Tha Art of Raghu Vyas by banirangar

THE ART OF RAGHU VYAS THE CONTEMPORARY IMAGINARY REALISM

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

INTRODUCTION

A tribute to my parents Smt Ishro Devi & Shri Mahesh Chand Sharma

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

INTRODUCTION

This book is dedicated to my wife Kanak and son Anshuman.

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

INTRODUCTION

A B O U T MY W O R K

There are many lights; some that light the room and others the inner self. My paintings result from the light of my imagination. The forms and the models, I have used in my works are a product of my dreams and my imagination that are also bathed in this light. It is an emotional light that can convey a feeling, a mood or an idea. It is the light of nostalgia of a distant memory. An image may come to me complete; can I hold it in my mind? or, finish the painting before it fades? I don’t like to question myself. If I do, I am left with almost nothing or a less interesting painting. I listen to the still voice within, my intuition for guidance. I leave the thinking to the viewer. The interpretation, might sometimes be wanting, or reason obsecure, but there is often a power, luminosity in a successful work that resists all clarification, that I would never exchange for the most carefully composed idea.

A B O U T M Y C A N VA S

Most of my paintings are painted in oil on canvas. All my art works are based on the Renaissance technique. I apply three layers of gray paint on the canvas before I start painting, and use four more layers to complete my work. This helps me make big paintings on a smooth surface easily, and I am able to put down an idea without having to think about it too much.

R A G H U V YA S

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

INTRODUCTION

THE ARTIST AND HIS ART

Raghu Vyas is a self taught artist, whose roots takes him back to Basholi, the heart of Pahari miniature paintings in the later medieval period. His father, the late Shri Mahesh Chander Sharma, was the first MLA in Basholi from Praja Parishad in 1957. Though Raghu has been more inspired by the artistic memory of his native place rather than follow in his father’s footsteps. He taught himself to paint and from the very beginning decided to paint a series of thematic based works that were lyrical at the start and then transformed into spiritual and philosophical that the current works are very earthy and material in their content and spirit. His subject may be indigenous but the inspiration is western, in terms of motifs, composition and treatment. There is certain eclecticism in spirit in the choice of the thematic that have never remained static in terms of the series or the subjects. He worked around the human, physical and social landscape as seen mainly in the middle Gangetic valley in the Journey down the Ganga with Benares at its heart. He has also worked on the various deities such as Lakshmi and Saraswati where he paints in the venerated tradition of calendar art, an art that has nurtured popular imagination of the Hindu pantheon since the time of Raja Ravi Varma. He has build two series around the spiritual persona of Buddha and Krishna. With Buddha the meditative and as well as historical aspects of the hagiographic and familiar imagery inform the works while with Krishna, the mystical lover and flute player, lila or cosmic play of the deity as imagined and internalised by the bhakta or devotee have been emphasised in the series. Historical imagination, too, has been invoked in the paintings of Chanakaya and in the court of Chandragupta Maurya. The imperial splendour of the Mauryan period also finds an echo in the much later period of Sikh History that is largely inspired » by court and company art of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The court of

Maharaja Ranjit Singh and the kings who founded the Sikh kingdom after the period of the Sikh gurus and later period of British system of installing residents in the court of Indian princely states has been the main thematic choice in these works. Two particular works stand out, one of the court of the Sikh king, resplendent in the imperial regalia that had originally painted by the Hungarian artist August Schloefft; the other is the portrait of the vigorous and youthful Dileep Singh, splendid in the kingly attire. The Venus series stands out for his exploration of feminine beauty located firmly in the discourse of pleasure, in which he has amalgamated visual forms of imagining the sensuous female form whether it is during Graeco Roman era or Renaissance and Neo Classical European art. However this is further placed firmly within the traditional Indian idiom of imagining the feminine as seen in Mathura, Gupta and Medieval sculpture and Indian miniature paintings in rendering of the nayikas or heroines of the Ragamala, Ashtanayika and Padmini series, while also recalling Indian textual tradition on pleasure, the kamashastriya tradition such as the Ananaga ranga. The willingness to seek inspiration from varied sources and traditions, painterly, historical, lyrical and imaginative has been the hallmark of his paintings. Raghu’s choice of genre has remained steadily and consistently realistic, even when dealing with subjects that are distant in terms of time or are within the realm of imaginative consciousness. He eschews the abstract, especially in the backdrops that he paints in dramatic and vivid details. His unique strength is his ability to view his subjects uncritically which allows an exploration beyond silos or cultural/ historical constructs and references to usher an alternate world of fluid identity and virtuality. Dr. Seema Bawa T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Krishna and the cows III oil on canvas. 2017. 35x55 inches

INTRODUCTION

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

INTRODUCTION

A Shrine in the Cupbord II oil on canvas. 2015. 36x54 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

