The many shades of Goan existence

'Salt of the Earth' a so 10 painting exhibition by Rudi D’Silva is on display at Carpe Diem Gallery, Majorda.

The exhibit which is a collection of watercolour portraits is an ode to the traditional Goan people. D’Silva's imagery stems from his admiration towards the local people and their traditional occupations. "These are people from our daily lives who have an inner beauty that I felt worth capturing on paper with my brush. They are individuals that hardworking and show dignity, self-respect and strength in what they do irrespective of their age or sex," D'Silva.

Speaking about the portraits D 'Silva says that each individual has a unique character which reflects in their mundane surrounding. "I like the variety of rich skin tones us Goans have, varying in shades from pinks, yellows to rich deep reddish browns. I have always been fascinated not only in faces but in depicting the human form as a whole. The hand gestures, the clothes people wear make a great portrait," he adds.

D' Silva chooses to paint people with a strong traditional touch, by photographing them first, and moving on to paint these images on paper. "Be it a fisherman with a line in his hands and optimism in his wise old eyes or the flower seller in her traditional black saree. These are people who cannot operate a mobile phone but are filled with wisdom about life. People who are as colourful as their lives each worthy of being called the salt of the earth," says D' Silva.

(The exhibition is on display till September 12 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Carpe Diem Art Gallery, Majorda)