Painting a child’s emotions on paper

KOCHI: For Lekha Vylopilly, an eminent artist, paintings on children is the best way to express one’s feeling and leave a lasting impact. The pioneer artist’s latest works on social issues faced by children are exhibited in the David Hall Gallery, Fort Kochi.

“For this exhibition ‘Samanthara’, which features works of eight artists from Kerala, Hyderabad and Bengaluru, I chose to move away from my typical style,” said Lekha. She said while she is more into mural paintings, she felt it was the need of the hour to try something different, taking children as the major theme. She mentioned her eight works are part of the exhibition, all of them were made using colour pencils.

Lekha, who takes classes for four schools per week as part of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, miseries of children are not new. “I  interact with a lot of children on a daily basis and this has helped me in making the paintings. The sorrows they face from their family and social issues can be clearly seen in their eyes,” she said. Lekha tries to reflect this on her work, she added.

On her shift from mural paintings to children’s topic, she noted her daughter’s birth has influenced to adopt this change. According to her, mural paintings have certain limitations in format, colour use and structure but she has tried to blend a few traditional techniques of murals to her new contemporary art.

“Whether it is mural or not, I always ensure my work brings out a positive feel in the viewers’ mind. Even while discussing social issues, the paintings will express this indirectly giving a space for interpretation,” Lekha said.

The ‘Samanthara’ exhibition will conclude at David Hall Gallery by April 10.