Statement by Ambika Talwar
“…We have burned all trace of work and profession:
We have nothing but poetry and love songs now.
We sing of heart, soul, and the Beloved—
Only to burn all trace of heart, soul, and Beloved.”
~ Rumi
***
A self-taught artist, I began to paint several years ago to channel my hopes, loves, desires, narratives from the subconscious into a new form. A particular emotion or idea evoked in my mind an image or a series of images. *** I would transfer it to canvas attempting to remain as true to these as possible. Now my naïve and expressionist canvas has become a playground for gestures my inner and outer world, hence the continually changing styles in the marriage of colors, dynamic and passionate.
***
Sometimes my paintings are obtuse, as is life. We would like life to be without conflict and complication, but that is not possible. Conflict feeds our art so that we may move towards a greater awareness on all levels. *** While I may deal with certain aspects of the shadow, I cannot help but introduce an element from the light—how can it be otherwise? Both-and co-exist simultaneously. My younger sister pointed out to me that despite the dramatic, intense, and sometimes serious quality of my works, there is a tender something, like a softly curling leaf or smile lying hidden somewhere.
***
What emerges for me, even as images reveal themselves to me, is the sense of an intense and deep connection between all living presences, as deep as the umbilical cord connecting to our deep profound core. They reveal mythical motifs and archetypes.
***
I urge you to see these images as mirrors for your own “symbolic unfoldment,” for your sightings of your own mystery, for the mysterious is universal.
