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New Delhi, May 9 (IANS) Thirty-two artists from eight SAARC countries and Myanmar showcased the soft power of art at a day-long exhibition titled 'Puducherry Blues' here Saturday.The artists had met in a camp at the Dune Eco beach resort in Puducherry for a South Asian artists' camp in early March.The theme of the camp was blue.And the locale was the heritage French quarters of the town which cradled the elegant boutique resort in a quiet corner. For a week, they worked in unison - first tentative in their interaction with each other and then in the spirit of bonhomie.The result was nearly 50 canvases that were unveiled in the capital by Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) President Karan Singh. The show at the Hotel Lalit was presented jointly by an non-profit culture platform Seher and the ICCR.The participating artists included Amber Hammad (Pakistan), Latifa Meeran (Afghanistan), Enayatullah Niazi (Afghanistan), Chandraguptha Thenuwara (Sri Lanka), Sanjeewa Kumara (Sri Lanka), Tshewang Tenzin (Bhutan), Karma Zangmo (Bhutan), Erina Tamrakar (Nepal), Birendra Pratap Singh (Nepal), Alkesh Ghosh (Bangladesh), Md. Rafiqun Nabi (Bangladesh), Mariyam Omar (Maldives), Kyaw Shein (Myanmar), John Tun Sein (Myanmar), Ajay Rajgarhia (India), Kota Neelima (India) and several leading contemporary artists.The works executed in an array of mediums reflected common concerns, contemporary realities and emotions that were common to the South Asian nations.The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was formed in 1895 with India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Srilanka, Bhutan and Maldives as its members. Afghanistan was included in 2007.Sanjeev Bhargava, the founder of Seher said that in 2007 he had organised the 'Jaisalmer Yellow' in which 25 artists had made 25 canvases that later toured the SAARC countries.'But I wanted to weave a exposition around the colour blue which represents so many things,' Bhargava said.His dream bore fruit after two years. The colour blue, Bhargava said, could appear in 54 shades.Bhargava said the exhibition was unique the '32 artists were not merely provided a space to paint but to interact and participate in each other's creative process'.'Puducherry was selected for its soothing atmosphere and charm, but no less for its ubiquitous, unique blue colour ever present in its sapphire skies and azure waters of the Bay of Bengal - an experience that artistes from landlocked Afghanistan and Bhutan might never have witnessed or experienced and that, perhaps, reflected in their work,' Bhargava said.Pakistani artist Mehreen Zuberi's art addressed contemporary issues like non-political and non-violent issues in the miniature tradition though her images are often contemporary and sexual in nature.'I was never a good student but always managed to pass because I made beautiful charts. The blue of the sea and the walls of my room, coupled with the sound of the ocean in Puducherry was quite novel and inspiring,' she said enumerating on the influences that shaped her art.While Karma Zangmo from Bhutan created the 'traditional tankha work so predominant in her country's cultural milieu', Sanjeewa Kumar of Sri Lanka depicted 'the elephant, an iconographic image of his country with six legs and even wings, absorbing new experiences and acquiring a new identity, while floating in a new space'.Kumar said: 'These are significant times in my country now, as we struggle to dissolve our differences to remain together.'The exhibition, said Director General of ICCR Virendra Gupta, was a attempt to the bring the 'artistic community of the SAARC nations together to forge a dialogue in colours'.It was part of the culture's cell initiative to project the soft power of art to the world.
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