Colours of Rajasthan brought alive at painting exhibition

It's a veritable riot of colour at artist and curator Priyanka Banerjees painting exhibition which brings alive the real textures of Rajasthan.

Presented by Seems, the exhibition titled "Mirage" which is being held at the India Habitat Centre here, showcases Banerjee's love for travel that has taken her far and wide in the country and across the globe.

Amidst her myriad likes for various cultures it was Rajasthan that she fell in love with.

"I have travelled extensively across the length and breadth of the state and it captivated my mind. I was taken aback by their hospitality and wanted to share my experience. And what could have been better than portraying them on canvas," Banerjee told IANS.

From Pink City Jaipur, to the bylanes the limestoned walled city of Jaiselmer, from the palace city of Jodhpur where she has captivated the glory of Mehrangarh fort to the ruins the city of lakes, Udaipur, from Chittorgarh which reminds the beauty of queen Padmini and tales of her jauhar to the natural reserves of Ranthambore, Sariska as also to the Pushkar cattle fair - each narrative is about the artist's own lived experiences.

The 25 paintings capture the soul of the state it all through her camera, sketch-pad, paints and brushes using different mediums like watercolour on paper, soft pastels on paper and acrylic on canvas.

"Some of the paintings like those based on acrylic took around eight days to complete while the watercolours were completed in a few hours," Banerjee added.

A long-time admirer of Raja Ravi Verma, Banerjee also gets inspiration from contemporary artists like Biplob Biswas, Vijay Biswal and Bikas Bhattacharjee.

--IANS

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