INTRODUCTION

The Robe of Enlightenment oil on canvas. 2016. 34x55 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

INTRODUCTION

Prayer oil on canvas. 2011. 24x36 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

INTRODUCTION

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

» Holy Face

oil on canvas. 2006. 30x38 inches Signed by his holiness the Dalai Lama

INTRODUCTION

THE DALAI LAMA

MESSAGE Raghu Vyas is a celebrated artist, who hails from Basohli, the town in Jammu famous for its tradition of miniature paintings. Although he has also exhibited his work abroad, he counts himself first and foremost as an Indian realist. I am happy to know that his forthcoming exhibition at the India Habitat Centre entitled Peace: The Universal Prayer includes a selection of his paintings on Buddhist themes. In the Buddhist tradition, not only are the desire and right of sentient beings to achieve happiness and overcome misery viewed as equal, but we are also all regarded as ultimately sharing the same potential to fulfil this goal. Since we are not solely material creatures, it is a mistake to place all our hopes for happiness only on external development. The key is to develop inner peace. From the Buddhist point of view all things originate in the mind. A real sense of appreciation of humanity, compassion and love, are the key issues. If we develop a good heart, whether our field of activity is science, agriculture, politics or art, since the motivation is so very important, the result will be more beneficial. With proper motivation these activities can help humanity; without it they can become destructive. This is why to have a developed sense of compassion is so very important for humankind. Although it is difficult to bring about the inner change that gives rise to it, it is absolutely worthwhile to try.

December 7, 2006

Âť

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Âť

INTRODUCTION

Wisdom of the Heart “Be ye lamps unto yourselves. Be your own reliance. Hold to the truth within yourselves as to the only lamp”. Gautama Buddha

Who does not know of the Buddha? And yet while we bring a name like this on our lips, we act so indifferently, forgetful of his quintessental message, as appended above. In the meanwhile, the times in which we presently live, have brought things to a pass, that is if we do not practise the wisdom of the heart, namely compassion, the ‘brave new world’ created by our undoubtedly amazing ingenuity, goes over the precipice. Buddha’s own wisdom or reason, was of course not a calculative computing intelligence but the one that orders into harmony the turbulent waters of our own wild emotions and blind instincts. This is why his plea to turn the self into a lamp. For when this lamp is lit, on its heels comes compassion, karuna. Painter Raghu Vyas is thus right to revert back to the timeless image of the enlightened one, who cannot of course provide us bodily comforts, but only those hints that could help us live calmly, in fellowship with kindred souls. Vyas certainly does not ignore the material body, for he does paint bodies, but those are of a certain kind-innerly steeped in the meaning of being human. He brings to his lamas, draped in free-flowing self-illuminating vestments, the silence of the Buddha. The expressions on their faces are invariably benign, gentle, quite as one of his lotus-borne, eyes-shut images. The great Himalayas where the dwindling monasteries perch are still happy homes to these blessed ones. The painter brings to his apparently natural and simple art a refinement that is skilful; he works out the gravity of the theme without lapsing into repetitious monotony. The principles of perspective are subscribed to and yet, equally, he takes recourse to the necessary artistic distortions. By such a method he transfigures age-old schematic symbols into warm, living figurations. The half-hidden lines and shimmering soft colours add to the tenor of the chosen mood. The emotional nuances and the integrity of the genre are well maintained in several of the compositions. Also the rich orchestration of his colour schemes is paralleled by the innovative or inventive values of form making; for instance where the Buddha’s linked fingers become an arch for the pilgrims of the spirit to pass into the sanctum of Buddha’s heart. Well, all in all, Vyas has done adequate justice to a subject, which in unskilled hands may well have been botched up, to appear merely maudlin, sentimental.

-Keshav Malik

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

INTRODUCTION

PEACE THE UNIVERSAL PRAYER

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Waiting for the Blessing -III oil on canvas. 2015. 24x39 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Meditation -I oil on canvas. 2013. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Enlightenment oil on canvas. 2016. 34x55 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

»»

Buddha and Lotus oil on canvas. 2013. 48x72 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

The Robe of Enlightenment oil on canvas. 2016. 34x55 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Waiting for the Blessing -II oil on canvas. 2013. 24x39 inches

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Waiting for the Blessing -I oil on canvas. 2012. 30x40 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Offering Lotus oil on canvas. 2015. 24x39 inches PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Buddha and the Little Lama oil on canvas. 2013. 24x36 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Dancing Monks - I oil on canvas. 2011. 36x54 inches

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Dancing Monks - III oil on canvas. 2015. 24x39 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Reincarnation oil on canvas. 2011. 40x60 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Buddha and his disciples II oil on canvas. 2011. 24x36 inches

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Vajara Mudras I oil on canvas. 2006. 38x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Dancing Monks -II oil on canvas. 2012. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Waiting for the Blessing- III oil on canvas. 2006. 43x66 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

