Glimpse of green Madras and tribal life on canvas

Combining strong bold lines with intricate details, artist

J Shankara Narayanan

in his artistic exploration, illustrates the images of rural life in southern Indian and mythological stories that he grew up listening to from his mother. In his drawing exhibition titled, ‘

Perumbarak Kodum

’ (Ganesha's Tusk), he has portrayed figures of rural tribesmen engaged in various chores that define their lifestyle.
“If you look through, you can see these tribal figures have chiselled faces with well-defined jaw lines and almond-shaped eyes with smooth, streamlined bodies. Each character expresses their own personality and their own way of filling the space around them. My work also has a glimpse of rural life. When I came to Chennai in 1989, there used to be so much greenery around the whole city and these are remnants from those memories. My main inspirations are Dutch painter Rembrandt and AP Santhanaraj, the renowned artist from Chennai. Their influence can be seen in my work,” says Shankara Narayanan.

Perumbarak Kodum, @DakshinaChitra, SH 49, Muttukadu, from 10am to 6pm, till July 28