Truth from the margins - Painting exhibition January 28, 2007

Truth from the margins

Truth from the margins
Painting exhibition by Dhanaraj Keezhara
29th Jan- 5th Feb
Gallery- Alliance française de Bangalore
Contact: 99452 81772

A myriad ecosystems held in a delicate balance, sustaining the cultural imaginings of communities from time immemorial, threatened with destruction by contemporary contentions around water; these concerns give impetus to Dhanaraj Keezhara’s most recent explorations on human relationships with nature.

Melancholy yet arresting reminders of yet another human encroachment on the natural, registering reverberations of disturbance across space and time, these canvases gesture towards the need for restoring society’s connections with the natural world.

Born in a small agricultural community of Kerala, Dhanaraj Keezhara’s work has been a continuous engagement with art-practice as emerging from the negotiations of people with their society and environment. Fired by a belief in art’s ability to heal and renew a world torn asunder by violence and strife, he has continuously involved himself in community initiatives and education.

“Truth from the margins” gives expression to experiences that emerged from the local Kannur community’s dialogues with the art form. Theyyam, one of the ritual art forms of North Kerala, in its nature worship, its obeisance to earth, air and water, ritual worship and shamanic performances, is a festive reaffirmation of the organic relationship of humans to a natural world. Trees, animals and insects co-inhabit these canvases with tools and implements, contextualising human activity within the productivity of nature.

Dhanaraj Keezhara lives in Bangalore with his wife Nisha and son Siddhartha.

Phone no: 080-25420188
E-mail: [email protected]