Artist sangeeta babani loves expressing her creativity , on cars and on metals
Artwork like this makes the car a personal statement. (Photo: DC)
Hyderabad: Two years ago, when the Nano was being re-launched, Mumbai-based artist Sangeeta Babani was approached to create artwork specifically for the car, at a live event. As her “canvas on wheels” toured the country, Sangeeta began to receive requests from people who wanted their cars too to bear a coat of something other than shiny, assembly-line metallic paint.
“I had people coming in to ask me to create a personal statement for their cars. One client approached me to create sports-themed artwork for his son’s car as an 18th birthday gift. Another gentleman, whose wife is an actress, wanted me to paint an image of her on their car, but in a very different style,” says Sangeeta, talking about how she found her innovative canvas.
Sangeeta’s interest in art began early, when she was enrolled in drawing lessons as a child growing up in Spain. The culture that she was exposed to during her growing up years was definitely an influence on her style, she says. When she moved to Mumbai after marriage, her evolution as an artist continued. “And my work shows that evolution,” Sangeeta says. “I am hugely influenced by Spanish artists like Goya and also by Indian artists like Anjolie Ela Menon.”
The artwork she creates for cars is reflective of the work she does on canvas as well. There is bright, abstract and quirky imagery, with themes like love and womanhood recurring in her paintings. “What I paint has to do with my innermost feelings, (what you depict on canvas) has to be something that touches you. That’s why these themes figure a lot in my work,” she says.
There is also her technique, which swings between two extremes: the use of either bright colours or only tones of grey. The message she wishes to convey, Sangeeta says, is that “there are highs, just as there are lows”. “And even in the works that use predominantly greys, you’ll find that there is always some use of colour. It’s my way of saying that no matter how bad things may be, there is hope that they’ll get better,” Sangeeta explains. Sangeeta previously worked in oils, but has now switched to acrylics.
Sangeeta is currently gearing up for her upcoming exhibitions, one of which will be at the Trident Hotel in Mumbai as well as at the Jehangir Art Gallery. As she works on her canvases for these, Sangeeta tells us that creating art is an organic, spontaneous process for her. “When I see a blank canvas, there’s something I have in my mind, but I don’t know what it is,” she says. “When I begin to paint, it’s like a story that’s being created.”
( Source : dc )
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