Artist brings alive the trauma of Paris terror strike in Hyderabad

HYDERABD: "Two of my dear journalist friends were killed there. How can someone kill a person for a piece of art? As a tribute to my friends, I painted a mini-series for them," says Dominique Paulin, the 62-year-old Parisian artist, who is in the city as part of a residency programme. "Charlie Hebdo killings shook me to the core," says the artist, showing her paintings, that show abstract strokes in red, shades of grey, and charcoal to etch out the bloodshed after the terror attack.
There is an element of newness in Dominique Paulin's canvases as she has used makeup products to bring alive her vision. Ask her why she uses eye shadows, eye pencils, powder and lipsticks in her works, and she smiles, saying, "Makeup is a form of expression of human moods. That's why I use it." Pointing to a big khadi canvas on which there are strokes of fuchsia, lavender, blue and grey, she says, "I have tried to explore the depths of universe and the mystery that it hides. I used khadi as I think it represents India and the layers of silk fabric represent France."
But is it not expensive to paint with makeup products? She laughs and says, " After seeing my exhibition in France, many makeup companies gifted me boxes of their products."
Having spent a few weeks in Hyderabad, the artist shares her experiences. "I am fascinated by the piled up rocks of the Golconda fort. They have an interesting pattern. And, one of the images I will carry with me is that of having saffron-coloured biryani.You can be sure that it will feature in my future work," says the artist.
"This is the eighth time I have been to India. I find a unique similarity between France and India. Both are culturally rich in their own ways. But back home, due to economic reasons, people are not happy. But here I see people happy even when they are poor," says the artist, who has travelled to Goa, Bombay , Cochin and Rishikesh.
Dominique is a qualified medical practitioner in Paris, though she hails from a family of artists. She started painting as a child and her mother helped her hone her skills. When she treats patients in her clinic in Paris she observes their pain. "You just can't ignore the pain and suffering reflected on their faces," she signs off saying, "Once during my exhibitions a patient walked in and said, `So all these faces are us -your patients?' Paintings so often express pain of humans in their own way."