Mannequins that Talk

The plastic dolls that grace fashion stores turn into a muse for painters

The plastic dolls that grace fashion stores turn into a muse for painters

Walk into Gallerie Romain Rolland at Alliance Francaise and you will find numerous eyes staring at you. They belong to 20-odd mannequins,each one painted to portray different attitudes,from haute to haughty. Their eyes are vacant but the artwork on their bodies attempt to provoke the viewer into thinking. These painted mannequins are works of art created by 35 artists in the 40 days. Curated by sculptor Renu Rana,the exhibition titled The Mute Shall Talk attempts to break the traditional two-dimensional format of art by encouraging artists to use the mannequins as a base for their painting. Although mannequin art is not an Indian concept,the participating artists have depicted traditional,abstract,figurative and pop art styles.

The artists were not given any brief. They had the freedom to choose their theme,mode of execution and choice of colour, says Rana,an art consultant to the Delhi International Airport. The result is a body of work that viewers have labelled as individualistic and idiosyncratic.

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Among the participating artists are Tapan Das,Sanjay Bhattacharya,Anup Kumar Chand,MK Puri,Sudip Roy and Nafisa Ali Sodhi. Sodhis mannequin is a colourful,pop-art inspired work. The male mannequin has a golden body,hair falling on the forehead and large leaves spread across the torso like tattoos. Das has used a female mannequin and given it a vibrant red face with a hair-less golden head much like a helmet.

The exhibition will be held at Gallerie Romain Rolland,Alliance Francaise till July 7,and then move to The Blue Art Gallery,Lado Sarai,till July 15.

Contact: 43500200 (Alliance Francaise)