Monday, March 25, 2013

namdugadkOTe

Chitradurga. The very name inspires visions of valour, size, grandeur and so on. A most fascinating place. Many kannaDigas know of this thanks to a movie - nAgarahAvu or the novel durgAstamAna by ta ra su.

Jagalur, was once in the Chitradurga district. In relatively recent reorganisations, it belongs to Davanagere district. I feel cheated. I liked the idea of belonging to Chitradurga district.

Having expressed such loyalty, I have to admit that I visited the place only after I was no longer a teenager! But the stories and anecdotes my father had recounted and has written in his memoirs - "nenapina alegaLu" are indelible. One visit and the experience is unforgettable.

I had always wanted to sketch or paint some part of the place and here it is finally.

I drew first with a Staedtler pigment liner. The first time I did such a drawing without a pencil drawing base, directly. The idea from the beginning was to do a line and wash work. Work pressure and loving the look of the line drawing I postponed the washes. I painted it with trepidation. I am glad I did though sad that the drawing is "lost" except for the scanned version you see below.




Line







and Wash








Friday, March 15, 2013

Secluded

Secluded





October 2012, I had a short holiday, starting on my birthday. I photographed this secluded house. Since then I was looking for the right way to present this scene and it is here, finally.

This brings back the sun, the humidity, the quiet (invaluable for someone from Bangalore) when I see this. The dish antenna adding a touch of modernity to the otherwise rural scene. Areca nut, coconut, colocasia, pumpking vine (indicated with only one of its flowers), green grass make this scene so calming.