currently in my studio

The boat forms I am making are inspired by the traditional river-boats of Bengal. Bengal is a land crisscrossed with rivers, the water is often thick with boat traffic.  My source of inspiration is not uncommon, local culture is filled with music and poetry referencing the boats as a metaphor for life and seeking, for migration and journey. While often these boats have weathered naked wood surfaces, many boats have become canvasses, covered with color.

The visual memory of these gentle, elegant, and weathered wooden boats drifting downstream on moonlit nights are recollections from the Bengali movies of my youth, evoking feelings of stability on the one hand, and fragility on the other; contrasting feelings of romance, melancholy and joy.  

It is these contrasting emotions that I am pursuing by making these boat forms. The carved, textured surface reference hewn wood or worn metal and makes the work feel somehow monumental and grounded. The long gentle curves of the rim and the base give a contrasting sense of movement and vulnerability.