Mohan Singh, whose latest work is being exhibited by Gallerie Ganesha, is one of Delhi?s more gifted painters. His trenchant drawing courses across his canvas like a lancer in the field of battle, creating supple and mobile forms whose movement brings them alive with colours flowing through them like blood.
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Nayika by Mohan Singh |
It is no accident that some of his most powerful works, like Please Madam, Don?t Do It, with a wayward young gold-digger pursuing the golden geese with a knife, or Meditation, reflecting the easy flow of consciousness from day to day life, or In Deep Thought or Red Chilli are all steeped in tones of red.
Also, while the figures are stylistically very much like those of our modern ?Generation X? boys and girls, the way they gesticulate reminds one of the mudras of our classical dancers. This ought to remind us that globalisation is a two-way process. One ought to know what to resist and what to imbibe.
Mohan Singh?s greatest quality is the manner in which he uses day-to-day transactions between ordinary people to highlight the extraordinary intensity of cultural interpenetration in the wake of the information revolution.
His quizzical pundits?pigtail and all?seem to be contemplating the possibilities opened up by computers to generate propitious dates and cast horoscopes. Underneath the playful innocence, we see its hard and calculating nature. The ?Nayika?, for all her invitation to a quick peck of the moment, concentrates on a domesticity that eludes her. The security of a roof over one?s head surfaces again in works like Desire, Playmates and Lovers, reminding one that behind all the innocence, there are very hardheaded ideas of survival. Even the figure contemplating a red chilli pepper has an alternative pair of bananas close by.
Characteristically, Mohan Singh does not make choices for the viewer. He leaves it to one to choose what one wants. And this ploy forces the viewer to integrate himself with the issues posed by the artist. Mohan Singh is neither innocent nor unpractised. He is a well-trained artist perfectly capable of arousing one?s interest in his work. And he does so with panache and finesse.