Tuesday, July 14, 2009

There's something about fish...

Fishing is an integral part of Goan life - being a source of livelihood for hundreds, catering to the rich local cuisine as well as a sport of pride among the men. It's the only thing that drives buyers to the market at 5.30 in the morning. The fish markets are always abuzz with activity. Men and women seated on the ground in neat rows with the morning's catch in front of them, calling out proudly to passersby; the bright clothes of the mongers with the silvers of fish sparkling as they catch the light... it's impossible not to be fascinated by it. I should know; I'm a vegetarian.







In one of my earlier attempts, I ambitiously tried to capture two women. You can tell the speed at which I was trying to work (God... what've I done to the fingers of that woman on the right?!) And the colouring? The bandana colours flowed into the woman's face. But I did like the texture of the blue of the skirt of the woman on the left... all in all, a great learning.
The 2nd one, with the solitary fisherwoman, came much later. I picked a subject and committed most of the details to memory. The pen outlines were minimal and served only as cues to paint when I got back home.

Some prefer the first... they say it's got more character and movement. The detail freaks like the second. Which do You prefer?

2 comments:

  1. good work! Very loose and it captures the freshness of the medium. I'd suggest looking at Ted Nuttal's work - he shares your spontaneous approach. John

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  2. i adore the solitary woman especially the way you used blank space to convey facial features.

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