Abdulrahim Appabhai Almelkar: 20th century artist Conceptualized by : National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai

Description

<p>This Gallery maps the artist's journey through parts of India, and south-east Asia as the artist travelled in later part of his life. Almelkar's love for nature and curios documentation of everyday activities of people in their indigenous surroundings is displayed in his set of drawings and sketches. Abdulrahim Appabhai Almelkar was born in Solapur, Maharashtra. He went on to study art at Sir JJ School of Arts Mumbai. He formed an eye for detailed and decorative style of painting with experimentation on his base for works, as cardboard, paper. His sketches are records of his stay and visit to places, as animate, narrative and methodological instances occurred with him.</p> <p>Almelkar's extensive travel to villages is read in his sketch 'Narayanpur bazaar, Bastar' as he writes names of bazaar markets and dates his sketches. A group of fisher women in an intriguing chat at the coast in Vasai, Mumbai renders artist's skill to have instantly captured this moment. This gained him the visual language giving detailed record of names of folks he would sketch, birds noted most often in his drawings. 'Ibis or Gaur' a tiny sketch with bold, hefty Gaur 'ready to attack' as though horns inviting the prey.</p> <p>Almelkar's subject in his work captured figurative in fishermen, folks in villages, and naturalistic themes with a clear linearity in drawing birds, animals with miniscule detailing. His landscape paintings have gained stylistics of his which are accompanied by preparatory sketches most often. A landscape preparatory sketch in blue ball point pen is an example of extensive detailed line work. The rocks stands still surrounding is a pond, a farm where men and women are working. An expressionist line drawing lends movement within the landscape. It brings alive the place to the viewers eyes.</p>