[1]Ceramic as art is a relatively marginalised art practice with very few galleries showcasing the works. One such gallery — Threshold gallery is hosting ceramist Vinod Daroz’s solo show. In his latest show Silent Shlokas the artist has tried to imbue ceramic with spiritually inspired imagery.
The artist believes that the bowls, trays and sculptural installations he creates are an extension of his earlier temple series, through which he partakes of intense spiritual experience. The essential architectural elements of an Indian temple such as the entrance doorway, or the gopura, the sanctum sanctorum of the dark, mysterious and energised garbhagriha, with the enshrined image within allow the artist to reflect about spiritual forms, and to translate these into stoneware.
Interestingly, the colours and traceries of form, discernible on the surface of trays, are suggestive of other architectural styles as well as magic and religious beliefs. The blue and greens have Late Sultanate-Mughal overtones seen in the tiles used on the Neeli Masjid and the Subz Gumbad. In a series titled Mandala, Daroz has painted actual and imagined ritual diagrams. Mandalas abbreviate a mantra, a sukta or hymn or a ritual into geometric patterns and lines that are imbued with sacred energy which allows the meditating devotee to focus on the essence of the deity. Sometimes strong and at other times concealed Daroz’s mandalas are decorative as well as conceptual, encapsulating veiled energies within very peaceful auras.
All the works are wheel thrown and altered stoneware, fired at 1300°C, using a combination of shiny, matt and semi-matt glazes that range from white to deep cobalt blue. These are built up in layers prior to firing, to create textural surface with a touch of metal oxides and a flavour of gold and copper luster that provides it with a rich decorative element.
Links:
[1] http://archive.asianage.com/vinodd1jpg-086