Proving that art is a necessary body of society could not be enough. It is necessary for the art world that art is associated with pleasure, passion, and other intense emotions. Comparing these different emotions with the effect of art on them will help us to go deep into the understanding of fine art. Vikash Kalra’s works do not only help us to understand the necessity of artworks in one life but also help us to collect our self to feel the emotions and passion created with these artworks.
If we are trying to understand fine art whether it is classical or contemporary, we cannot do it just by researching through it. Just like, we can’t learn swimming just by studying about water and buoyance force. Understanding is complete without emotional freedom. The artworld is presenting us with a valuable number of artists and artworks daily but the questions here are not about the daily quantity but are these works are emotionally stimulating?
When we hear some beautiful music, we go deep into some kind of emotional journey. This is a kind of emotional connection with the music and the heart. When we search for the same thing in fine and visual art, does this kind of connection could be felt by us? Why not? Well, there is no exception in visual art. It gives us a touch of emotional stimuli to our minds and heart. Let me ask you a question, don’t you feel tearful when you see some extremely sad picture? If you are a normal human being then I am hundred percent sure that you do.
Do artworks influence pleasure and sadness?
Yes, they do. If you look upon different artworks and mainly heads in Vikash’s works, you will be able to feel the pain and sadness in their eyes. It will look like as they are going to speak about the dead past our uncertain future. Conveying deep emotions with visual art is no piece of cake. If artwork is creating that aura that is helping people to feel some unrecognized pain and relief then sooner or later it will become a masterpiece in the people’s view. These artworks catch the eyes of the viewers and it is completely a brilliant work if it is being able to do that.
When we take a look over Vikash Kalra’s painting landscapes. We feel a sense of relation in our bones. Isn’t it marvelous that our emotions are that much influenced by the visual arts? There is always something in Vikash’s works that influence the emotions as well as thoughts of the viewers.
Most artists try to convey the pain but that doesn’t mean that other emotions like passion, happiness, wholesome, anxiety, etc. are not necessary. All of our emotions are as important as any one of them. An artist who is ignoring other emotions behind sorrows and pain should try to evaluate her/his artwork. Artworks were, are, and will influence the emotions of humans, not just pleasure and sadness.
Doubt over the thought process of the artist and their artwork
Some say it is almost impossible to understand the thought process of the artist when they painted their artworks. We cannot understand the thought process of Van Gogh when he painted those sunflower fields. We can of course feel and think about that artwork according to our present scene. But we cannot understand the thought process of the artist when he painted the sunflower field.
This is completely true that we cannot understand the thought process of the artist of the past but does it matter? Well, art is made for the connections whether it is emotional or thoughtful. The audience must see and observe different aspects of an artwork. It doesn’t matter how you are conceiving the art or what emotions these artworks are creating in your mind. The only thing that matters the most is whether you are getting touched by those works or not. There will always be doubt over the artist’s thought process when they worked but the audience should concentrate on their own emotions and thought process for the better understanding of the artwork that they are viewing.
Vikash Kalra is a self-taught artist and writer based in New Delhi whose work has been exhibited across India and is held in several private and corporate collections.