Three artists, three distinct styles, one family. Meet the De Sousas — Francis, Verodina and Nadia — whose works are on display at Gallery Time And Space. Through their work, one not only gets a glimpse of life in Goa, but also an insight into human nature. Tinged with equal parts of humour and reality, this familial display of creativity will have viewers either wanting to revisit their favourite beach town or wondering how human beings can be the same everywhere, or perhaps both.
Over a phone call from Goa, the family spoke about their work, their lives and A Separate Reality, their first-ever exhibition together. Excerpts:
A day in the life
“There’s always space to keep improving, keep growing, and the subject matter is what I see in my day-to-day life,” says Francis De Sousa. “It’s not that I’m not bothered by what happens in the political arena, but I choose not to display it in my work. I choose to take a diametrically different direction, where I paint a better picture, with hopes and dreams of a better life.”
Most of Francis’ works such as The Salesman or The Fish Eaters are a simple depiction of the quiet life in a small town. Brightly and boldly executed in watercolour, gouache and acrylic, one can easily relate to the everyday images. Others such as Lonely in the Garden, The Painter or First Date, have you looking inwards.
“What do you do on a holiday? You are in a quiet place, not asking any deep philosophical questions about life. That’s the sort of thing I try to portray. I don’t consciously think of my work in terms of style. I just paint the way I can.”
“I enjoy colour and that is why most of my pieces are so colourful,” he says, adding, ”One of my hobbies is to collect paints and I have brands from all over the world. When you are selling your work, you have to give your clients the best — the best material, paper and paint. There is never any compromise on that.”
The Salesman by Francis De Sousa
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Special Arrangement
Most of the works on display at A Separate Reality were created for this show, says Francis, who last had a show in Bengaluru in 2008. “I draw almost incessantly and perhaps, out of four or five images, one of those turns into a painting.” He adds that his subject matter is never pre-decided as, “I feel that that would limit me.”
And while Life in itself is a muse that constantly surprises, Francis says, “I am terrified of stagnation, of getting stuck in a rut. You’re always in that area of self doubt. You don’t know whether you’re good enough, always wondering how good or how bad you are. “
“One has to be adventurous. For me, art is an adventure, and I have to keep reinventing myself. You may not sell as much, but there is always the prospect of discovery.”
Channeling an inner drive
Easily the most reticent of the three, Verodina De Sousa says her deepest expressions come out through her work. A terracotta artist for over four decades, Verodina has been working in stoneware for the past six years.
“Normally when I’m working, I go into a state of mental silence. I get in touch with my inner self and my hands synchronise with what I’m feeling within,” says Verodina, who starts her day with a period of meditation. “My creations do not happen at a conscious level, but rather a subconscious one.”
She adds that her creativity takes its own course, and once the figures emerge she ponders on her work, relying on “what I was feeling at the time of creating.” However, she does admit that she doesn’t like naming her work as it, “limits the scope of an artist’s perception.”
Tea Table Talk by Verodina De Sousa
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Special Arrangement
Crafted with stoneware ceramics and ranging in size from a couple of inches to not more than two feet, Verodina’s works in their soft shades are adorable to say the least. Pieces such as Taken for a Ride and The Red Herring make you smile, while others such as Off Track, Channelled by Love and The Bibliomaniac are a throwback to a more calmer pace of life.
“Normally, colours used on ceramic work tend to be loud and jarring. but they are not in sync with what I am trying to show. I use muted shades as I feel those are best suited for my pieces. I try to portray the inner peace I experience through my work as it is not something describable or tangible. Those are the colours I link to peacefulness,” she says.
The fine art painter continues, “When I feel something stirring in me, I channel that energy into my work and create about two or three pieces. I keep working until I start feeling a sense of dryness or emptiness. I go back to work only after I feel refreshed.”
Tongue-in-cheek humour
At first glance, Nadia De Sousa’s work is cutesy and whimsical, but if you can see past the humour, you are sure to glimpse something else.
“Everybody interprets art in different ways. To me, humour in life is everything, because it’s my way of coping. Whether I am watching a movie or reading a book, it has to have an underlying sense of humor and that is true of my work as well. I take a slightly dark situation and make it funny,” says Nadia.
“Most of my work has a dark undertone — either somebody is getting eaten or something is being stolen or cats are being held against their will by a rat. Although it comes off as appealing to children as well as adults, I think it is meant mainly for adults,” she adds.
Populated by woodland creatures failing to observe social mores, Nadia’s canvases are brilliantly hued masterpieces of wordplay and tongue-in-cheek humour. For instance, She Screamed Bloody Murder, depicting a redhead calmly lounging on a picnic blanket even as a flock of crows make off with a little white mouse, will appeal to those with a command of the language and a smidgen of pop culture trivia.
I Think Margaret’s got a Drinking Problem by Nadia De Sousa
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Special Arrangement
The same can be said of The Wedding At Hormuz or The OrthoDAUNTist, while others such as Greedy Pigs and Loser Has to Eat a Worm, speak volumes about the unpleasant side of human nature.
“I really enjoy it when people look at my work, and then suddenly chuckle because they’ve figured it out. I’m basically a storyteller and I do like a good story myself. When I was growing up, my father would would make up fairy tales about fantastical things for me; somehow that kind of storytelling is now part of my work,” says the artist, who paints in watercolours and “a little bit of gouache”.
Talking about The Skunk Who Stole a Ferrari, Nadia says, “It just came to me. Somehow the connection was made in my head after hearing the title A Monk Who Sold His Ferrari and I thought, ‘That’s a great idea for a painting’, and I chuckled to myself. Coming up with ideas is the most difficult part, because you don’t always think creatively. Sometimes everything comes to a halt and you need to reboot.”
Plus, those ideas were not always there. Growing up in a household with artist parents, Nadia admits, “I went in a different direction from my parents though I too, studied at art college, like they did. However, while they had taken up painting, I chose applied art which is advertising and commercial art.”
“But I absolutely hated it. I quit and decided to take a break in nature, spending about six months in the forests of South Goa with my uncle. It rejuvenated me and I suddenly discovered my style. That was in 2019,” she says.
About the exhibition, Nadia says she specifically created works for this show. “I usually don’t have my paintings at home apart from what I am practising on or doing for myself. When I came to know of this show about a year ago, I began creating for it. However, I left behind those works that felt forced and only brought along those that felt natural to me and where the ideas flowed,” she says, talking about the selection process for A Separate Reality.
A Separate Reality by the De Sousa family will be on display at Gallery Time and Space till February 23, 2025.
Published – February 19, 2025 09:01 pm IST
