Suchitra Bhosle
Sacred Spaces
Suchitra Bhosle
Sacred Spaces June 1-14, 2018
on the cover: Candle Lit Prayer oil 16x12
225 Canyon Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico www.MeyerGalleries.com 505.983.1434
Growing up in Bangalore, India, Suchitra Bhosle was exposed to the world of painting through two artists in her family- her father and grandmother-who helped establish an early appreciation for art. At the age of nine Suchitra proved her aptitude for painting by representing India, and winning a global art competition sponsored by UNESCO. Through school and college Suchitra continued to paint and exhibit her work in Bangalore. Armed with a post- graduate degree in marketing Suchitra entered the corporate world for a few years before she moved to the USA in 2001. She refocused her energy on her love for painting and made the most of the expansive learning opportunities available in the USA by studying with artists that have inspired her and are an integral part of her artwork. This includes Richard Schmid, Jeremy Lipking, Scott Christensen and Sherrie McGraw. Based in Sacramento, California, Suchitra has been represented by galleries in Sacramento and Palo Alto. Suchitra has immersed herself in learning, experimenting, and developing her skills and style by studying the works of masters that appeal to her, such as John Singer Sargent, Anders Zorn, Joaquin Sorolla, Nicolai Fechin and Jules Bastien-Lepage. When she is not painting, Suchitra finds joy in teaching painting and drawing techniques locally. The beauty of the female figure fascinates Suchitra and has been her focus. She strives to depict the atmosphere of the setting, and the mood of the model. She is aided in this by her study of the technical anatomical underpinnings that provide the foundation of her paintings, and the knowledge of use of color.
Luminous Entrance oil 16x12
This series was born out of a reverence for sacred spaces. Suchitra’s definition of sacred spaces includes physical places of worship that inspire a sense of awe and humility, as well as the intimate sacred spaces we hold within us in everyday moments of grace when our hearts are open and surrendered.
Apostle and Alcove oil 16x12
Suchitra is hoping to convey that places of worship are part of the same sacred continuum that happen in everyone’s day-to-day living. It could be a prayer, a thought or simply a beautiful gesture that stirs us to feel blissful and part of the whole.
Angelic Grace oil 8x6
Interior Light at Mission San Diego oil 16x12
Conversation with God at Mission de Assisi Taos oil 20x16
Suchitra’s use of white, gold and red reflects colors often associated with the sacred.
North Light on Altar oil 16x12
Passages and Arches oil 8x10
“There is abstraction in everything,” says painter Suchitra Bhosle, whose work falls under the framework of realism but is carried out with a loose, atmospheric style. Bhosle’s latest paintings for Sacred Spaces have grown even more impressionistic with quick brushwork and pure layers of pigment. Even with this increasingly energetic process, Suchitra Bhosle’s paintings keep a quiet, mysterious tone due to her skillful attention to light and nuanced color harmonies. “I’m drawn to the dynamic dialogue between shape and color,” she says. “Not necessarily the vibrant but the subtle relationships.” Sacred Spaces is an exhibition of nearly 20 works that convey this poetic realism. Suchitra Bhosle interprets a sacred space literally with paintings of church naves and interiors, subject matter she’s been exploring over the past several years as a departure from her female figures. Bhosle’s interior paintings are inspired by her time in California and the southwest as well as her Indian roots. Images from the Taos San Francisco de Assisi Mission Church, the Old Mission Santa Barbara, Uspenski Cathedral in Helsinki and more will be present in the show. Bhosle is drawn to paint these old world churches for their interesting architecture, intimate light and serene calmness.
Prayer oil 12x9
Golden Light oil 12x9
Statues in Conversation oil 10x8
Traditional Rajakumari oil 12x9
Luminous Light and Structures oil 9x12
Edge of Desire oil 16x12
Plein Air Minaret, Jadhpur, India oil 10x8
Nude in Cool Light oil 8x10
Suchitra Bhosle’s exhibition paintings also imply that a sacred space is not necessarily defined as a place of worship. Sacred in White, for example, depicts an Indian woman as she adorns herself with jewelry, symbolizing the cherished beautifying ritual of an Indian bride known as Solah Shringar.
Sacred in White oil 12x9
Plein Air, Updaipur Palace oil 8x10
Japanese Fan oil 12x12
Bathed in Moonlight is a more abstracted image of a nude woman draped in white cloth. The gestural brushwork surrounding the figure and illuminated colors of her drapery indicate the sanctity of the moment.
Bathed by Moonlight oil 7x5
Suchitra Bhosle Sacred Spaces A Moment in Red Angelic Grace Apostle and Alcove Bathed by Moonlight Candle Lit Prayer Conversation with God at Mission de Assisi Taos Edge of Desire Golden Light Interior Light at Mission San Diego Japanese Fan Luminous Entrance Luminous Light and Structures North Light on Altar Nude in Cool Light Passages and Arches Plein Air Minaret, Jadhpur, India Plein Air, Updaipur Palace Prayer Sacred in White Statues in Conversation Traditional Rajakumari
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Suchitra Bhosle
Sacred Spaces
A Moment in Red
June 1-14, 2018
oil 16x12
Opening Reception Friday, June 1, 5-7 PM
225 Canyon Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico 505.983.1434 www.meyergalleries.com