Sangrah Art Gallery in Model Colony is made up of the works of six accomplished painters. These artists of Pune are products of a certain school of thought who believe that drawing and painting are like visual music, standing for the union of form and content
Pranav Nambiar | Model Colony
Lined up against the ornate lawns of painter Ravi Paranjpe’s residence in Model Colony are paintings that tell stories. Stories that describe different facets of nature and human life and celebrate the joys of existence.
Sangrah Art Gallery is made up of the works of six accomplished painters - Ravi Paranjpe, Maruti Patel, Milind Mulick, Rahul Deshpande, Shrikant Pradhan and Gopal Nandurkar. They like to call themselves ’The Representational Artists of Pune’ and are products of a certain school of thought who believe that drawing and painting are like visual music, standing for the union of form and content.
Art in its purest form needs to be revived according to them and Sangrah is a small step towards this endeavour. They want their audience to develop a sense of good taste, order and harmony in life through paintings. Maruti feels "a good painting is one which has a kind of power that leaves you longing to see it again and again".
Ravi who was an illustrator with the Times of India in the 60s says, "Under the garb of freedom of expression most contemporary paintings are very vague and abstract." Also in his opinion, contrary to popular belief that good paintings are the result of an extraordinary burst of imaginative radiance, they are in reality well thought out works having proper structure and design. According to him, planning and design are vital in good painting. Milind on his part says, "It is not the subject but the shapes, colour and their relation that produces in me a visual sensation."
All the six artists believe that people who drift away from quality art are left disturbed and despondent. Ravi says the spurt in farmer suicides across the country are partly due to the lack of creative instincts. "Due to this the farmers are unable to find a different and productive means of cultivation." The same, he says, applies to civic authorities, whose faulty planning and design in most ventures leads to public inconvenience.
The Representational Artists of Pune believe that many of today’s painters have lost touch with the traditional schools of Indian art. The missing spark they say needs to revitalised. Shrikant on his part says, "Although I trained in the applied art discipline, my inner predilection was always towards Indian art."
The group has provided a platform for many aspiring painters who are encouraged to showcase their talent without having to pay commission. Budding artists are allowed to rent the premises at nominal rates as the six painters believe the visual music of art can turn their work into chords of joy and harmony.
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