Beauty In Withered Paper: Gopalsamy Subramanian

“The artist must have something to say, for mastery over form is not his goal but rather the adapting of
form to its inner meaning.” -Wassily Kandinsky

G Subramanian’s childhood had been enriched with experiences and proficiencies of folk music, dance, facial makeup, troupe outfits and hand painted backdrops, as his father was a full-fledged stage artist. His exposure to spirituality started at a very young age when he used to visit temples in his vicinities with his mother and worship ancestral God representing nature with his grandmother. A few features of the involvements subconsciously started getting penetrated into his artworks too. Belonging to a small village Thandavankulam in Tamil Nadu, Subra graduated from College of Arts and Crafts Kumbakonam, and then worked with ad agencies in Chennai, Visweswaraya Museum Bangalore, BEML and finally, as a graphic designer with NAPCO in Saudi Arabia for eighteen years. Like it’s said, “In the repetitions of practice lies the emergence of your unique voice; nurture it before you let it sing on the final canvas”, he too took his time to practice sketching and capturing details, exploring techniques and mediums, before leaving
Design industry and fully immersing himself in the act of painting.

His journey with collage started in 1972 when his first collage ‘Mother and child’ won an award from Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath Bangalore. Story tellers, musicians, meditating girl, pets, Hindu gods like Ganesha, Brahma, Vishnu, Hanuman, Krishna, Lakshmi, Saraswati and Buddha have been among a few of his preferred and cyclical leitmotifs whispering through the cracks and creases of the torn colourful pages of magazines. The artist discovers a peculiar beauty in the withered paper and turns them into beautiful collages with an interminable maze of patterns and movement. The exploration of themes, symbols, and ideas that transcend the material world, often evoke a sense of the divine, the mystical, or the profound in his art.

Inner-directed eyes express the idea wrapped in fantasy and communicate through an imaginary dialogue. The ‘Sacred book’ series of 1999 have drawings in ink wash on board and acrylics on canvas. The signs and symbols blended with lines, colours and shapes embody his purpose and
connotation. Subramanian’s inclination towards metaphors, symbols, spiritual text, meditation, and influence of Philosophy of Guru Ramana Maharishi gets reflected in his series ‘Inner Line’ of 2000, unfolds his conceptions with inks and acrylics, and wash on canvas. The spirituality has
been a prevailing driver in his artistic expression, influencing styles, techniques, and the purpose of creation itself. In the linear erotic drawings on Vatsyayana’s Kamasutra one can see a bird

playing the conjoint factor between all the drawings, somewhere perched on the knee or arm or somewhere in the background. Meandering lines take a disciplined shape. Along with being a social being, one has inner and isolated existence too, which makes one think and feel exceptionally. These feelings and ideas may pop up in diverse ways. They may be conveyed through attitudes, personal statement or dealing in general. They may become the vehicles of artist’s personal vision. The pain which breaks a person might turn out creatively into an element to be treasured. When an artist recognizes something or can connect to something in his work of art, it’s a reflection of his survival technique. The same happened with Subra when
he lost his nine years old daughter Surya in 1994. ‘She’ 2002-03 series is dedicated to her. Her memories subconsciously play on his mind and the visual images define the ranges of emotional state. There is capturing of a pleasant memory instead of melancholic reality. There is gentleness, a sweet smile emotionally charged, delicacy of feeling- a psychological insight. The final forms may seem like replicas, yet each have their own style, mannerism and identity.

Among the array of aesthetic choices of paper cuts usually from National geographic magazine, one may focus on any part and that fragment becomes an image enriched with textures and mirrors some storyline. Recently, when the news of National Geographic magazine stopping its publication came up, the anxious artist in Subramanian made him create a few bromide prints and then search the whole market and finally succeeding in grabbing five hundred copies left behind.

In the series of collage and mixed media- ‘Asrama’, four stages of life- brahmacharya, grihasta, vanaprastha and sanyasa have been interpreted. Tamil text can be seen added to the composition too. Incorporating the style of old manuscripts into painting brings a timeless, intricate quality to

Subra’s work. The delicate lines of ancient scripts weave history and artistry into every stroke and their details hold secrets to mindfulness of the subject, profundity and richness. One can see the blend of tradition with innovation, a step to break free from the stagnancy of a particular subject and letting the precision of manuscript styles merge with the modern creative voice. In the interplay of aged parchment tones and vibrant pigments, a bridge between past and present is fabricated on the canvas. The unevenness of antiquated patches, the cracks and patinas of vintage appearance, weathered surfaces, faded hues and muted tones, and rough edges mimic nature’s imperfections. By not touching the central subject collaged on the canvas, he just gives burnt effects on unevenly pasted tissue paper, where the accidental tarnish likewise plays its role in adding to the expression.

His colourful forms from mixed media have become monochromatic and taken a shape of bronze sculptures too, yet in this three-dimensional art same innocence and cadence seen in two- dimensional works prevails. His belief in Advaita philosophy has converted his act of creation to meditative, a way of accessing higher states of consciousness, or a means to connect with something greater than oneself- identifying with the eternal self. Many of his art forms serve as a bridge to the divine or sacred realms. His mystical forms often seek to depict the ineffable, using abstract forms, symbolism, or ethereal compositions to deliver additional titles ‘Shrishti’, ‘Brahmam’ and the unseen world. He has started believing and understanding that to know oneself as the ‘Atman’ is to transcend the illusion of death. “As one abandons old garments and takes new ones, so too does the soul discard worn-out bodies and assumes new forms. But the Self is never born, nor does it ever perish.” (Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 2:22-23). His work acts as a medium for self-reflection, seeking to understand inner self or convey transformative experiences.

Subra, an artist settled in Bangalore, is a recipient of many honours like Tamilnadu Lalithkala Akademis highest honour ‘Kalaichemmal’ 2024; Paul Harris Fellow Rotary International 2022; Kalaimaiyam International Fellowship Award, Rochester Kent UK 2019; Saudia 6 th Malwan GCC Countries Biennale Award 2003; and Tamil Nadu State Lalithkala Akademi and AIFACS Millennium Award 2000. He has won trips to Italy, France and UK as a part of awards too. He has held many shows in Galleries like Kynkyny in Bangalore, Eikowa in Gurgaon; and others in New Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Pondicherry and Chennai; and also in Melbourne, London, Germany, Singapore, France, Dubai, Mauritius, Malaysia and San Francisco. Garnering acclaim, his artworks are housed in a wide range of private and institutional collections worldwide.