Flying Rainbow International Students Art Exhibition- 25th & 26th January 2025 @ DOT Institute of Design, Ambattur.
It was the 23rd of January 2025. The ringtone of my cell phone pleasantly awakened me from my afternoon siesta. Though it sounded familiar I could not immediately place the voice at the other end. When she introduced herself, I remembered. She was one of the ‘7 sisters.’ (The ‘7 sisters’ I am referring to here is (not the grey-colour Jungle babbler birds aka the ‘7 sisters’) but the name I had fondly christened the group of 7 women artists who had held an Exhibition of their wonderful artwork @ the Lalit Kala Academy during August 2024. Mrs. Uma Maheswari was one of the 7 artists whose works were on display there. (Here’s the link to my blog post covering that Exhibition -(https://sreekanthsangle.blogspot.com/p/7-of-artslalit-kala-akademiaug-2024.html.)
Mrs. Uma Maheswari had called to invite me to an Exhibition of art works by her students @ Flying Rainbow Creative Art Centre (She is the founder) and being interested in sketching, I couldn’t resist the invitation. I could not make it to the inauguration due to some preoccupation but there I was at the Exhibition on 26th January 2025 @ DOT Institute of Design, Ambattur.
As I entered the Hall, I was delighted at the flutter of activities – children running around doing their bit for the show, guiding guests and making them comfortable, moving furniture - it was like seeing a lot of beautiful butterflies flutter around a garden. Children are always a delight, aren’t they? And there were parents, grand-parents and friends of the students who had come to cheer up the students.
As I went around observing the exhibits, the children were explaining their artwork. After going through the exhibits I found that many works belied the age of the artist, in a positive sense. Some of art pieces on display gave me the impression as if it was done by a grown-up or a professional. When I requested for a shot, they willingly obliged proudly posing beside their creation. Here are some of the creators with their creations:
It was amazing to see such talent and the credit for bringing such talent to light should go to Mrs. Uma Maheswari and her team at Flying Rainbow Creative Art Centre.
I observed that some of the exhibits had a price tag. Mrs. Uma Maheswari clarified that 20% of the proceeds of the sale would go for helping underprivileged children interested in art, get art materials. What a laudable gesture!
As we settled down in our seats the programme started.
Adorning the stage were Mr. Jacob, Principal of the Bosco Academy Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Madhavaram, Dr. S. Vandana, Clinical Psychologist, V-COPE, and Mr. Jeyaraj, Senior Artist and Illustrator - the cynosure of all eyes, accompanied by Mrs. Jeyaraj.
The Inauguration of the Exhibition commenced with lighting of the lamp by Mr. Jeyaraj and other dignitaries.
Mrs. Uma Maheswari honoured Mr. Jeyaraj with a shawl and a Memento.
Mr. Jacob, Principal of the Bosco Academy Matriculation Higher Secondary School who was the first to speak, praised the work of the students and said he was so impressed by the exhibits.
He made a special mention of it in his speech and said that the drawings were so realistic that he felt hungry when he saw one of the pictures on display - the picture of a cup cake with a cherry on the top.
He made an excellent observation about children meddling with the cell phone, a very common sight nowadays. He observed that he sees children just flick through ‘reels’, not having the patience even to wait for the reels (which is only two minutes) to finish. That is where Art comes in. He emphasised that Art teaches you patience, a quality which all of us require for keeping us sane in today’s fast world.
He advised parents to let their children follow art if it’s their passion and that we should appreciate and nurture it so that they will blossom beautifully in future.
Dr. S. Vandana, Clinical Psychologist, V-COPE, made a very interesting point - Art is something which has twin benefits - it pleases both the artist as well the viewer. She was referring to ‘pheromones’ which are released by the central nervous system during pleasurable activities( for example like eating or exercise). Coming to think of it, it is absolutely true. That’s why, when we look at a beautiful picture, we feel good. It is a nice and pleasant feeling.
Another point she referred to during her speech was about ‘Neuro Art’. The word was unfamiliar, so I ‘Googled’ and here’s the info in a nutshell:
- Neuro art is a creative practice that involves drawing or making art to help connect the conscious and the subconscious mind.
- It involves drawing lines on a page, smoothing the intersections and colouring in the spaces.
- It is also a field that examines the impact of art on the brain, body and behaviour.
- Neuro Art is used as a form of art therapy to help people express themselves, reduce anxiety and improve their mood.
- Neuro Art can help people to cope with stress, fear or grief.
Dr. S. Vandana was categorical that a student of art can do well in studies also.
For the readers of the Tamil magazines, ‘Jeyaraj’ is a household name. He has been an inspiration for many of us and his simplicity and humbleness shines when he speaks. Mr. Jeyaraj did not have any formal training in art and drawing and he was a graduate in Economics, but his passion for art had catapulted him to fame. Here are some nuggets about Mr. Jeyaraj, I gathered from online sources:
- He joined the Kumudham magazine in 1958 as an illustrator
- Jeyaraj has designed posters, illustrations, costumes and banners for many Tamil films directed by Balu Mahendra and K Balachander.
