SUBRAMANIAN GOPALSAMY

Bio

It is believed that with loss that a new life begins. As a young artist in the city, G. Subramanian was carving a niche for himself as a decorative painter, when his only daughter was diagnosed with cancer. Her passing shattered all possibilities and his life came to a standstill. He went on a spiritual journey in search of answers, yet his life seemed distant and blurry. His reverie was broken when he won a gold medal in an art competition, which led him to take weekend art classes for children. He visited the Sistine Chapel in Italy, and while facing Michelangelo’s masterpiece, he found his path and a whole new meaning to his life.

“I started working on images of Gods, Goddesses, parrots, flowers like the lotus and the smiling face of my daughter always find a place in my art. These subjects come naturally to me. The mythological images like Buddha, Ganesha, Krishna and Saraswati come from my childhood memories growing up in the coastal village listening to mythological stories narrated by the elders. My daughter loved birds and the parrot was her favourite, so all my paintings will depict one. The inspiration and spark behind my art is the smile of my daughter. For me, texture is important and helps me connect with the viewers. I want the person looking at my art to not only understand the emotion behind it but to also feel it”.

Born in 1952 in Tamil Nadu, G Subramanian’s work is inspired by the innocence and divine beauty in a child’s face and the power of Indian mythology. He graduated in Fine Arts from the Government College of Arts and Crafts in Chennai. His works are a part of the Lalit Kala Akademi in New Delhi, South Side Gallery, Edinburg, UK and The World Bank in Chennai. His multi-layered collages reinterpret the printed images and texts from popular magazines with abstract background highlighting the complex imagery. He makes use of his experience as a graphic designer in the play with images.