Great art reflects the personality of the artist. Art has always been about inspiration, passion, and motivation. All of these keywords became palpable at Uzma Firdous' art exhibition of paintings. On one of my 'weekendly' art appreciation trips last Sunday, I dropped into Darda Art Gallery at Lokmat Square. Uzma Firdous' - "Art for Heart's Sake", an exhibition of vibrant paintings, adorned walls of the gallery fascinatingly.
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| Uzma Firdous posing next to her art piece titled "The Passion" |
As I walked along the string of paintings, I could see proofs of Uzma's imaginations grow creatively. At one diagonal of the plush art gallery, was a painting of a brightly lit chandelier and of one with a rather dark background at the exact opposite wall diagonally. Attention to detail was prominently visible in all of her pieces, and notably in "The Glories of Taj Mahal". Her artworks were received very well by visitors belonging to every age group, as was visible at a single glance.
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| "The Glories of Taj Mahal" by Uzma Firdous |
Tête-à-tête
I asked the Bhandara-born artist about all that goes behind this exhibition and I came to know about some intriguing facts. Firstly, Uzma is a self-taught artist. Secondly, Uzma had been aloof at the pursuit of painting since two decades! She admits the fact that after her marriage she put all her efforts in home making but has no repents whatsoever. This again proves that she is one of those artists whose zeal for the art far exceeds their limitations that arise from the lack of training and passage of time.
Uzma enthusiastically reveals her monochromatic artwork "The Glories of Taj Mahal" as being her favorite. Although vehemently stating that all her artworks were like her children, she takes great pride in the one above due to all the hard-work she put into achieving the detailed look of it.
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| Uzma Firdous' art exhibition at Darda Art Gallery, Nagpur |
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| Uzma Firdous' art exhibition at Darda Art Gallery, Nagpur |
Uzma tries to put her emotions into her art. She considers the vibrant colours as the medium for transmission of those emotions.
Every splash of paint and stroke of brush is a segment of a new story and it is upto the artist to bind these segments together to create the most beautiful and fascinating story.- Uzma
Her family has been instrumental in her success. Her husband, children, and mother, all supported her in this endeavor. This could be imagined from the fact that almost all of the 40 odd paintings on display were created within a span of one year. For someone taking a sabbatical from art pursuit for around two decades, the speed of gaining momentum seems phenomenal to me. Impossible without the support of family, Uzma stands for a magnanimous comeback :)
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| Intrigue is obvious. |
Every pillar at the gallery was full with a plethora of artworks. On one such pillar was a painting depicting a struggling ship caught in the midst of a great storm in the middle of an ocean. Now, this wasn't the first ship painting that I ever saw, but the log line depicting the artwork resonated with me instantly. I remember too vaguely but it went something like this - "Do not allow the external conflict interfere with the inside of you. The moment external conflicts [the sea storm] disturb the inner state of your mind [the calmly sailing ship], your mind starts to sink [just like the ship]". That one became my favorite and I even requested Uzma to pose before it for a click.
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| Uzma posing alongside my favorite "Strength in Storm" |
With this, my creative journey into Uzma's realism ended. I congratulated her for the exhibition's success and wished her best luck for future endeavours. In the coming days, I plan to visit more art exhibitions. I believe art is simple, but it broadens one's mind multi-fold. A broad mind is a powerhouse of creativity, which fuels artistic endeavours of every individual, like it did in the case of Uzma and many other 'do-ers'. Inspired, I leave the gallery to start another week with all positive energy.
