Artist Suryaprakash’s first impression of Venice was during his college days, from one of his teachers, Vidya Bhushan, who taught at the once popular College of Fine Arts, King Kothi. “We conducted a fund-raising event, sometime in 1962-63 during the Chinese aggression, where we displayed paintings done by us. The proceeds from the sale went to the defence fund. I remember someone buying my oil on canvas painting for Rs. 40. My teacher Vidya Bhushan had done a small painting of Venice and I found it stunning. I didn’t know much about this ‘floating city’ in Italy,” recalls the artist. He bought the painting for Rs.10 and had it amongst his prized collection for years. Suryaprakash made a mental note to visit Venice at a later date, but the plan never took shape as he was caught up with work.
“Around three years ago, I visited Venice along with a group of artists and each one of us were visiting different parts of the city and taking in the architecture, people and culture. These days, artists take photographs and paint when they return. My teacher’s painting was done on the spot,” says Suryaprakash.
On returning to Hyderabad, he wanted to work on the Venice series immediately but there was another series that demanded his attention. When he finally got around to doing it, the paintings came alive recreating the canals flanked by earthy, old-world buildings, the rays of the sun making patterns on the water at different times of the day and the solitude reflected by the boats still lying anchored before the tourists take over.
The etchings, and acrylic works on acid free paper, both in black and white, are the artist’s ode to the city that seems to be frozen in time. “This is the first time I tried black and white on paper. I am not versatile; I usually prefer acrylic on canvas,” says the self-effacing artist.
Keeping with his long line-up of works over the years, the Venice series too doesn’t depict the buzz of day-to-day life in the chosen setting. So, don’t expect to see images of tourists discovering the floating city on gondolas. “Most of my paintings have been on nature and convey a sense of tranquillity. This is something I enjoy doing. Though I did some portraiture in college, I never really took to painting human faces and emotions. With time, I avoided painting animals and human life,” he sums up.
‘Venice in Hyderabad’ is on display at the Kalakriti art gallery, Trident, Madhapur till November 30, after which the series will move to Kalakriti gallery, Road no.10, Banjara Hills.
