Begumpura: Shoots and leaves

By Ranjan Kaul

Five centuries ago, Guru Ravidas in his famous hymn ‘Begumpura Sehar Ko Naao’ imagined an ideal city where everything is just right. Invoking the spirit of the poet’s vision, artist Harmandeep Singh reimagines an ideal world of wondrous beauty, drawing from his plein-air work of the environs of his birthplace, Saharanpur. The works in the exhibition, rendered in mesmerizingly intricate detail, are romantic representations of the quintessence of nature, reminiscent of the landscapes of the English romantic artists Turner and Constable.

The fifteen line drawings are based on the artist’s keen observations of nature during different seasons and in the changing light of day – the splendour of a spring morning, the heat of a summer afternoon, the cool calm during the onset of winter – reflecting his varying moods and emotions. Young and slender trees reach for the sky, others thick and gnarled and etched with fine strokes stand solidly in studied relief to the surrounding verdant verdure. The plenteous foliage of branches, shoots, leaves is rendered in spectacular detail with every element intricately drawn as an independent entity to suggest an interiority; at the same time, the artist artfully allows breathing spaces in the compositions.

Hold your breath, 18" x 16", ink on archival sheet, 2025

Most of the compositions use off-white hues as the base; interestingly, a few others surprise the viewer because of the artist’s unusual choice of soft pastel shades for their base – while in one drawing Harmandeep has used terra rose ink over a manganese blue base, in another he’s used vert empire ink with brushstrokes over a quinacridone orange base to portray heat in the work.

Wild wind everywhere, 16.5" x 11", ink on archival sheet, 2025

This is everywhere, 11"x 8", ink on archival sheet, 2025

Breathing leaves, 8" x 6", ink on archival sheet, 2025

The fluidic, enchanting compositions, executed with technical finesse, will transport the viewer into an idyllic world of meditative mindfulness, a breathless stillness.

Begumpura -- Shoots and leaves

Solo exhibition by Harmandeep Keerti

Dates: 21 July to 31 July 2025

Venue: Triveni gallery, Triveni Kala Sangam, New Delhi

(All images are courtesy of the artist Harmandeep Keerti.)

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Ranjan Kaul is a visual artist, art writer and critic, curator, author, and Founding Partner of artamour. His works may viewed on www.ranjankaul.com and his insta handle @ranjan_creates.