Meenal Singh shares how the bigger picture shapes up in art and in life

“Learning from Nature is the most important thing and I believe by serving Nature, we gain some insight as to what is our purpose in this life,” says Bengaluru-based artist Meenal Singh, adding, “Society has progressed, but we have lost sight of the fundamental ideas about what it means to be an organism on Earth.”

As a student of architecture, Meenal was captivated by the historic buildings that dot the landscape of Delhi. “I have always liked ruins more than new buildings; it is as though Nature is reclaiming what is hers. Within ruins, one can see fragments of history — what used to be and the process of change from one phase to another.”

This perspective is the theme of Parallel Impulse, an exhibition of Meenal’s work that will go on display at the Bangalore International Centre from November 12 to 14.

Meenal Singh
 

Largely self-taught, Meenal (43) says her transition from being an architect to artist took place in 2010. “I had began working with metal sculpture. It felt easier as we were used to making scale models as architects. When I started with oil paints, I knew this is what I wanted to do.”

Meenal, who paints abstracts, says she enjoys the process of creating the unknown. “If I knew what the image was going to look like when I started, I would have no motivation to complete it. I had to paint what made me feel free, without being confined by too many functional aspects,” she says, explaining why she does not create portraits, landscapes or still life.

“The white canvas inspires you to put something down. After that, I get my information from the painting and react to it. It is a conversation and I try not to think of an overall composition beforehand. I sit very close to the canvas and only see the space I am working on.”

Talking about her process, Meenal believes it is just another way to practice living in the moment, rather than always looking at the bigger picture. “I work on small areas and if they look good to me, I believe that in the end, the painting will look good too. It is amazing because I could not have imagined the final image when I began. It is always surprising when everything falls into place, because I could not have prempted this.”

Art by Meenal Singh
 

Though she began with manageable canvases of 3×4 feet, Meenal was awed by the scope of a fellow artist whose work spanned eight feet and she gradually made the switch herself; some of the pieces to be showcased at ‘Parallel Impulse’ are 6×16 feet and 7×11 feet among other dimensions. “The need to hold this exhibition stemmed from the fact that these canvases had to be seen in their entirety and not in bits.”

Priced between ₹35,000 and ₹1.2 lakh, canvases from the Parallel Impulse series by Meenal Singh will be on display at Bangalore International Centre from November 12 to 14.