Art exhibitions to mark 123th birth anniv of artist Sobha Singh in Himachal

A series of art exhibitions and student competitions will be orgainsed to celebrate the 123rd birth anniversary of renowned artist Sobha Singh on November 29. Sobha Singh Memorial Art Society president KG Butail told The Tribune that three organisations in Himachal Pradesh and Punjab would host several art-centric events towards November end to commemorate the artist’s anniversary.

One of the highlights would be a three-day exhibition and workshop on traditional textiles of India and Japan, led by textile art researcher Maneet Kaur from Shantiniketan. This event would take place at the Artist Residency of the Sobha Singh Art Gallery at Andretta from November 27 to 29.

The workshop, titled The Sisterhood, draws inspiration from Sobha Singh’s 1955 paintings, ‘The Sisters of the Spinning Wheel’, and ‘Panjabi Bride’ adorning traditional red Phulkari exhibited at the Government Museum and Art Gallery, Chandigarh. It would explore the cultural and technical perspectives of Phulkari, the traditional folk embroidery of Punjab, alongside Japan’s Sashiko stitching technique.

The workshop would delve into the agrarian roots of these art forms, illustrating the historical and artistic commonalities between them. The participants would gain insights into the symbolism of these crafts, and they would receive guidance on developing their own artistic expressions through these traditional forms.

The vivid floral and geometric patterns of Phulkari, crafted with silken threads, and the functional aesthetics of Japanese Sashiko would be the prominent features, said Hirday Paul Singh, secretary general of the Sardar Sobha Singh Memorial Art Society.

He said in Bathinda, the Sardar Sobha Singh Memorial Chitrakar Society would host an art festival from November 28 to December 1. Around 400 students from schools and colleges would participate in a live painting competition.