Reflecting dreams, positivity and joy 

KOCHI: Shalini Menon didn’t want to feature despair or melancholic scenes in her works displayed at the ongoing art exhibition at the David Hall Art Gallery in Fort Kochi. “After two years of the pandemic, I wanted some happiness,” she says. 

Titled ‘Invigorating Mindscapes’, the art exhibition features works of 34 artists at the exhibition being organised by Prussian Blue Art Hub. The displayed works are on varied themes, but almost all invoke joy. 
The colour ‘blue’ overpowers Anupama Rajiv’s painting. People with eyesight issues need their glasses to see the woman sitting on the sea shore in a red bikini. She is beautiful, though only her back is visible. 

“I also need glasses to see her,” quips Anupama. In that big frame full of vibrant blue of the sky and the ocean, humans are ant-like. Bhavana Radesh, a pet groomer by day and an artist by passion, has displayed only one of her works, Zeblooms. “It’s from a dream. A zebra is sniffing flowers blooming in the forest,” she says. There are works straight out of fantasy in the show. 

However, one frame stands out — a painting by Geetha Mary featuring two children sitting desolate in a war-torn country among shells. Besides them, the blue sky juxtaposed with a sunflower filed resembles the Ukrainian flag. 

Most of the artists here are creating art out of passion, as a hobby. For instance, Geetha Mary is a former BSNL employee, Venugopal retired from a private firm, and Dr Harikrishnan practises at the Medical Trust Hospital in Kochi.... the list goes on.