The Spiritual Song oil on canvas. 2006. 43x70 inches

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

A Child Mastering All Sutras oil on canvas. 2006. 41x67 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Gateway to Heaven oil on canvas. 2006. 38x64 inches

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

Steps to Libration I oil on canvas. 2006. 40x67 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

At The Feet of The Master oil on canvas. 2006. 38x48 inches

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Sea of Compassion oil on canvas. 2006. 38x48 inches

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Peace The Universal Prayer oil on canvas. 2006. 32x66 inches

PEACE

T H E U N I V E R S A L P R AY E R

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

KRISHNA ROMANTIC FANTASY

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

EXPERIENCING KRISHNA THROUGH ART The wonderful thing about Krishna worship is that every individual experiences Krishna in his or her own way. Each way is as real and valid as the persona of the devotee. The fortunate few, like Raghu Vyas, translate and express this devotional experience through a creative process. In his latest series of over twenty-one paintings, Vyas has tried to transpose his personal, religious and spiritual encounter with Krishna on to the canvas. As a participating Vaishnava, Raghu believes in Bhakti, the doctrine espoused in the Bhagvata which involves the complete surrender of the devotee to the personal god, the ishta devata, who in this case is Krishna. The mystical tradition is expressed through varied approaches; bridal mysticism of Meera and Jaideva on one hand, or as imaging Krishna as Sakha or intimate friend as in the case of Surdasa, on the other. ‘I express the Sakhi Bhava of Krishna,” says Vyas. The predominance of the peacock and peacock feathers reflects this conventionally in Krishna worship. The peacock epitomizes the sakhi bhava. This is not to say that shringara rasa, or sentiment of love be it divine or/and erotic, is absent from his paintings. Indeed the Krishna in Vyas’s painting is the youthful Krishna, the beautiful Krishna, the creator of illusion and ‘raas’ in the world. Methodologically, he categorizes his work as belonging to imaginary realism where the motifs are done in a realistic genre but their composition and arrangement are entirely the artist’s creation. There is luminosity in his paintings, which carefully manage light and shade effects. According to the artist, “My Krishna paintings are lit by the light of imagination, the real light. It is an emotional light that can convey a feeling, a mood or an idea. It is the light of nostalgia of a distant memory, the light of the magical garden of childhood. The paintings are vibrant through the use of strong colours: the palette is dominated by yellow, blue

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

and pink; traditional and symbolic colours of yellow robes, golden flute, blue god and pink lotuses.” One can trace three significant influences. The first is linked to Raghu’s roots in Basohli famous for its Pahari miniature paintings. The detailed nuances of colours and form seen in Vyas’s work reflect this influence as does the paintings of a series considering the Baramasa, Ragamala and Ashtanayikas cycles that reveal different moods for different seasons/occasions. At a spiritual level his paintings are revelations that peal themselves as he surrenders to Krishna. Third, he is deeply inspired by the pictorial arrangements and techniques of the Renaissance. Painting in oil on canvas, he gives three layers on canvas before applying paint on it and uses four layers of colors to infuse a sense of threedimensionality and provide a fuller modeling to these forms. For the artist the method of painting on such a smooth surface thus quickly puts an idea onto the canvas without mulling over it too much which is apposite for making bigger sized works. This allows him to stay closer to the original feeling while giving the painting an almost sketchy quality. This is necessary for the artist because a complete image may occur to him and he fears that it will fade away before he can finish the painting. He does not like to ask too many questions, to edit or filter this vision. If he does, then “I am always left with dust on my hands or a less interesting painting. I listen to the still voice within the intuition for guidance.”Vyas leaves the thinking to the viewer and therefore “meaning might sometimes be wanting, or reason obscure, but there is often a power, luminosity in a successful work that resists all clarification, that I would never exchange for the most carefully composed idea,“he observes. He has painted his devotion through a depiction of a singing Meera entranced by her own imagined figure of a flute-playing Krishna, with an emphasis on devotee imagery with the female mendicant seated on the

