A self-portrait, as far as an artist is concerned, is a very
special and significant moment for he/she does not come to model for him/herself
that often. That means self-portraiture is a moment of arrival and a moment
before departure. Mostly done in a single sitting, a self-portrait heralds the
arrival of the artist to that moment which finds himself too inspiring to
avoid. And he would hanker around for long as the moment of arrival engenders
the moment of departure as well. Hence, we could say self-portraits are a
spontaneous yet very volatile moment that anticipates an ‘exist’ rather than a virtual
sojourn within the space and time. It is different from a photographic
self-portrait because in photography the portrait happens in a moment though
after much deliberations that would result into the desired (self) portrait but
in the case of painted self-portrait the result spreads through many moments
which could be a single sitting or an extended one segmented into various times
of the day or over a few days.
An artist, while doing a self-portrait examines himself,
exposes his inner thoughts, turbulences and vanity he also inadvertently lets
the people to come and take a good look at his ‘original self’ which remains
hidden on a normal day at any given point of time. Before the easel where he
does the act of self-portraiture he is also in an interim space, not exactly
between the entry and exist points as mentioned before, from where he looks at
his reflection on a mirror and at the canvas or surface where he makes the
portrait. In this sense, an artist is an observer and the observed, the subject
and the object, the object of his own desire and the very image of it. He may
be flaunting his artistic prowess to create a likeable self-portrait in terms
of likeness and an impressive one, in terms of its execution. He stands to gain
accolades but at the same time he is at the edge of a cliff where he could lose
the grip on his ego and fall into a ditch of self-exposure. A posturing could
betray the underlying fear and trepidation and even if he denies his weaknesses
the apparent strength itself could collapse in the weight of the denial. In
short self-portraiture is a dangerous game, and adventurous pursuit, creation
of a brittle auto-fiction, if not a plain confession.
(Shibu Natesan Self-Portrait Number 2)
In this short essay an attempt is made to locate the six
self-portraits by the noted artist, Shibu Natesan (b.1966), done during the lockdown
days in March 2020 in Wales, England. He was in London, spending time with his family
when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in the world. Wales, a country side
location where Natesan’s wife, Kate Bowes, an artist herself, has her ancestral
home, became a retreat for the artist and family as they found the place safe
from the virus attack. A retreat is a happy retreat when the move is willingly
done but when locked down from outside even the best place in the world could
exude a sense of jail. Any creative person overcomes such moments of locked up
feeling by engaging with it directly or by taking the attention away forcefully
from it. Natesan seems to have done both of these; in his profuse landscape
paintings one could see how the artist takes his energies away from the threat
of the virus by indulging deeply into the beauties of nature and painting it.
But when it comes to the direct engagement with the sense of the pandemic
lashing out all over the world, he could do nothing but looking at his own self
and paint it.
Natesan has been a master of self-portraiture. His mastery
has also been seen in making portraits of unknown and well known people, always
willing, patient and enthusiastic sitters for him, whom he meets while his
innumerable journeys to make plain air paintings of the landscapes. Perhaps, he
treats the given landscapes in front of him as people and models who prod him
to paint their likeness, most importantly, the way he wants. In the context of
the pandemic the models are always possible distractions and sensible
engagements than a dialogue with the situation. Misery cannot always be dipped into
beauty though misery has its own beauty when captured in forms and shapes, in
moving or frozen pictures. Misery of the human beings in any part of the world
has to be addressed and if they are within the means of addresser it should be
alleviated. But alas, an artist is just an individual who could flag out,
scream out and point out, but never offer solutions or means of it. In art
there are no immediate or long term solutions to problems. But there are
locations in art where one could see how the world should not repeat certain
follies.
(Desperate Man by Gustav Courbet)
Self-portraiture is a self-examination; the way a woman
searches her bosom to make sure that she does not have any carcinogenic lumps
there. It is tender yet apprehensive; it is curious but pregnant with the possibilities
of future miseries. It is self-assuring but doubt inducing. It is a private act
yet once doubts confirmed it is liable to be exposed and treated. That means
self-portraiture is a beautifully rough act; a violent yet pleasurable and
dangerous self-indulgence. Natesan takes this risk and the risk becomes too
palpable and visible when we see very few artists have done self-portrait in
contemporary Indian painting. Self-portrait as a part of the narrative or as a
surreptitious intervention by the artists who did miniatures and votive
paintings for the patrons is a different genre altogether though art
historically they too are treated as self-portraits. But Natesan’s is more
independent and less interventionist like those in the lineage of Rembrandt and
Courbet. In India, an artist like A.Ramachandran has dared to involve his
self-portrait in his narrative works but the prolific doyens like Ram Kinkar
Baij and K.G.Subramanyan have always resisted the impulse to make
self-portraits in or as their works of art. This gives a unique position to
Natesan in the art historical discourse in India.
Self-portrait number one shows Natesan sitting in an erect
posture, palms on his knees and giving a side glance with the lips held tight.
