VIVEEK SHARMA

Is a seeker’s quest forever recorded on his physical form; is it etched in fine lines on his face, or inscribed in the joints of his bones?

Continuing his engagement with representations of holy men and those who are in search of spiritual truth, Viveek Sharma mulls over symbols of silent reflection in a world of conflict and tension. Indian religious tradition reveres these ascetics who seek to transcend the physical world and meditate on the well-being and balance of the universe.

Their presence sustains the belief that sacred spaces and prayer can offer something beyond the mechanical grind of everyday life. The search for eternal truth can take a lifetime for some, yet sometimes it may come to an innocent child through its very faith and transparent wonder in nature... It connects the microcosm and macrocosm and everything that falls in between. This search is for an elusive truth, that sustains all reality and what is beyond.

The sadhus aspire for a life of anonymity, they give up a material world of possession and ownership, for one of introspection, contemplation, and oneness with the earth. In the paintings, they have individual features and yet become representative of the ethos of their entire community. Sometimes, the artist sees himself in their gaze. Their faces, creased and coated with sacred powders, crowned with straggling matted hair, reflect wisdom, experience and composed sentiment.