Kreative kriyas

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The recent show of Neeraj Goswami presented by Sanchit Art demonstrates the varied influences and their adaptation by the artist to create his own style. There is an attempt to understand and then deconstruct modernist techniques such as surrealism, cubism and minimalism and then interpret these through his creative self. The art of Picasso, Gustav Klimt and Rembrandt, spanning a large expanse of time and space have left a mark on his work obliquely rather than directly.
His painterly oeuvre is based on an innerscape or the self rather than external stimuli, by eliminating the latter through the practice of rigorous kriyas. There is a narrative element that seems dreamlike, set in a magic realistic landscape, as can be seen in the celestial forms floating, watching, protecting above a sleeping figure in Night Watch.
The thematic is strong but it is the composition of planes and geometric forms that dominate the canvases. This is done through the division of space along horizontal and vertical axis. He uses the three dimensionality of planes to create abstract shapes, that dialogue with each other using own visual language, in which emotion and abstraction combine to form rhythmic forms in space. His works explore the relationship of shapes with each other that make up forms, rather like notes in a symphony or a raga.
The artist demonstrates great imagination and dexterity in manipulating a single form, for example the circular form, to create multiple images such as the solar disc, snail shell, wheel, billowing drapery, even feet aligned in a semi circle.
In one his paintings, Play, there is translucent jade effect that marks his style. He uses tones derived from celadon porcelain and onyx striations on his canvases. These allow the paintings to glow from the inside, especially when combined with flat colours in other areas of the composition. In fact, there is density of texture in the paintings built by layering colour, that stand out when set against flat backdrops.

— Dr Seema Bawa is an art historian, curator and critic