He appreciated the works of the students and wondered at the amazing talent hidden in every one of them. He candidly admitted that though he had seen many Exhibitions of this sort, this is the first time he went through the exhibits in leisure since they were impressive and held his attention.
Quoting anecdotes from his own life he reminisced that once when he was abroad he had gone to a shop to purchase painting brushes and charmed by the beauty of a girl there, he started to sketch her. When the owner learned that he was an artist, they packed and gave all the paint brushes he wanted, free of cost.
He also fondly remembered the ‘Rudhraksha mala’ he received as a gift from Kanchi Periyavaa Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi Shankaracharya for a painting he had done for him . From the manner he was narrating the episode, the high regard and reverence he had for the latter was apparent. The painting was an illustration from an episode in the Mahabharatha, depicting Arjuna at Draupadi’s Swayamvara, hitting the fish's eye by looking at a reflection of the fish in a pool of water below. He also mentioned that that ‘Rudraksha mala’ now adorns the statue of Mother Mary in their house. We know that Art is beyond human, linguistic, geographical, sociological or national barriers, and here we have a living example to show that art is beyond even religion.
In his view, Art is a friend of all other subjects and learning art will never go in vain and it is sure to take you places.
Before we move on, I thought it fit to reproduce some excerpts from Mr. Jeyaraj’s thought-provoking answers to questions in an interview (www.manavai.com) which are relevant and can be a takeaway for all of us(emphasis supplied):
Q: What basic quality in a man (apart from artistic skills) makes him a successful artist?
A: One should be a GOOD MAN to be a successful artist! This answer may look strange at the first instance. But if you think in a logical way you will know it is true. Art - be it any art like drawing, music, dancing, singing and so on, it is a field in which you cannot lie in your expression. When your end product is untruthful, people will reject it. Further when you are good, you are accepted everywhere and no door is shut on your face. When you are refused admittance you miss the chance of observation in that situation. Observation is the essence of being a successful artist. When you are good you get the maximum opportunity for observation.
Q: I have read that you did not have any formal schooling in art and drawing. One can draw without proper art education, but how it is possible for you to have the "Colour sense", which I understand needs certain theoretical knowledge, which is taught only at Art schools?
A: I never thought that I am self sufficient in my knowledge of art, I was always willing to learn. Whenever I wanted to know the nuances in a particular technique, I went to the books. Learning is part of my life; it is a never ending process. Further whatever you may learn in text books about colour sense, but you learn the real colour consciousness only by observation in true life situations. It is not forced, that quality should come to you naturally.
Q: Do you think you have achieved what you wished to be in life?
A: ......Living a peaceful, healthy and contented life in this world is the greatest achievement any human being can strive for. As for me, every act, every little thing I do and every day I live, are achievements.
As I learned more about the artist, my respect for him is naturally on an upward trajectory and as a tribute to the great artist, here‘s my pencil sketch of him:
Speaking on the occasion, Mrs.Uma Maheswari, Founder of Flying Rainbow Creative Art Centre and Art Curator, recalled how she developed an interest and how her introduction to art was through magazines which carried illustrations by Mr. Jeyaraj.
That reminds me. I too was fascinated by the illustrations that appeared in the Tamil magazines in the 70s to the 90s and Mr. Jeyaraj was one of my favourite artists. Who can forget ‘ Appusamy and Seetha Paatti’? The others were Artists who used to sign as Ma.Se, Maruthy, Aras and Ramu. Each had his own style and rendering and they used various mediums- pen and ink, wash drawings, water colours, poster colours etc. I used to keep staring at their illustrations for hours together observing every line or brush stroke wondering how these artists were able to create beautiful illustrations. I consider them legends and to me are a great source of inspiration.
Enough of nostalgia and now coming back to the topic, Mrs.Uma Maheswari appreciated the efforts of Mrs. Jeyaraj, who stood like a supporting pillar by handling all the administrative work for Mr. Jeyaraj, like when is a picture due, to whom, mode of delivery etc.
Admitting that teaching art though an online class is tough, she clarified that their course is fully online. There are no physical coaching centres.
I could see that it was something like a home-coming to the students and the instructors since they are meeting one another in person for the first time since they had hitherto interacted on Skype or Zoom; an occasion worth remembering and cherishing.
Flying Rainbow Creative Art Centre honoured every student with a certificate and a memento. Mr. Jeyaraj did the honours, patiently.
8A unique fancy – dress pageant of sorts was enacted where kids dressed as famous artists spoke about the artists’ famous works.
The artists included Leonardo Da Vinci, Frido Kahlo and a few other artists and when a small girl introduced herself as artist ‘Jeyaraj’, the chief guest of honour, the entire hall went into a rapturous applause.
Here are some other interesting exhibits:
Coming out of the Exhibition, I felt inspired to continue my pursuit of art. It has been some time since I did sketching and I intend to post some on my Sketching Blog (https://drawingcaricatures.blogspot.com) shortly. I should also try ‘Neuro Art’ sometime.
As I sign off wishing ‘Flying Rainbows’ and its students a great future, I will leave you with some food for thought - a quote attributed to the great artist Pablo Picasso:
‘Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up’.
Let me know what you think.
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