Ganesha comes alive in paintings, sculptures

CHENNAI: One could easily spot a small pillayar statue in almost every street in the city.

“Lord Ganesha has that unique charm among his devotees and that’s the reason you could find his statues in every corner,” smiles artist P Gopinath.

The semi-abstract artist is excited to present his Ganesha paintings at the ‘Mystic Ganesa’ exhibition at the Cholamandal Artists’ Village.

The exhibition of paintings and sculptures of lord Ganesha is hosted by the Progressive Painters’ Association to mark its 78th year of inception.

This is the first time a theme like Ganesha has been given to the artists who are part of the Progressive Painters’ Association.

“It is a strange theme/concept for many artists. You can have a fantasy or surrealistic approach to it. An artist or a sculptor can depict God in many ways. For this exhibition, artists were given the freedom to select their media. I used the abstract format to portray Ganesha. In one of my paintings, you can see Ganesha having a chat with a bird with chaos in the background,” adds Gopinath.

S Saravanan, president of the Progressive Painters Association, assures that the ongoing exhibition is a visual treat for the audience. “Eighteen artists and sculptors are participating in this group show. Each of them has presented their work in a unique manner. We planned to host it during Ganesh Chaturthi, but didn’t work out that time.”