lower right corner, along with suitable eroticism suggested. Raghu in ‘The Divine Saviors’ views Krishna not only as the popular pastoral god of love and peace but also a Universal Saviors, who not only saves the honor of Draupadi, but humanity as a whole. Echoing a similar sentiment is the painting ‘Angels in a Peacock Forest’ showing the boy god holding up Garuda to a bunch of people seated with a blue Vishnu, flying through a sea of peacock feathers. Here one sees the fruit of Vyas’s encounter with European Christian art in the deception of trumpet blowing angels flying at various levels. He has invoked diverse imagery such as placing a flute-playing Krishna flanked by a peacock and a woman wearing the same lotus pink and peacock feathers on the bank of a lake full of pink lotus flowers with Krishna in a lotus pond. Popular association of Vishnu with Lakshmi with a pink lotus as the goddess of fertility and prosperity is combined with the love pangs of separated lovers that epitomize Krishna imagery in Shringara rasa. Erotic love is predominant in many other works, as in ‘The Lover’s Music’ which shows the semi-nude gopi/Radha seated on a conch in the foreground with Krishna floating in a lotus pond with a pair of hansas, the traditional symbol of erotic love. The same sentiment finds an echo in the work ‘The Virahini Nayika’. Despite the overwhelming use of traditional imagery, contemporary motifs and devices demonstrate a strong presence. In a painting of a domestic shrine, ‘A Shrine in a Cupboard I’ Raghu illustrates the ritual practices of everyday life. A bust of Krishna, his symbol, a metal peacock, a conch, an open book and other accruements of household worship lie on two shelves of a cupboard. A similar work is ‘A Shrine in a Cupboard II’, the entire shrine alongside various other objects of popular devotion such as metal plaques and calendar images. » From this Vyas moves onto the next stage of religious experience, where »

the devotee visualizes the presence of the Divine Flautist within his little shrine. In the shrine within, Krishna occupies the mundane space in the household, sanctifying it in a way while interacting with the devotee at a more intimate level. The transition from the external symbols of ritual to the inner experiential world of the bhakta here is very interesting. In another painting of the same style ‘Who Lives Here?’ the viewer can see Krishna seated on a chair beside a covered table, with a framed image in the popular mould hanging above him, through an open door. The suggestion that the seated figure is a real presence, not just an icon is reinforced through this kind of juxtaposition of his anthropomorphic presence with the printed/painted image. The marigold hanging on the outside wall with a subtle peacock feather pattern balances the golden raiment of the lord within. The various moods and postures of Krishna reflect the contours of the artist’s intense relationship with the godhead. In a creative process filtered through Bhakti, he has constructed and deconstructed Krishna in this series. Dr. Seema Bawa December 2008

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

The Lover’s Music II oil on canvas. 2016. 30x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Pure Melody II oil on canvas. 2014. 36x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

The Mystical Musician II oil on canvas. 2008. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

The Virahini Nayika oil on canvas. 2008. 36x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Angels in a Peacock Forest oil on canvas. 2008. 40x60 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

Krishna and The Cows 1 oil on canvas. 2007. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

The Mystical Musician I oil on canvas. 2008. 36x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

The Golden Flute oil on canvas. 2008. 43x60 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

The Lover’s Music I oil on canvas. 2008. 36x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Shringara Rasa oil on canvas. 2015. 36x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

The Mystical Union oil on canvas. 2008. 36x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

The Shrine Within oil on canvas. 2008. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

Pure Melody oil on canvas. 2008. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Emerging From A Lotus oil on canvas. 2008. 36x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

The Mystical Musician oil on canvas. 2008. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

The Shrine In A Cupboard I oil on canvas. 2008. 43x60 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

The Shrine In A Cupboard II oil on canvas. 2008. 43x60 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

The Divine Saviour oil on canvas. 2008. 43x60 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Angels In A Peacock Forest -II oil on canvas. 2008. 36x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

The Lord In The House oil on canvas. 2008. 36x54 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Radha & Krishna On a Swing oil on canvas. 2017. 34x55 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

Lakshmi, Krishna and Saraswati oil on canvas. 2013. 36x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

100

Krishna and Buddha oil on canvas. 2010. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

101

Pure Melody -II oil on canvas. 2010. 36x48 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

102

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

103

Krishna and Sudama oil on canvas. 2011. 40x60 inches

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

104

Krishna and The Cows II oil on canvas. 2011. 36x54 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

105

KRISHNA

R O M A N T I C FA N TA SY

106

Nayika in The Moon Light oil on canvas. 2015. 36x54 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

107

THE DIVINITY

GOD AND GODESS

108

DIVINITY GOD AND GODDESS

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

109

Ganesha with Ridhi and Siddhi oil on canvas. 2014. 36x48 inches

THE DIVINITY

GOD AND GODESS

110

Goddess Lakshmi oil on canvas. 2013. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

111

THE DIVINITY

GOD AND GODESS

112

Navadurga: The Nine Forms of Goddess Durga - II oil on canvas. 2015. 34x55 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

113

Navadurga: The Nine Forms of Goddess Durga - I oil on canvas. 2014. 36x48 inches

THE DIVINITY

GOD AND GODESS

114

Maa Gauri oil on canvas. 2014. 24x36 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

115

THE DIVINITY

GOD AND GODESS

116

Saraswati oil on canvas. 2017. 35x55 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

117

Shiv Parvati oil on canvas. 2015. 24x39 inches

THE DIVINITY

GOD AND GODESS

118

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

119

Shiva with Nandi oil on canvas. 2014. 36x48 inches

THE DIVINITY

GOD AND GODESS

120

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

121

Ardhanarishvara: The Symbolic Unity of Prakriti & Purush oil on canvas. 2013. 36x48 inches

