ECONOMIC TIMES

BY RITA DUTTA

'Vision distills Intricate image', It's probably because Haren and Sharmila Thakur live in Ranchi, a region of rich tribal culture, that they have been able to resist the objective perception of logical adults and region the splendid simplification of primitive vision. A vision that distils the intricate image to its structural geometry, a vision inspired by cave art and tribal art which share a common code of intuitive minimalism. Haren divides the surface into visual zones sometimes combining pasted cutouts and rectangular sheets apart from torn little bits of paper. Especially in-those works of Haren which are dominated bylines; in fact lines are Haren's forte, lithe and playful lines running with effervescent spontaneity; enclosing smudges of paint with child-like imperfection. What enhances the tribal kinship of this art is the palette; made earth tones; sometimes lightly textured with the creases of the pasted paper, echoing the innate sophistication of primitive creativity. Sharmila moulds paper pulp into relief paintings that are charmingly rustic and unfinished in appearance. The rough form and bright enamel paint lend them a shy the atrocity that is fleetingly like American Indian Imagery. The Artist's design strategy relies on the counterpoint of small dancing figures to large static ones, or that of vertical to horizontal figures to ensure structural neatness.

PRIMITIVE CREATIVITY (VISUAL ARTS)

BY SAMIR DASGUPTA

Ranchi, a confluence of rich culture, has enabled Haren and Sharmila Thakur not only to imbibe the spontaneity and simplicity of the tribal art of the area, but also to translate it in terms of minimalistic linear designs. They are not the kind of artists, however, who look at these primitive cultures as outsiders. The Thakurs have discovered the essential structural patterns of tribal art and fused its geometric sophistication with visual concepts culled from Egyptian wall paintings of the Thermoses IV era when eastern Mediterranean art genres of decorative painting began to free themselves from a subsidiary and narrative role. Like many painters the world over, the Thakurs have sought to rediscover the essence of the primitive creativity of the eighteenth dynasty style of Nile Valley painting. Mercifully, the two modern primitive artists haven’t found it difficult to discover their own idiom in this curious synergy of centuries-old Egyptian paintings and the tribal art of sough Bihar. They have, in fact, succeeded in raising the commonly shared code of primitive figurative design to the dignity of an independent art. In Sharmila Thakur’s simple sculptural forms executed in relief, such as Drummer I, Goddess of Jungle and Durga, the charm and majesty of pure lines and basic colours combine to make a sanctuary befitting a queen or a king and yet adhering to the mould of traditional clay dolls she has been so familiar with. Haren Thakur’s flat paintings in subdued water colour are based on vignettes from scenes of daily life as the artist has seen and felt them at first hand. Sleeping Beauty, Shelter and One-Eyed Cat are some outstanding examples of his modern-old aesthetic vision.
TELEGRAPH FRIDAY 5 JANUARY, 2001

STATESMAN

TALKING WITH LINES STATESMAN

'Vision distills Intricate image', It's probably because Haren and Sharmila Thakur live in Ranchi, a region of rich tribal culture, that they have been able to resist the objective perception of logical adults and region the splendid simplification of primitive vision. A vision that distils the intricate image to its structural geometry, a vision inspired by cave art and tribal art which share a common code of intuitive minimalism. Haren divides the surface into visual zones sometimes combining pasted cutouts and rectangular sheets apart from torn little bits of paper. Especially in-those works of Haren which are dominated bylines, in fact lines are Haren's forte, lithe and playful lines running with effervescent spontaneity; enclosing smudges of paint with child like imperfection. What enhances the tribal kinship of this art is the palette; made earth tones; sometimes lightly textured with the creases of the pasted paper, echoing the innate sophistication of primitive creativity. Sharmila moulds paper pulp into relief paintings that are charmingly rustic and unfinished in appearance. The rough form and bright enamel paint lend them a shy the atrocity that is fleetingly like American Indian Imagery. The Artist's design strategy relies on the counterpoint of small dancing figures to large static ones, or that of vertical to horizontal figures to ensure structural neatness.
FRIDAY 17 OCTOBER, 1997

THE DAILY (BOMBAY)

R T SHAHANI (I)

This week, at The Bajaj Art Gallery, we have one more husband and wife team of Haren and Sharmila Thakur, two Ranchi-based artists, one giving us 11 of his choice paintings with collage for better effect and the other regaling us with the same number of her works in water colours. Haren'sGanapathy emerges as a showpiece of vastly different nature from what we have been used to in other manifestations of the same deity. For here, may be as the result of a dream sequence, the god comes out from the womb of the subconscious as one who wears a sulky melancholic look, with bleary and sunken eyes, gazing into space for which no rational explanation is forthcoming. The artist has however conveyed the impression of depth and volume of the body which almost enwraps the entire canvas. Of a very interesting nature is Haren'sKumbhaMela, an occasion on which we often witness sadhus and saints performing a number of yogic asanas and acrobatics for the viewing pleasure of the devotees. Here we have a figure that is vertical doing sirshasan while the other is happily ensconced this time not on a bed of roses or nails but bows bereft of the arrows. The flying tent suggests that a gale is in progress. Haren's canvases delight on three counts. His collage work is all done by him with meticulous care when he blends the colours which make the collage hardly visible when viewed from a distance. Then his use of the sturdy Nepal paper which can well be used for packaging purposes is here a vehicle which can take on colours of a light nature in oils without any difficulty. More>>>

THE DAILY (BOMBAY)

R T SHAHANI (II)

Finally, the palette knife has been used with singular dexterity where the scratching have been etched out on a large part of the surface and he uses a thick needle which combines to improve the textural effect. Wife Sharmila is engaged in an extensive study of the tribals of Ranchi. Some of us who are familiar With the santhals, will now find here the mundas, a representative of the tribe being depicted in a painting titled ‘Drunk’. This is a telling commentary on tribal life, the result of the imbibing of a brew of rice water, Ranu leaves and flowers and an adequate quantity of alcohol added on in a vessel. While the husband is drunk, the wife looks on at the miserable specimen in front of her. Nevertheless, the moral part of it aside, the pleasing ambience of yellows and greens, the lady’s personal adornment with her bamboo bangles and a delightful veni in a tight vermilion shade makes the best of the circumstances prevailing. The lush green landscape adds to the charm of the picture. Tribals are known for their vigorous dance sequences. Here however the three-some seem to have completed their dancing scores and are seen relaxing for the nonce. Their bare torsos have however been tattooed with engaging white colours, with dotted designs spread all over the bodies, which gives them a bizarre look.
SUNDAY, MARCH 11, 1990