The summer in Wales is pleasant yet there is a nip in the air as the round neck
full sleeve sweater worn by the artist suggests. The background is plain. The
flowing locks are open and the light falls on his face from the right side of
the painting a la a Vermeer painting. As we know that the Covid 19 was around then,
the artist’s erectness shows his alertness to the situation. The tight lips
suggest that he is yet to make head or tale out of the pandemic condition. He
seems to be a bit tensed for the sudden shift to the Wales. The Grey tone of
his clothes though a bit mundane should reflect the undecided nature of his
mind for the time being.
(Shibu Natesan Self-Portrait Number 3)
In the Self-portrait number two Natesan seems to have grown
familiar with the surroundings and has decided to put up a show for his own
enjoyment. The half cushioned hacked and apparently the same grey t-shirt seems
to make a good blending. What makes the portrait interesting is the red cap
whose reference should be to the reggae musicians like Peter Tosh. His gaze is
sharp and is directed at the imaginary viewer who is none other than himself.
The gaze is quite piercing as he tries to look into himself and the show that
he has put up for himself. The semi parted lips show a bit of ‘I do not care a
bit’ attitude often exuded by the Rastafarians. Still the facial muscles are
tensed and there is no chance of him relaxing internally. The work has certain
self-referential qualities as similar posture could be seen in some of his
early self-portraits.
The third Self-portrait seems to have originated from
Natesan’s mental dialogue with Gustav Courbet who had done the self-portrait as
a desperate young man. Courbet’s face is upfront and to the viewer. The eyes
are wide open in it and one could sense the pang of a wounded soldier in his
face. Natesan perhaps avoids the pain on face. But the expression betrays the
desperation that he feels inside. The light falls from the right on his back
highlighting the contour of the body as well as the folds of the clothes. He
refers back to the works of Jean Ingres, perhaps in this work. As the gaze is
averted and an extra sharpness given to the edge of the nose gives a sense of inquisitiveness
about the surrounding that has just beckoned him back. Perhaps Courbet and
Natesan have the same thin moustache!
(Shibu Natesan Self-Portrait Number 4)
The fourth self-portrait is more typical of Natesan where he
seems to have adjusted to the pandemic situation that has held him back in
Britain for more than expected. The gaze is direct and there is a sense of
reconciliation in his eyes. The same clothes as in the first portrait show that
he has been home bound for some time and his outing to do landscapes has not
really been regular. The scarf around his neck in the previous portrait seems
to have obscured deliberately to give a look of a lowered mask, which has
become a health protocol all over the world. Once again the gloomy grey has
come back as a background and the summer light hasn’t really lit up the mood or
room. The extended left had must be holding on to the frame of the canvas on
the easel but he leaves it obscure and lean as he thinks it is unnecessary to
think about the details and go for what is apparent.
(Shibu Natesan Self-Portrait Number 5)
It is quite Zizekian as we come to the fifth Self-portrait
of Natesan. He has all braced up to face the world. Covid or no Covid, I am
here to work, he seems to declare the world. Zizek says that when we are
afflicted by an illness we go through five stages of dealing with it, namely
Denial (No it cannot happen to me), Anger (What on earth it came to me, why didn’t
it spare me), Bargaining (Oh good Lord, give me some time so that I could
finish my duties and tasks), Depression (No way…I am down now..), and
Acceptance (Come what may let me live the rest of my life happily and I ready
to die). Natesan in this painting seems to have reached the final and fifth
stage; acceptance. The red sweater and apron shows the sanguine nature of the
determination. Like Ernst Ludwig Kritchner, Natesan holds an erect brush in his
right hand to assert his decision to live and paint. A portion of the adaptable
easel is seen reminding the convention of Velazquez or Van Eyke. The mandatory
mask is around his neck and what makes the painting assertive is the background
where the flat emptiness is replaced with a traditional wooden shelf where
crockeries are beautifully arranged. The gaze is more direct and cheerful. The apprehensive
holding of lips is gone and they are shown full below the greying moustache.
(Shibu Natesan Self-Portrait Number 6)
Once all five stages are over and the summer has made the surrounding
more beautiful than ever and the hope is fully back in the minds of the people
as well as in the artist, the self-portrait number six shows an absolutely
different feel. Natesan is seen more like a contemporary troubadour, with a
Neruda like hat and a high neck Indian half jacket. A middle dandy with flowing
hairs has his chin up and a quizzical look in his eyes. Like the second
portrait here too you could see an act, a posture but with more lightness than
the former one. Though the eyebrows are crooked to show questioning look, it is
not really a serious one but a moment before the exit, a laughter perhaps.
Natesan has also done a series of oil and watercolour landscapes immediately after
March 2020. Rembrandt was examining himself through is self-portraits while
registering his ageing but in Natesan’s case it is not the registration of
ageing but the time that has held one and all in thrall without letting know
anyone about their lives or deaths. One could see how the emotions festered in
each person in the world which must have taken different forms of expression
including poetry, painting, music, pornography, self-portrait, short film
making and domestic violence. Natesan’s self-portraits are not his picture
alone but the picture of all the people who have lived in March 2020 and lived
beyond it.
-
JohnyML
