As a painter and sculptor, Kalyan S Rathore says he is reinventing his craft to make it accessible. Kalyan often holds workshops and classes to showcase the geometry in art.

Kalyan uses a wide variety of media — from steel for public art to discarded mineral water bottles, broken glass and wood for installation art. A certified designer from the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, Kalyan conducts workshops in the mechanism of creativity. Several IT firms sport his imaginative furniture. “For the last few years I have been associated mainly with metal and prototyping paper and household objects. I have now taken my effort online.”

Kalyan spoke to MetroPlus about his latest venture.

Excerpts

Why did you take up teaching?

As an artist, teaching comes naturally to me. It is a way of keeping your mind and art flexible. When you interact with children or beginners, you get to challenge and break your habits and have an opportunity to improvise your work.

Could you describe your evolution as an artiste and sculptor?

I believe sculpting in the contemporary scenario has gone beyond aesthetics, abilities and skills. It entails an understanding of basic mathematics, geometry and an interest in science.

I have often tried to render a form as a metaphor that connects complex, abstract ideas in mathematics. I also sometimes borrow from various disciplines of science. While I do not claim to be an expert in mathematics or science, I try to see a form through various filters and templates that are provided to us by these disciplines. In this exercise of finding the sweet spot between seemingly unconnected subjects, I find opportunities to express the language of sculptural art.

How would you describe the connection between science, maths and art?

An artist sees nature for its beauty and the emotion it evokes. The same beauty can be seen and understood from different perspectives. I am a fan of exploring hidden, geometric sensibilities in everything I see. Across nature, there are principles behind natural growth, negotiated justice and distribution of resources to achieve efficient systems. Take the example of soap bubbles. They can be interpreted as algorithms to open applications in conjunction with software used by architects, designers and artists.

Why do you advocate moving away from conventional, 90-degree forms?

I conduct an experience session, Cubes don’t grow on Trees. It is aimed at opening young minds to thinking beyond the 90-degree trap when it comes to visualizing a design or an art piece. I do this by helping them explore the essential difference between how evolution has used geometry versus how we build our environments. I don’t mean to say that it is not a good thing to have a rectangular table for example. We definitely need 90 degrees in many of our utility objects. However, what I would like to highlight is the logic of why we almost never encounter right-angles in our natural world.

How would you explain the infinite diversity of shapes that nature offers?

I do not dispute the fact that nature has infinite potential to inspire. My objective is to explain how an idea like infinity can be represented as a form, how to get our head around complex abstractions through simple hacks.

Is there an eligibility criterion for your workshops?

I try not to categorise participant by age, but I would like to engage with children as young as seven and also anyone who has an interest in the connection between art and science. I feel this would be of interest to those studying architecture, design and art.

Could you elaborate on the connection between dexterity, brain development and design?

I believe that a different style of learning can happen when one has engaged in craft that develops finger dexterity. It would open a Pandora’s Box in a student’s mind enabling multidimensional aptitude such as visualization, inventive and spatial thinking and an intuitive understanding of how materials work.

How do you incorporate these thoughts in your public art?

I have always based my public art on solid, scientific, narratives. Sometimes they are evident and at others cryptic.

Kalyan S Rathore’s online experience sessions are on Saturdays from 3 pm.

Email kal.webinar@gmail.com for details.