‘REFLECTIONS IN MERCURY’
(Exhibition at Tao Art gallery, Mumbai (India) from 23rd September, 2017 to 22nd October, 2017)
“This series employs a new technique developed by the artist and is a culmination of over seven years of research and experimentation. Composed of a combination of metal, paint and various mixed media on canvas, the elements come together to forge intriguing, highly reflective works that tantalise viewers with an uncanny luminosity.”
Artist’s Statement:
‘There is no abstract art. You must always start with something. Afterward you can remove all traces of reality.’‘ – Pablo Picasso
Art is a “reflection” of its surrounding culture. A face of modern culture where the shiny new objects that reflect life around it, epitomising the industrial culture of gadgets and instant gratification. Metallics reflect everything surrounding them and deflect any allusions to the Artist’s interior.
Creating a work of art that will be physically different for every person looking at it?
There are no “laws of beauty” involved. One is prompted to think about the nature of art, of looking at art, of humanity, of our times, of ourselves.
I think we owe every work of art as much thoughtful and empathic attention as we can afford to give it. Hasty dismissal deprives us of aesthetic experiences.
The immense reflective surface are like minds, in the sense that the mind observes the universe, and models it. We approach art not for worship, but for catharsis; not to see something else, but to see ourselves.
These paintings return to us the world as visualised by our childlike selves: mutable, sparking with potential, fluid in form.
– Jaideep Mehrotra. 2017
