All the artworks belong to Janani Pradeepkumar image sources – https://jpoviyamstudio.com/
Surrealism blends fantastical imagination with the mundane, presenting imagery from the unconscious mind or combining unrelated ideas in unexpected ways to express the inner world. Inspired by Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theories, this art movement challenges societal norms of aesthetics and often embraces absurd depictions of reality.
Janani Pradeepkumar elevates the ordinary instruments of daily life with grace and reverence in her artworks. She expresses her daily experiences and her internal and external struggles with care and gratitude. The artwork Thaiyal Kari, meaning The Sewing Woman, offers a glimpse into her private world. It depicts a woman in traditional attire, deeply contemplative, seated on the spool pin of a large sewing machine adorned with intricate geometrical and floral patterns. Her attention to detail shines in the portrayal of the sewing machine. Her feet dangle slightly, wisps of hair escape from her loosely tied braid, and her sari cascades down behind her, still attached to the needle of the sewing machine where she was working moments before. Even though her task is complete, the sewing machine continues to dominate her thoughts. Its exaggerated size mirrors her inner world. The soft, earthy tones of the machine contrast strikingly with the vibrant hues of her sari, drawing attention to the woman despite the sewing machine’s imposing presence. The use of soft pastel mediums creates a buttery, dreamy atmosphere. The disproportionate scale of the sewing machine relative to the woman introduces a surreal quality, hinting at deeper symbolic meaning.
Technical Execution
Detail and Texture: The intricate patterns on the sewing machine showcase the artist’s attention to detail, with floral and geometric designs adding a decorative element that contrasts with the simplicity of the background. The soft pastel medium enhances the ethereal quality, giving the piece a hazy, dreamlike atmosphere.
Color and Light: The use of light and shadow is subtle but effective, with the woman’s vibrant sari standing out against the muted tones of the machine. This contrast highlights her presence, making her the focal point despite the machine’s dominance in size. Her feet coloured with vermilion enhancing the traditional aspects of the artwork.
Thaiyal Kari
Janani’s Thaiyal Kari is dedicated to all working women who strive to liberate themselves from financial burdens. From another perspective, the sewing machine not only patches torn clothes but also mends her fragmented thoughts. As a child, Janani observed her mother tirelessly working at the sewing machine, tailoring and mending clothes for others to make ends meet, as their family was very poor. She recalls her mother, exhausted and overstimulated, her feet adorned with vermilion, pedaling the machine’s foot pedal. The mechanical noise filled their home, a constant presence. The sewing machine embodies Bishwakarma, the divine craftsman deity, and its monumental presence in the artwork reflects the artist’s reverence for its impact on women’s lives. It stands as a testament to her mother’s resilience and the strength of women everywhere.
2. Search of Wife – Waiting for husband’s arrival
The second artwork depicts a woman sitting on the receiver of an old rotary dial telephone. Like the previous example, this artwork magnifies the instrument, showcasing an oversized vintage rotary dial phone fixed to a wall, rendered in muted earthy tones against a darker background. The dial disk is a vivid shade of yellow, and the phone’s exterior appears weathered, with a few dents on the lower end of the base and a crack in the dial stretching from below, where a section of the phone’s belly seems to be missing. The exterior is mostly faded. In contrast, the woman is elegantly dressed in traditional attire. Her hair is styled in a beautiful bun, adorned with a white flower pinned to one side. She wears vermilion on her hair parting and lipstick on her lips; a simple chain graces her neck, and bangles adorn her wrists. Her portrayal suggests she is a traditional married woman. The vibrant hues of yellow and green in her sari starkly contrast the rusty dial phone, making her the focal point of the painting against the disproportionate vintage phone. She appears serene, with a slight smile. Sitting on the receiver end of the handset, she seems to be waiting to hear from her husband, eagerly anticipating his return home to share beautiful moments together.
3.
Janani’s third artwork in this genre, “Mukuthi Vazhi,” explores the divinity of Goddess Parvati and her grace in feminine life. Since ancient times, nose rings, or naths, have been considered highly auspicious in Hindu tradition, believed to enhance fertility in women. Various goddesses in Hindu mythology are depicted adorned with beautiful naths. I vividly recall being very young when my mother took me to a local auntie who pierced my nose with a hot needle and tied a white thread through the tender, bruised hole to prevent it from healing completely. In the artwork, a beautiful woman in a traditional yellow saree sits within the loop of an oversized, intricately designed golden nose ring—a quintessential piece of traditional South Indian jewelry symbolizing a woman’s marital status. The central figure is juxtaposed against a larger, complex, and abstract background that subtly presents feminine facial features integrated with the nose ring. A red stone is fixed atop the beautiful jewelry. Janani’s Mukuthi Vazhi is inspired by the story of Goddess Kanyakumari. It is said that the queen of the Chola dynasty offered a bejeweled nose ring to the Goddess. The jewel is rumored to be the nagmani, and it is so bright that it can be seen from the sea and help the sailor navigate back to the land safely.The divine presence behind this painting bridges earthly existence to cosmic energy. The background color palette with the use of purple, red, blue, and olive tones represents the eternal energy of Creation.
