Stop, paint and go!

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Delhi-based artist Puja Bahri once dressed like a man and hopped on a truck early morning with a photographer friend. They spent half a day on the road and had beedi and food with the truck driver. The end result was a video artwork —
Blow Horn. Experimental artist, Puja Bahri likes to go beyond the limits of the conventional and explore new media in art. An ongoing solo-exhibition at the Chawla Art Gallery, Saket titled “Blow Horn” showcases the versatility of the artist through her paintings, multi media installations, photographic shots and video works.
Her collection of paintings presents a rich tapestry of images and ideas inspired by her encounters during exploratory photographic voyages across the bylanes of India. “Its while travelling to Ladakh, Varanasi and through the vibrant and colourful Rajasthan that I realised there is so much character in India, which we tend to overlook because of our Western obsession. The reality of masses and their struggles at busy intersections on city streets or at bus stops — waiting endlessly or at work, carrying loads inspired me the most for the works displayed at this exhibition,” shares the artist.
Coated in rich colours with a touch of humour the surrealist multi-media sculptures are modeled through photographic intervention and installed with a built-in video manipulation of recordings of street sounds and voices made over a period of time. There is no specific ritual that the artist undergoes before she begins creating. “My bouts of travel trigger new thoughts and ideas that help me think afresh and develop my work. I usually work in series and like experimenting with new and different mediums,” says Bahri.
When asked about her most important artistic tool, she quickly responds, “The spatula and roller — can’t do without them at all! I’m a very spontaneous painter and don’t like to adhere to any rules of painting or paint materials.”
When quizzed about the challenges that she faces in creating art, Bahri says, “My biggest challenge would definitely be juggling between kids and profession. Also sometimes, I used to feel a little handicapped about not graduating in art but have come to realise that to create something, one has to ‘unlearn’ all techniques. Also, working with new mediums and genres is, at times, challenging but that in turn motivates me the most,” she signs off.