Sensuality, sculpted

From afar, his sculptures — cutouts in metal sheets — are abstract shapes. As one goes closer, forms emerge — feminine torsos of various shapes — a nubile maiden or the full figure of a mother, among others. “The silhouetted torsos deter the perception of the female form as sex objects. Yet, by leaving it up to the viewer’s imagination, he is playing with the audience’s mental perversions,” explains the exhibition note.

“Stone sculptures that have lasted for centuries, usually only have their torsos intact. Although they are mutilated, there is something sensual about them. This inspired me,” says 57-year-old Mistry.

Each piece has been cutout of metal sheets in different colours to depict the nine rasas. “Every colour evokes a different emotion so each sculpture has been crafted singularly, with an emotion in mind — red for love, black for repulsion, yellow for mirth, and so on,” says the artist.

With this exhibition, the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (MSU) graduate takes forward his recurrent theme of the feminine form.

His earlier works have ranged from small pieces to large sculptures. Mistry has the distinction of being commissioned for public art pieces in the UK and Japan, which includes one for the Victoria Square in Birmingham. His current show is one of his most minimalist series yet.
Since his stroke — it affected the left side of the right-handed artist — art has taken a back seat. While Mistry believes that he and his art have been gravely affected by the stroke, he says,“just as a writer can’t stop writing because he will never run out of words, an artist has ideas to keep him going”.

kevin.lobo@expressindia.com