An exhibition of paintings by Prithvi Shrestha is currently ongoing at the Siddhartha Art Gallery, Babarmahal. Shrestha is the first recipient of the Himalayan Light Art Scholarship, which was established by Chinese artist, Zhao Jianqui to support contemporary Nepali art. Zhao had presided over the inaugural event as chief guest last week.  

Shrestha’s paintings are introspective, surreal and are often set in something of a dreamscape. These paintings are peopled by anthropomorphic figures, animals sporting halos, religious motifs, and sometimes corpses. In some paintings the artist ruminates over his own death, describing it as an assessment of the attachments of his own life. The attachments that endure, the ones that were most important to him feature most in these paintings. Shrestha’s works tend to be dense with symbolism and some even feature aspects of traditional Paubha and Mithila iconography. Shrestha, a Kathmandu native, cited Paubha as an early influence while stating that his fascination with Mithila art was fairly new and something gathered from a recent journey to Janakpur.

The only recurring figure in Shrestha’s paintings aside from himself is his wife and fellow artist, Saurganga Darshandhari. The painting, Attachment, from which the rest of the show takes its name, pays homage to their relationship. In part, a double portrait, the eponymous painting features a bald Shrestha looming over the figure of his wife whose long flowing hair covers the surface like a swaying sea. Caught in the entanglement of her hair are Uma and Maheshwor, divine consorts and symbols of impassioned love as well as conjugal bliss.

According to a statement, Shrestha’s paintings explore the duality of nature, culture and the “ever pervasive intrusion of technology,” often depicted as gridwork reminiscent of those on electric circuit boards.  Flowers, roots and tendrils along with the wires and grooves of circuit boards feature prominently in these works, perhaps suggesting a mutual entanglement of nature and technology in the context our lives.

The exhibition will continue through June 20.