People from all over the world come to the feet of Lord Buddha looking for peace. Even in the world of creative arts, the theme of peace and the Buddha is one of the most engaged ones, resulting in some beautiful, serene art. Meenakshi Aggarwal’s “Buddha” series of paintings, currently on view at the Lalit Kala Akademi, is one such example. It’s a skillful attempt at depicting not just the Buddha in all the popular forms but also the elusive peace that He stands for, that the human world craves for.The Blue Buddha is especially a picture of repose and calm, evoking these fleeting sentiments long enough for you to hold on to them. This is an oil on canvas, measuring 30”X48”. The one which has the Buddha surrounded by pink lotuses evokes calm bordering on happiness. This acrylic on canvas measures 24”X24”. An acrylic on paper work, measuring 22”X28”, shows two hands with a lotus, making a picture as pacific as it can be. Dr. Manisha Patil, artist, art historian and professor of Art History at Sir. J.J. School of Art, Mumbai, writes about Aggarwal’s present body of works: ‘An air of serenity envelopes the entire oeuvre of Meenakshi Aggarwal’s paintings, dedicated to Buddha in His myriad forms and associations. During her travels in India and Southeast Asia, the image of Buddha held great fascination for the soft-spoken artist, as she subconsciously made notes of its many manifestations around her. While her husband, Rajesh Aggarwal, was instrumental in building up the eclectic collection of Buddhas which occupy a large niche in the Aggarwal’s living room, Meenakshi chose to bring out the infinite compassion and wisdom of Gautama pictorially. The paintings comprise Buddha figures in meditative modes, as well as introspective Buddha heads, rendered delicately in pastel hues of greens, blues, and browns. They owe substantiallyto the idealized, Greco Roman types of the Gandhara school with their chiseled features, finely- molded noses, smiling mouths and elegantly arranged hair. The brushwork alternates between application of diaphanous films of colour to more dramatic contrasts of light and shade. The lotus flower-- a symbol of purity, kindness and knowledge, has been incorporated in singles or multiples with the central image. The presence of the Enlightened One is also delineated by symbols — the Bodhi tree, doves, the eloquent dharmachakra mudra of hands or the anointed feet, ‘pada’ imprinted by the ‘triratna’ and ‘chakra’ symbols. Arabesques of lotus and other floral blooms inspired from the ancient classical tradition of Ajanta murals augment the grace and elegance of the Buddha figures. For Meenakshi, painting Buddha has been not only an enriching journey of absorbing legends and iconography, but also a voyage of self-discovery.’The exhibition “Buddha” is on view at the Lalit Kala Akademi, Copernicus Marg, New Delhi, through September 15, 11 am to 7 pmFollow@ARTINFOIndia
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