Working late the other night I went into the Collective Studio at 3.30 am to take a peep at the progress of two of our students, who were also burning the mid-night oil. I love the night because it has its own magic. The silence in the studio was punctuated by the noise of the compress restarting which otherwise goes unnoticed in the bustle of the day; and the doubts of whether a yellow was too vivid in a painting and the emerging drawing of an idea better understood all come to my focus, as I stood in that moment of enjoyment. Conversations rolled out from many corners of enquiry, and a girl power (!) was quietly celebrated without overstating the obvious! Pushing the envelop of working long hours holds both a necessity to meet ones deadlines, but equally becomes an opportunity to test the limits of ones physical endurance. For me the long hours of physical and mental exhaustion paradoxically energise my performance as an artist.
The Collective Studio throws up its magic moments but equally holds its share of testing my patience! Being involved with the lives of so many in the intimacy that the Collective Studio philosophy employs means that on any given day of the week/month/year.....there is always some "problem" that I have to address!!! From the sublime to the ridiculous, we give our undivided attention to maintain a holistic space of learning.
Lunch and dinner hold rambling discussions that often become the classroom spaces.
Yesterday we ate lunch with a small portrait that was in the process of being painted that was propped up against the wall for discussion. Structures of discourse vary from the casual to the structured. Sunday mornings, with many of us with wet hair after prolonged rituals of ablutions, are spent talking on selected subjects that are varied. Art comes from the nakedness of clinical observations that allow us an understanding of life and ourselves.
I mentioned in a letter I recently wrote to one of the artists from the Collective Studio that..... "An artists' life is strangely different. And to set the rhythm of excellence in this journey requires one to be mindful not to deviate away from the purposefulness of the journey itself."
I have started reading a book titled Artist,Undone by V.Sanjay Kumar. The author is a dear friend so my excitement to enter into the narrative comes from a personal curiosity to explore his imagination. Over the years of whacky conversations, great cuisine and a shared madness for art; a sustained friendship has emerged. I toast to his success as an author.
*V.Sanjay Kumar photographed with me at the opening of ....Once Upon a Time - Sakshi Gallery at Shridharani in Delhi
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