Several young artistes came forth with their spontaneous creative response in the form of dance, music and poetry to the exhibition, Therapeutic Value of Art curated by Susan Bullough and Sam Bullough which was held at Gyaan Adab over two weeks.
In the stillness of the night the images of the finale’s talented performers float before my mind’s eye like an enchanting tableau.
The initial contemporary dance performance by Pooja without any background music was a stunning start to the program. Her brisk movements and evocative gestures depicted her heart’s innermost turmoils and an effort to break away from life’s stifling shackles.
Amona’s reactions to Sam Bullough’s Masks and paintings by other artists came in the form of two poems –‘ Rendezvous with me’ and ‘I find myself”. She said the paintings caused an artistic awakening within her and further made her aware of her own imperfectness and incompleteness.
Karishma said that she was impressed by Sam Bullough’s intellectual paintings that depicted the dichotomy of life. She expressed her thoughts and emotions through graceful dance movements, one slow to reflect sorrow and the other brisk to express the joy of living.
Divya, overwhelmed with emotions gave vent to her feelings of ‘tangled masses’ in her poem “Piece of Me”. Her short sentences and cryptic phrases gave a sharp edge to her expression.
A vigorous duet dance by Karishma and Pooja enthused the audience with a joie de vivre. Their brisk rotating movements around each other brought to my mind two lithesome fishes swirling joyfully.
In a lighter vein again – (name?) came out with some jokes about a lonely man in bar, a woman who choked with unuttered words that eventually spilled out like “pennies from upside down pockets”. She dedicated her poem to Susan.
Sucheta, a veteran graphic designer and photographer rendered her explanation of
Sam’s Masks and some paintings by other artists. ‘A Roaring Lion’ within every person that is struggling to break through the barriers of inhibitions and to and express his/her individuality. One needs a ‘Feather Touch’ as depicted in Susan’s painting to act as a healing touch.
Khushboo spoke about the theme of anger in some paintings. How an artist could overcome anger by giving vent to his/her feelings on canvas, look at it in a detached manner and thus get over it. Her thumping performance on the djembe pulsated in unison with my heart beats.
Varun, strumming on his guitar sang a cheerful song about ‘Sunshine in every face…smiling.’ I admire his confident attitude and positive outlook to surmount any inevitable painful crisis in life.
Randhir Khare in his vote of thanks extended his gratitude to Gyaan Adab for promoting fresh talent in diverse fields of art, dance, music, poetry and drama and for bringing together kindred like minded souls to get entertained and to share their experiences.
I too agree with him in.
– Kusum Gokarn