THE DIVINITY

GOD AND GODESS

122

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

123

Shrinath ji oil on canvas. 2015. 24x39 inches

THE DIVINITY

GOD AND GODESS

124

Lord Bala ji oil on canvas. 2014. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

125

Saraswati and The Angels oil on canvas. 2015. 36x54 inches

THE DIVINITY

GOD AND GODESS

126

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

127

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

128

SIKH HERITAGE PAINTINGS ON SIKH HISTORY

All paintings on Sikh history have been commissioned

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

129

Maharaja Ranjit Singh giving gold coins to Zaman Shah Duraani oil on canvas. 2017. 33x55 inches

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

130

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

131

Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Dalip Singh This is imaginary portrait by the Artist oil on canvas. 2008. 60x74 inches

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

132

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

133

Maharaja Ranjit Singh listening to the Granth Sahib at the Golden Temple. oil on canvas. 2015. 54x80 inches

(This painting is the reproduction from the orignal painting done by august schoefft, Lahore 1841) »

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

134

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

135

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

136

The Maharaja Ranjit Singh Court of Lahore oil on canvas. 2015. 54x84 inches

(This painting is the reproduction from the orignal painting done by august schoefft, Lahore 1841)

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

137

Banda Singh Bahadur oil on canvas. 2017. 60x84 inches

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

138

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

139

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

140

The Court of Maharaja Ranjit Singh oil on canvas. 2012. 48x72 inches

(This painting is the reproduction from the orignal painting) »

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

141

The Portrait of Maharaja Dalip Singh & The Court of Lahore oil on canvas. 2010. 54x72 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist from the orignal paintings)

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

142

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

143

The Golden Temple oil on canvas. 2009. 48x72 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist)

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

144

» »

Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji oil on canvas. 2012. 36x48 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist)

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

145

Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji oil on canvas. 2012. 36x48 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist)

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

146

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

147

Panj Pyare oil on canvas. 2011. 48x72 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist)

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

148

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

149

Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji oil on canvas. 2013. 48x72 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist)

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

150

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

151

Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji with Bhai Bala & Bhai Mardana oil on canvas. 2013. 36x48 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist)

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

152

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

153

Sri Baba Ji oil on canvas. 2013. 24x30 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist)

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

154

» »

Sri Guru Govind Singh Ji oil on canvas. 2013. 36x48 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist)

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

155

The Court of Maharaja Ranjit Singh oil on canvas. 2012. 48x72 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist)

S I K H H E R I TA G E

PA I N T I N G S O N S I K H H I STO RY

156

» »

Sri Guru Govind Singh Ji oil on canvas. 2012. 36x48 inches (This painting is the imagination of the artist)

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

157

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

158

VENUS THE ROMANTIC WORLD

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

159

THE ROMANTIC WORLD OF VENUS Embodying the Beautiful : Venus/Padmini in Raghu Vyas’s Pinterly version

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

160

Raghu Vyas has a made a journey from the spiritual to the physical, from the forest with a cavorting peacock and the flute- playing Krishna to the feminine charms of the Venus/Padmini in the latest series of paintings. His work is located in the discourse of female beauty and physicality that seeks inspiration from a long visual tradition of sculpting/painting of the female form in a voluptuous manner for male pleasure, starting from the GraecoRoman era to the Renaissance and neo-classical European art. However, his style remains the traditional Indian language symbol, rendered in visual forms through these seemingly decorative details seen in Mathura, Gupta and medieval sculpture and Indian miniature paintings, replete as they are with various forms of female beauty. The leitmotif in Raghu Vyas’s works is Venus, the Roman equivalent of Aphrodite, the goddess symbolizing beauty, love, femininity, sacred prostitution as well as fertility, ploughed lands and gardens; depicted in terms of the absolute norms of female beauty. She has an Indic equivalent in Usha, who has a Sanskrit epithet of vanas – referring to “loveliness,” “longing” or “desire”. As birth giver to Aeneas the primogenitor of the Roman people, Venus has a central role in Western religion. Mythology and art as evinced in the numerous appellations as well as aspects such as Venus Obsequens (‘Indulgent Venus’), exemplifying sexual indulgence, Venus Erycina (‘Venus from Eryx’) patron goddess of prostitution. Venus/Aphrodite to engage with

