Artist : Vitesh Naik
Title : The Colours of Joy
Medium Mixed Media on paper
Size : 14.5" x 9.0"
Year : 2022
National Award winning artist and Pollock–Krasner Foundation grantee Vitesh Naik has a talent that is undeniable. The images in this, his latest collection, have emerged from a space within himself that is essentially Goan but uniquely global.
Naik is known for his use of indigenous imagery to create a magic realistic world of mixed-media art. His paintings become vignettes of an illusionary world peopled by fantastic creatures. “My paintings are character oriented and are always crowded with lots of human bodies, forms and figures. Painting is like a mirror of a self-image which enables me to identify myself. The thinking man remains a recurrent motif in my work, ever questioning his drives and choices and the things he chooses to align with. I see myself in my characters."
Naik’s figuration explores the different aspects of the human psyche. The microcosm of Goa in his artwork stands for a global human condition. The motifs and symbols from his homeland, hills and taverns, white washed churches and creatures of the oceans, all stand as metaphors for a life that is as bewildering as it is beautiful. Bright floral shirt and dress prints recall the artist’s stint in the Middle East, while flying humans and Cubist imagery hint at Chagall and the Surrealists. Naik’s art truly crosses the boundaries of locale and style. His is a powerful new contemporary voice that chronicles humanity in the universal language of fine art.