Thought-provoking satirical creations

KATHMANDU: Reflecting the current socio-political scenario of Nepal, artist Yoan Robin from Belgium and L Bazra Lama from Nepal have satirised the current fuel crisis through their thought-provoking artworks being exhibited at ‘AIR_MCUBE artist in residence fifth season’.

The exhibition is the result of these artists’ three-month stay at Gallery Mcube, Patan. The exhibition began on January 24 at Siddhartha Art Gallery, Babarmahal Revisited.

Robin has worked with local craftsmen like sign painters, pashmina weavers, et cetera. In an installation put up in the exhibition, he has placed three pashmina shawls parallelly where the text ‘no fuel just wool’ has been woven in all three shawls.

In another artwork he has painted small geometric patterns like spiral, cube, triangle, rectangle among others on metal plates using red, blue, white, and black colours.

“I am giving a physical definition to words that are abstract such a science, division, experiment, et cetera. And I want to create a visual dictionary of the same,” said Robin.

Lama on the other hand has used photography as his medium to create ‘This is not an art’ where he has clicked the photos of people carrying cards with sentences like ‘I don’t need petrol’, ‘I am not hungry’ et cetera in Nepali language. At the background there is never-ending queue for LPG cylinders, vehicles lined for petrol and so on. In another painting ‘World of pregnant men’ he has created a group of nude men with huge bellies. Though the men are naked their body position shows that they are confident being nude and are not ashamed of their huge bellies.

About the painting he explained, “The painting symbolises the current scenario of politicians who are not ashamed of doing wrong to the public. Instead they are supporting corruption and even being involved in it. It’s a satire to the politician.”

The exhibition is on till January 30.