Hochimin Ph

Eve liberated by Hochimin

Eve liberated by Hochimin
Thursday March 18 2004 09:56 IST

KOCHI: Now it’s eve in focus once again, with all her might and her vulnerability. At a time when her modesty and ego are continuously at stake, her plight is bound to be a recurring theme in the media. P.H Hochimin, the young artist, has rightly chosen the feminine physique as the medium by means of which he could express his strong anti-imperialist, anti-globalisation sentiments.

Aptly titled Sthree Parwam, the exhibition of paintings and sculptures by Hochimin, which started at the Durbar Hall Contemporary Art Gallery, provides a telling commentary of the wounded but liberated feminine psyche. It’s more of a celebration of the liberated femininity than a mere lament on her violated modesty. An untitled painting displayed here depicts the figure of a nude, winged female painting the zebra line of a public road, watched by another nude feminine prototype. The work strongly suggests the feminine invasion of some hitherto male-dominated domains.

‘‘Woman is nature and violation of woman is but the violation of the grace and chastity of nature,’’ holds Hochimin. The spate of trends relating to globalisation has recently led to many an excess including the selling away of rivers and other water resources. As a result, our rural women have lost the bathing ghats, their favourite venues of meeting. And this sense of loss is well-reflected in the painting titled Kadavu (The Bathing Ghat).

The painting ‘Breast-feeding the Darkness’ is the representation of the agony and despair of a woman who has no child before her to shower her affection. The image of a butterfly, which is shut, in a bottle nearby could be her own suppressed erotic self.

A work of sculpture titled Sthree is perhaps the most notable one in the whole exhibition. A winged female without hands is depicted as casting her eyes on the heavens as if in a prayer. What has prompted the work is the present state of affairs in our society which woman has very little role and freedom. Hence she doesn’t have the need of hands, the work seems to hold. Made of several layers of paper, the work stands out because of its sheer size.

Then there are the figures of a few fish perching on an inverted basket, in a work of sculpture. In terms of its politics, it’s the reversal of the fortunes of women in a society in which they are continuously victimised and persecuted. (The fish represent the women.)

Feminine nudity recurs in most of the works displayed here. In an untitled painting, there is a nude feminine physique depicted down from the waist. A few fish perch on the pubic area and the thighs. There are also the distant images of a few ships moving in an ocean. In another sculpture titled Sthree Jeevikkunnu (Woman Lives), a few women ascend their way upward on a spiral background. Carved out of large piece of root, it is the representation of the feminine advancement on the social ladder.

There are a few more notable works. Narmada represents a winged feminine figure flying over land and sea with an inverted tricolour in hand. The work, which is said to be inspired by the battle being waged by Medha Patkar against the Sardar Sarovar Project, holds that displacing people from their homeland is anti-national.

The works being displayed at the exhibition are noted for their thematic sincerity and clarity of vision. The recurring motif of the wing — which stands for feminine liberation — is a powerful one.