other mythological erotic figures of the erotic female such as Ishtar/Astarte Frigg and Frieva and multiple sacred erotic figures of the Indic traditions. It is this vision that has inspired the current ‘Bathed in Moonlight’ or ‘Leda and the Swans in the Lotus Pond’ redolently luxuriating in the still waters of pink blooms or padma blooms. Such an overt display of female charms through the sacred persona of Venus has been a favoured subject in Hellenistic/Roman art. Western art has produced multiple variations, often drawing inspiration from Praxiteles’ renowned sculpture Aphrodite of Cnidus. Often, modern art history places female nudes within the conventional rubric of ‘Venuses’ as illustrated in Venus de Milo(130 BCE), Venus de Medici, Capitoline Venus and the Venus Kallipygos, a form of the goddess popular in Syracuse. Vyas has used the goddess of sexual curative energy that justified delineations rich in amatory splendour, which perhaps appealed to both artists and their patrons. Some salutary works being Botticelli’s ‘The Birth of Venus’ (c. 1485), Giorgione’s ‘Sleeping Venus’ (c. 1501) and ‘Venus of Urbino”’(1538) with the goddess rising out of the sea, out of the foam or from a conch. Raghu depicts Venus as if through an Indian prism not only by adding lotuses, padmas to the aquatic environment but also peacocks and swans. An example at hand, ‘Awaking of Desire’ among the lotuses, shows two female figures in the lotus pond, one standing on the lotus, the other hovering above the water as cherubs float all around them, some holding golden orbs in their hands. Swans also disport in the waters, reaching out towards the beautiful maidens, thus enhancing the sensuality of the scene, given the fact that swans symbolize both chastity and seduction, light and darkness, are hansas and can allude to the myth of Leda as well. Aquatic symbolism is very strong in this series, as we see in his work ‘Venus Reborn’ ‘where a nymph lies curled up in a conch shell, ready to emerge from it, like a pearl from an oyster, pristine and delicate. Juxtaposed to this is a girl in the foreground, fully clad, sits next to a tiger, waiting eternally for the momentous birth of Venus from the sea. Padmini is one of the four kinds of women described in medieval Kamashastriya literature as the epitome of feminine beauty and charm, the most desirable of all women, perfect in all arts, well versed in erotic as well as intellectual arts. The artist asserts that for him ‘the Padmini’ represents the Indian vision of Venus. This Venus/Padmini figure disports in various postures like the stambha yoshita or yakshi/shalabhanjika figures on the vedika or railing pillars of Mathura. She listens to music, and poetry; sits in lotus ponds or rises out of them; plays with swans and birds; is seen with tigers and cupids; looking at her reflection in the moonlight, one is always aware of her beauty and physicality. She is marked sometimes by a voluptuous body; full round breasts, slim waist and wide hips. Draped in transparent clothes that reveals the figure beneath, the female form is rarely adorned with elaborate jewellery. Great »

attention is paid by the artist to enhancing her physical beauty. This is also done through posture, which is usually tribhanga, and through the movement of the body in performing various playful and at times provocative actions. One notices this in ‘Mayuri Disrobed’, where the swan tries to disrobe a flying peacock-haired yakshi like figure as another swan keeps pace underneath. One of the streams that has inspired Raghu Vyas in his conceptualization of Venus/Padmini are the nayikas in the Rasikapriya, Ashatnayika, Ragamala and Baramasa series of Pahari paintings that represent a synthesis of classical Indian elements and the innovative trends introduced by the Mughals. These nayikas or female protagonists display an unparalleled charm, which are generally conceived as the subjects and modes of expression. As in Vyas’s works the female form is idealized as slender and elegant, radiating infinite charm, sensitivity and refinement. Their delicate and fluid movements of irresistible grace, are further enhanced by the flowing lines of their drapery. The paintings are marked by a great deal of realistic detail that is a hallmark of the artist’s style who uses oil on canvas to capture minute details such as the curl of a lotus or the wisp of a peacock feather through his brush. The cupids, the skies, the clouds and the quality of light in the skies have a past Raphaelite European art quality about them, while the pinks of the lotus and the deep blues of the peacock feathers are inherently Indian and reflect Raghu’s Indo-European training. Compositionally a great deal of drama and narrative depth is introduced into the paintings through the architectural spaces in which the figures have been set. The palace like chambers, with wide window apertures that provides panoramic views of the vistas outside along with the attendant figures give a royal context to the female protagonist, who is often shown as longingly waiting for a lover as in’ Peals of Mystic’ and ‘Abhisarika: Yearning for Amour ’. One sees a synthesis of nature and culture, natural beauty and life that celebrate beauty of life in this series of paintings by Raghu Vyas. The female body is envisaged as a vessel of the virtues, as well as sexuality, revealed to the male gaze, located within the discourse of pleasure, embodying the erotic. Dr. Seema Bawa

