Art and went on pursue a a a a a a a a Diploma in in in Painting and Mural Painting from the the Sir J J J J School of Art Mumbai Her first show while she was still in in in the the art school proved memorable as Homi J Bhabha an an eminent Indian scientist acquired three of her her her paintings This gesture boosted her her her confidence and after that her her her artistic journey remained successfully fulfilled Although she she worked mostly with oils on canvas she she also explored several media styles and subjects before finally settling with oils as her preferred medium Her art grew and developed from her her intense experimentations and she ultimately settled on on on her her expressionistic feminine imagery Her oeuvre covered a a a a a a a a wide gamut of subjects from landscapes urban and and rural scapes and village compositions with groups of of young women selling their ware of of earthen pots or socially conscious groups of women engaged in in playing cards Her compositions fundamentally constituted either single figure pensive and contemplative or or two forms who hardly communicate with each other The structuring of her her compositions was equally interesting interesting in in in in in in in the the manner she placed her her figure either frontal or in in in in in in in profile against interesting interesting backgrounds backgrounds of their rustic homes or uneventful backgrounds backgrounds with emphasis on women either carrying a a a a a a a basket or holding fish in in in in her her hands The textural quality obtained through palette knife offered visual titillation and the lack o of drama made her works placid A significant component of of Prabha’s body of of work was the artist’s self-conscious attempt to immortalize the plight plight of Indian women Yet this plight plight hardly makes an an impact as her visual language does not bear correspondence to her imagery which though accentuated was romantic and sentimental than than emotional The design element captures the the imagination more than than their lived reality Settling in in in Bombay after her her marriage to to the sculptor B B Vitthal in in in 1956 her her perceptive acumen observed experienced and internalized the life of of women of of different social status It was her sensitivity and and artistic sensibility that she filtered these experiences and and zeroed on to portray the the less privileged particularly the the rural women folks that populate her canvases largely 100