Acknowledged by the Prime Minister of India, Sri Narendra Modi himself, for the naturalistic paintings of Indian railway platforms, artist Bijay Biswal began his art journey by making lines in the sand, sketching images, and painting signboards in his hometown in Central Orissa. A sense of aesthetics is god-gifted, but the skill of creating art is earned, nurtured, and developed by the artist himself. Biswal believes that as a child, the goal of making art is not to gain popularity, or be good at it, the process is done only for the happiness one derives from it. Though he does not prefer the tag of being a “self-taught artist”, Bijay Biswal’s journey from picking jobs to afford oil paint and art materials to becoming the brand ambassador of Winsor and Newton Art Company, and a world-renowned self-taught artist, is nothing short of inspiring.
Situated in the lap of nature, Bijay Biswal’s hometown in Orissa was where the artist got his formal education. He completed his post-graduation in Political Science, and later to fulfill the wish of his father, studied Law as well. The heart of the artist, however, was captured by the flowing lines, vibrant colors, and the muses all around him. As a young man, Biswal painted signboards in his town, to catch a glimpse of which, a crowd of locals used to gather around the boards.
As any creative person does, Biswal rejoiced in reading literature- poetry, and prose in English as well as other books, which also gave him the ideas he later displayed on his magnificent canvases. He still ardently collects books, which according to him are a huge source of inspiration and a vital part of his training as an artist.
Bal Gopal | Painting by Bijay Biswaal | Without Frame
Driven by a strong sense of independence, Biswal began working to earn his art supplies and paints, which were quite costly and considered a luxury in those times. During this time, he also learned the art of sketching and making cartoons, inspired by the legendary R.K. Lakshman. Though his cartoons were appreciated by his audience, the artist felt a lack of interest in the collectors for this art form.
Working as an employee for Indian railways, Bijay Biswal’s artistic mind began drawing inspiration from the not-so-apparent beauty of Indian platforms. He rightly points out that generally when we visit the platform, we are preoccupied, and stressed with the thought of dropping someone, picking up a loved one, or catching a train. This busyness makes it impossible for us to truly savor the beauty of railways- people meeting their families, Indian women in traditional attire, weather changes combined with the coming and going of trains, and people exchanging food and conversations. In a train and platform in this country, one can find a mini-India, the loveliness of which became a huge theme of Biswal’s “Wet Platform” series.
The first painting in this series was painted by Biswal in 2011 when he was at the Bhatapara station of Chhattisgarh. He paints a word picture of the platform- drenched in rain, clear skies, groups of people, and a dreamy “washed out” effect of the surroundings, which moved him to capture what he saw that day. The astute eye of the artist, for finding magic in the ordinary instantly struck a chord with art aficionados, and the series became a best-selling one soon.
Wishing to relive his experience of the heart-touching inspirations from Indian railway platforms, Bijay Biswal makes it a point to travel by train, whenever he visits a foreign country for his workshops, art festivals, and exhibitions. However, as per Biswal, no other railway as of now has stirred his imagination, the way Indian rails do.
Life-size artworks from Bijay Biswal depict the splendor of India’s rich cultural heritage and ancient tales from the pages of Hindu texts. According to him, these divine stories flow in the blood of every Indian, who is introduced to gods and goddesses through the stories they hear from their grandmother and mother. Biswal attempts to bring his visions of heavenly beings- Krishna, Shiva, Devi, and Ganesha onto the canvas to provide his audience with a fresh view of their persona. Minute physical and characteristic details of deities are included in their images, for example- Krishna is described as having lotus feet (Charana-Kamala), an attribute which is shown by the delicate drawing of lotus vines on Krishna’s body.
In this way, Biswal represents the ideas from Indian scriptures and culture in a spellbinding innovative manner. During the recent pandemic, the necessary evil of distance among people inspired Biswal to create paintings of Sri Rama’s Vanavasa (exile), to visually narrate the condition of people stranded away from their loved ones.
The Marriage Procession of Lord Shiva | Painting by Bijay Biswaal | Without Frame
Biswal finds himself incredibly lucky, for his family- his father and mother and later his wife backed his dream of becoming an artist. In his early days, his family was a bit skeptical about his choice of career, but upon seeing his paintings and his potential, they stood with him and this helped the artist immensely, especially when he was taking the risky decision of leaving his job with the railways, to start his career as a full-time artist. With his wife standing by him in this huge transformation, Biswal now enjoys the pleasures of being his own master, working in his studio full-time, and getting to choose the themes he wants to explore.
Biswal applauds social media for its worldwide reach which has assisted the artist in reaching his audience across the globe. He has a substantial following on different social media platforms, where the fans of his brush strokes and ideas.
Teaching young minds the nitty-gritty of art and its techniques, Bijay Biswal becomes a student himself. Though age and experience do give a seasoned artist a clear edge over those who are just starting, Biswal seeks to learn from his students, especially from the interesting questions they put up during his workshops. The willingness and ability to continue learning throughout one’s life are what keep an artist “alive” according to Biswal, who aims to be a life-long learner. Once an artist starts to enjoy the process, the journey of art becomes more fulfilling than any destination.
In making new artworks, and discovering established themes through his perspective, Bijay Biswal aims at interacting with the divine element, reaching a state of meditation and bliss through the lyrical and unobstructed movement of his brush on the canvas. His ecstasy while creating his paintings can be felt in the finished gems, through which the heavenliness of divinity flows.
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