New Indian Express, Chennai, April 4, 2006
Heart talk
An exhibition of collage work
that calls for introspection
WHO knows where art begins or ends? The work of artists often have layers of meaning beneath its surface appearance. One such thought-evoking work is that of the art exhibition by Chantal Gowa and Martine Quentric-Seguy being held at the Lalit Kala Akademi.
The event, organised by Aurodhan Art Gallery, Pondicherry, in association with Alliance Francaise of Madras, exhibits the joint venture of collage work, 'Who am I? Who are we?', and the solo works of both the artists.
Step into the exhibition hall and you will be greeted with huge vibrant collage work. It was impressive to note that this collage was the work of two artists with distinct styles and different artistic approach.
The collage titled 'Who am I? Who are we?, Answers in and on the box' was the result of a year of hard work by Chantal Gowa and Martine Quentric-Seguy. "On the box, we stuck bits and pieces of paper one by one. We started from nowhere, we got inspiration and new ideas every time we came around to work. Working oft this piece is like writing a love letter," says Martine. This collage explores the endlessness of the eternal space.
The exhibition also features over 24 individual artworks of the artists. One can see a spiritual inclination in their works. Martine, a painter and a writer, gets influenced with theme that are philosophical and artistically makes use of words in her paintings. She plays with colours to depict the mood in her work. For instance, she has used blue to depict peace where as red and black are skillfully used for expressing rage,anger and hatred.
The theme of her work ranges from "Mandala" a collage, which signifies peace and infinity, "It's time to wake up" an ecological protest, where she emphasises that only disaster awaits if we(the human race) don't stop pollution. "Crucified Everyday" bears the tale of how we Crucify Christ every day with our deeds. Her works highlight how each society at large is responsible for war, violence, prostitution, paedophile and so on. For Chantal Gowa, art is an adventure in silence, a need to explore and express with many materials, creating surfaces and forms that speak a language of intimacy between the artist and the medium. Her works of art explore the inner space. "I want to explore what I don't know. I start with emptiness and travel toward space where there is no limit," says Chantal. Her works like "six planets in evolution", a work of mixed media on wood and pigment, is a retrospection in which she tries to explore the universe. Chantal believes in breathing life into her work. For instance, she used the picture of her sculpture work to create a new collage, a series on each month of the year.
The exhibition will be on till April 7 at the Lalit Kala Akademi, 4, GreamsRoad.
-- Liani TlauPhotographs : Left : "Who am I, who are we ?" - Side 1. Chantal Gowa / Martine Quentric-Seguy -- Right : "Nandin" - Martine Quentric-Seguy
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