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

161

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

162

Some epithets and characteristics of Venus are Libertina (or ‘Venus the Freedwoman’) liberated outside conventional marriage; Venus Felix (‘Lucky Venus’), as the protectorix of the Romans. Venus Genetrix (‘Mother Venus’) the origin. Venus’s aspect also partook Venus Amica (‘Venus the Friend’), Venus Armata (‘Armed Venus’), Venus Caclestis (‘Celestical Venus’), and Venus Aurea (‘Golden Venus’). Over time the goddess incorporated other deities in Venus Cloacina (or ‘Venus the Purifier’). A fusion with the Etruscan water goddess Cloacina and Venus Murica(‘Venus of the Myrtle’) with Murcia or Myrtle (the myrtle-tree). Ananga Ranga, Ch. III, tr. Richard Burton, 1885. She in whom the following signs and symptoms appear is called a Padmini. Her face is pleasing as the full moon; her body, well clothed with flesh, is soft as the Shiras or mustard flower, her skin is fine, tender and fair as the yellow lotus, never dark coloured. Her eyes are bright and beautiful as the orbs of the deer well cut, and with reddish corners. Her bosom is hard, full and high; she has a good neck; her nose is straight and lovely, and three folds or wrinkles cross her middle – about the umbilical region. Her yoni (vulva) resembles the opening lotus bud, and her love seed (Kama Salila) is perfumed like the lily that has newly burst. She walks with a swan-like gait, and her voice is low and musical as the note of the Kokila bird, she delights in white raiments, in fine jewels, and in rich attire. She eats little, sleeps lightly, and being as respectful and religious as she is clever and courteous, she is ever anxious to worship the gods, and to enjoy the conversation of Brahmans. Such, then, is the Padmini or Lotus woman.

The Princess of Fantasy: Sushmita Sen oil on canvas. 2012. 48x72 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

163

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

164

The Three Graces Charm, Grace & Beauty: Nicole Kidman oil on canvas year 2017 size 42x58

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

165

Nayika oil on canvas. 2017. 36x48 inches

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

166

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

167

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

168

Venus in the Lotus Pond oil on canvas. 2011. 48x72 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

169

Flight of The Swans I oil on canvas. 2009. 48x72 inches

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

170

Flight of The Swans II oil on canvas. 2009. 48x72 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

171

Femininity in Bloom oil on canvas. 2011. 36x48 inches

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

172

Mars and Venus oil on canvas. 2012. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

173

The Absence & Presence of Music oil on canvas. 2011. 36x48 inches

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

174

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

175

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

176

Messages of Love oil on canvas. 2012. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

177

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

178

Melody II oil on canvas. 2011. 55x80 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

179

Angels oil on canvas. 2010. 43x63 inches

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

180

Abhisarika Yearning for Amor oil on canvas. 2011. 32x36 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

181

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

182

Melody I oil on canvas. 2010. 48x66 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

183

The Flight to Venus -I oil on canvas. 2011. 36x48 inches

VENUS

THE ROMANTIC WORLD

184

The Portrait of a Princess oil on canvas. 2012. 36x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

185

HORSES

FREED OM WITHOUT RESTRAINT

186

HORSES FREEDOM WITHOUT RESTRAINT

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

187

Horses -I oil on canvas. 2016. 40x64 inches

HORSES

FREED OM WITHOUT RESTRAINT

188

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

189

HORSES

FREED OM WITHOUT RESTRAINT

190

Buzkhashi Horsemen - II oil on canvas. 2016. 30x48 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

191

HORSES

FREED OM WITHOUT RESTRAINT

192

» »

Buzkhashi Horsemen I oil on canvas. 2009. 60x120 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

193

HORSES

FREED OM WITHOUT RESTRAINT

194

Horses - II oil on canvas. 2010. 48x72 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

195

Banaras: Light & Twilight oil on canvas. 2012. 36x48 inches

HORSES

FREED OM WITHOUT RESTRAINT

196

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

197

Chanakya & the court of Chandragupta Maurya oil on canvas. 2014. 36x54 inches

HORSES

FREED OM WITHOUT RESTRAINT

198

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

199

PORTRAITS

COMMISSIONED

200

PORTRAITS COMMISSIONED

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

201

Kabir Bhanu Choudhrie oil on canvas. 2015. 30x40 inches

PORTRAITS

COMMISSIONED

202

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

203

Dr. Kanwar Deep Singh oil on canvas. 2016. 24x30 inches Chairman Emeritus, Alchemist and Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha

PORTRAITS

COMMISSIONED

204

Sir Chhotu Ram oil on canvas. 2017. 30x40 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

205

Anita Choudhrie oil on canvas. 2016. 24x39 inches

PORTRAITS

COMMISSIONED

206

Simrin Bhanu Choudhrie oil on canvas. 2015. 24x39 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

207

Pooja Ray oil on canvas. 2013. 36x48 inches Director, Mayfair group of Hotels, Orissa

PORTRAITS

COMMISSIONED

208

Sanam Bakshi oil on canvas. 2016. 18x24 inches

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

209

ACHIEVEMENTS

R A G H U V YA S

210

ACHIEVEMENTS RAGHU VYAS

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

211

Honored by Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, President of India in 2006 and collected the titled Gateway to Heaven

