28.06-04.07.2018

Landscapes, Inner and Outer

On June 28 – July 4, 2018, the International Roerich Memorial Trust (IRMT), Naggar hosted a two-man show by a professional Himachali artist Mr. Deep Kanga and his daughter, Dipshi Kanga Thakur. The Chief Guest of the opening ceremony was Ms. Kelly Mor, the Israeli artist staying and working in Kullu, Himachal Pradesh. The IRMT was represented by Mr. Ramesh Chander, Indian Curator, and Mrs. Larisa Surgina, Russian Curator.

Mr. Kanga mainly displayed his recent watercolour series capturing the beauty of Himachali nature and culture. His Pahari “hillscapes” remarkable for their texture and meticulous detailing, present the artist’s impressions of the Himalayas, Himachali hill stations, lakes (Nako, Chander Tal), the half-submerged ancient temples in his native place, Bilaspur, etc. Mr. Kanga is also connected with the Roerich Estate in Naggar having visited it a number of times in his life, his first visit taking place as early as in 1980 when he took the students of the institute where he was teaching at the time on a photography tour.

An Ayurvedic doctor by occupation, an Indian musician by education and an artist by calling, Mrs. Dipshi Kanga Thakur exhibited her graphics that she prefers to call “visionary drawings” and that are expressions of her spiritual experience.  Her works included several mandalas complete with Sanskrit mantras, the symbols like Yin and Yang, her explorations of the Buddha image, her impressions of Bali and its unique culture, and samples of decorative art inspired by traditional designs on the walls of Himachali village houses.