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SINGAPORE 27 FEBRUARY 2014 - Indigo Blue Art is delighted to celebrate the opening of its gallery in new premises with Cosmic Confluences, an exhibition featuring Tantric-inspired works by two Indian diaspora master artists Sohan Qadri and Akkitham Narayanan. Imbued with western influences but rooted in Indian tradition, both collections are deeply spiritual and display notions of Tantric teachings through the use of symbols, colours, lines and shapes. These works are well-known for their unique blends of Indian and Western Tantric imagery with modernist minimalism in Qadris works, and Tantric and Indian elements with geometric patterns in Akkithams works. A balanced pairing of two different collections, this twoman show envelops the viewer in a cosmic confluence of vibrancy, subtlety, rhythm and silence, rewarding the audience with an aesthetically peaceful and undemanding experience. SOHAN QADRI was a former Buddhist monk, a noted poet, a Tantric Guru and an internationally acclaimed artist. Deeply inspired by Tantric Vajrayana Buddhism, his paintings are mystical and sensual. His works can be seen as yantras - vehicles for deep meditation or symbolic representations of Kundalini, a form of feminine energy uncoiling upwards from the base of the spine, derived from the philosophy of Tantra and Yoga. Qadri began painting with an empty mind a 1 feat achieved through deep meditation and saturated thick artisanal papers with water, to prime them for absorption. He used vegetable dyes which he had concocted himself to fill the meticulously serrated papers with rich and luminous monochromes. The dots, or bindu, a recurring theme in his works achieved by carefully

Qadri would begin painting with an empty mind a feat achieved through deep meditation and saturate thick artisanal papers with water, to prime them for absorption. He would use vegetable dyes which he had concocted himself to fill meticulously serrated papers with rich and luminous monochromes. The dot, or bindu, a recurring theme in his works made by carefully puncturing the canvas, as well as rhythmic lines, accomplished through incisions and serrations, create areas of concentrated colour. AKKITHAM NARAYANAN is a Paris-based artist whose works are a fusion of Indian Tantric Art and European Geometric Abstraction. His abstract works engulf the audience in an enigmatic and visual presence. The artist, who was born into a traditional Brahmin family that often conducted Vedic teachings, combines religious elements of air, fire, water and the ether in his works. Unique to his works are the blackish tones that are often associated with ancient Indian wall paintings and architecture. A repetitive mixture of triangles and rectangles revolve musically on his canvases and colours reminiscent of Indian murals fill each space. Akkitham blends the colours and creates the feeling of light, by applying a thin coat of oil paint on the canvas and then erasing it. He uses a knife to carve out archaic lines and lyrical calligraphic markings onto his works.

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ABOUT SOHAN QADRI Sohan Qadri (1932-2011) was born Sohan Singh Barhing to a non-traditional Sikh family in Chachoki, India. He studied under two different spiritual teachers when he was a child Bikham Giri, a Bengali Tantric Vajrayan yogi, and Ahmed Ali Shah Qadri, a Sufi master, whose last name the artist adopted. Qadri had travelled extensively, and lived in Copenhagen for most of his life after he left India. He had participated in more than 40 solo shows worldwide, including Vienna, Los Angeles, Copenhagen, Toronto, Nairobi, New Delhi, Bombay, Singapore and New York. His works are in numerous prestigious public and private international collections. ABOUT AKKITHAM NARAYANAN Born in Kerala in 1939, Akkitham Narayanan received a Diploma in Painting from the Government School of Arts and Crafts, Chennai, India in 1961 and pursued his studies at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris on a French Government Scholarship. He has held numerous exhibitions in France, Japan, Germany, India and Singapore. Akkitham was the recipient of many awards, including the IV International Festival of Painting Award, in Cagnes-sur-Mer, France and the K. C. S. Paniker Puraskaram award by Kerala Lalitakala Academy. His works are housed in several esteemed public and private collections around the world. Akkitham Narayan lives and works in Paris and Kerala.

On View: 27 February 2014 20 March 2013 Location: Indigo Blue Art, 52B Temple Street, Singapore 058597 Timings: Mondays Fridays: 11am 6pm Saturdays: By appointment only Sundays & Public Holidays: Closed Website: www.indigoblueart.com

ABOUT INDIGO BLUE ART

INDIGO BLUE ART was established in Singapore in 2004 as a platform to showcase Contemporary Indian Art.

Committed to promoting a greater awareness, understanding, and enjoyment of Indian Art, INDIGO BLUE ART houses an extensive collection of paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures and books on the subject.

For more information, please contact Lydia at lydia@indigoblueart.com or call 63721719.