ACHIEVEMENTS

R A G H U V YA S

212

Presented a Painting to Shri Narendra Damodardas Modi in 2014, before he became the Prime Minister of India

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

213

Jointly worked on a painting title The Realm Bliss, Art for Freedom with Manisha Koirala, March 2007

ACHIEVEMENTS

R A G H U V YA S

214

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

215

ACHIEVEMENTS

R A G H U V YA S

216

Krishna: The Romantic Fantasy in Peacock Forest, The inauguration by Sushmita Sen

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

217

ACHIEVEMENTS

R A G H U V YA S

218

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

219

ACHIEVEMENTS

R A G H U V YA S

220

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

221

RAGHU VYAS (B.1956) Basohli, a small town of Jammu, famous for its 17th century miniature paintings.

ACHIEVEMENTS

R A G H U V YA S

222

» » »

EXHIBITION Raghu Vyas held has 26 one- man shows in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, UK and Canada in various group shows in India and abroad. Participated in national and international exhibitions, participated in a group exhibition at the Nehru Centre, London in June 1999. Series ‘A Journey Down the Ganges’ exhibited at Art Indus, New Delhi – 1998. Participated in two exhibitions as a tribute to Raja Ravi Varma in Delhi and Mumbai in 2004 and 2005. Participated in a group exhibition in Mumbai in January 2006 curated by ‘The Company Theatre’. Participated in an art exhibition in Singapore in February 2006 sponsored by Gallery Art Positive, New Delhi. Participated in group shows ‘Mayadarpan’ in Delhi and Mumbai in 2006. GROUP SHOW ‘Shiksha’ in New Delhi 2007 and 2008. Participated in a group show IMAGING SAI, sponsored by Gallery Art Positive, April 2011. Participated in art exhibition in South Africa, Sponsor by ICCR, July 2012.

» »

TRAVEL Singapore, Canada, Greece, Italy, London, USA, Netherlands, South Africa, Nepal, Paris and Switzerland.

» »

‘PEACE’- The Universal Prayer’ at India Habitat Centre, New Delhi in 2006. Krishna– Romantic Fantasy in a Peacock Forest, at India Habitat Centre, New Delhi-2009. Participated in India Art Festival, Mumbai – November 2012.

CAMPS Participated with forty Indian Contemporary Artists in Switzerland in 2008. AWARDS Jamini Roy Awards in Kolkata, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, awarded the Senior Fellowship for two years – 1998 to 2000.

HONOR Dr. A.P. J. Abdul Kalam, President of India and collected the painting title ‘Gateway to Heaven-II’ for Rashtrapati Bhawan, New Delhi 2007. Indo-US Cooperation: Presented a painting to Senator and Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, Mr. Jesse Helms in 1999. FILM In 2001 made a 50- minute documentary film Rasamanjari for the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India.

SOLOS SHOW

PUBLISHED Ten paintings in the series of ‘PEACE’ –The Universal Prayer’ published in Marg Magazine in 2007. Painting title “Vajra Mudra – 1” published on the cover Buddist Art Form and Meaning edited by Dr. Pratapaditya Pal, published by Marg in 2007.

» » »

» » » »

COLLECTIONS National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), New Delhi, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi. Air India, Completed 24 paintings for Hyatt Regency Kolkata and Mumbai, various national and international corporate houses in India and abroad. Dr. Kanwar Deep Singh, Chairman Emeritus, Alchemist & Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha has a collection of my finest paintings of Sikh History. STUDIO G-21, Lajpat Nagar, Part -1, New Delhi – 110024, India Mobile: +91 8588830222 Email: raghuvyas21@gmail.com Website: www.raghuvyas.com

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

223

BANI RANGAR Graphic/Visual Designer

EDUCATION Master of Graphic Design & Digital Media from The Academy of Art University, San Franscisco.

WEBSITE www.banirangar.com

banirangar@gmail.com

DESIGNER

BANI RANGAR

224

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

225

First Edition: 2000 copies All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be transmitted in any form, manner or media, including photography, recording in any form of storage and retrieval system, nor may the pages be applied to any materials, cut, trimmed or sized to alter the existing trim sizes (or) matted or framed with the intent to create other products for sale or resale of profit in any manner whatsoever, without prior permission in writing from the publisher —Raghu Vyas.

» » » » » » »

Published by: Raghu Vyas Conceived & Designed: Bani Rangar, www.banirangar.com Content Compilation: Lalit Mohan Sharma Text: Dr. Seema Bawa Printed: Solar, New Delhi, India Special thanks: Kpr Nair, Kanak Vyas Distributed by: The Variety Book Depot India, varietybookdepot@gmail.com

226

T H E A R T O F R A G H U V YA S

227