Journey in my Caravan of Nomadic Passion
Asma Menon
Writing about one’s art and the effect of creativity in today’s world is a complex one.
The road is fraught with potholes, though with talent, passion for one’s art, comes hard work. One cannot sit back and be lazy about it.
It is a gift from God. To create is a talent. And in the Old Testament, a Talent was gold. Therefore this treasure that is bestowed, must be respected. Like Wine and the Wafer at communium, it must be sipped and consumed with delicacy. Many an artist, who have gained fame and fortune, have forgotten this. The wine has been drunk copiously and gluttony have come to stay.This is my personal take, on what, I have seen.
I began, as an artist, as a child. My Birthday gifts were easy to choose. Art materials and dolls. I lived a charming childhood, in my world of colour. Books with pictures, I would pour over. My memory of a book of fairy tales and The Children’s Bible, brought about much reading and trying to copy the pictures. I thrived.
This love, got my father to send me for drawing and painting classes, very early. At the age of 10, I was attending the adult art classes of the renowned artist, sculptor and research scholar, Mr. Balan Nambiar. This continued, three days a week in the evenings, until I finished my schooling.
I went on to join the then School of Arts and Crafts on Poonamallee High Road in Madras. On completion, to earn a living, I worked at newspaper offices. At 30, I rejoined the art force. Thus, a fresh chapter, albeit a familiar one, started. Its been a road of many twists and turns, and some highways to speed on. Art is a jealous lover. The ride is akin to a never ending roller coaster. Today after three decades of being and living as an artist. I know, this life has been ordained, akin to a priest or nun.
A note about my take as an artist:
“As an artist and a woman,
I feel akin to the embodiments bestowed on Pandora,
for without curiosity, what would I SEEK,
for without LOVE, how would I express,
for without CREATIVITY how would I Journey,
in my Caravan of Nomadic Passion,
to realms yet to be discovered”… (Asma Menon).
Multi Layered in conception, Asma Menon’s art works, be it, painting, printmaking or drawing, all sport motifs of clairvoyance. A maze of lines, are enmeshed with the narrative, on a single plane. Repetitive strokes, converge and disband, to convey, highly sophisticated mythological quotations… With her intense feminine identity Asma Menon, manage to bridge the gap between the ancestral and the contemporary, with her cosmopolitan but yet deeply Indian character, she appears fully aware of world contemporary art tendencies and at the same time she is centred on a unique life path that links the myth with everyday life.
Trees, animals, human and divine figures appear, fluctuate and melt, creating a plateau, that unites the past with the present with no apparent contrast. She repeatedly portrays the concept of the “maternal” in a way that is very feminine.
Asma has her feet on terraferma and her spirit within the galaxies. Earth / Water / Air / Fire / Ether and the shadow on the wall are Asma’s dimensions.
(Originally from Chennai, Asma is known nationally and internationally for her painting and printmaking. Her works have been the subject of over 10 solo and 40 group shows, including having been auctioned at the prestigious Christies. For over 25 years her works have revealed and highlighted both the ancestral and contemporary Indian character, linking, in a unique artistic expression, myth to everyday life. Her artistic creativity also includes working with children, corporate training, and participating in Indian and international art / printmaking camps. Asma’s collection of short stories, has been published, titled, ‘Moonlight Baby “. She is working on her next novel Asma’s awards include the Senior Fellowship from the Government of India, Ministry of Tourism and Culture (2005–2007). She holds a Master of Fine Arts from the Government College of Arts and Crafts, Chennai.)
