The Temporal Dimensions of Portraits

Article by Shaharee Vyaas

Painted portraits are generally perceived as snapshots that freeze the image of a certain subject in time. By progressing or regressing the portrait of La Gioconda in time and exposing the result next to the original, I invite the viewer to approach da Vinci’s work from a more dynamical perspective.

Figure Time in Art: Mona Lisa. Mixed techniques on pressed cardboard 80 x 60 cm by Shaharee Vyaas

Then you have some subjects that over time have been inspiring and reused by different artists. It is a well-known fact that Salvador Dali was inspired by Leonardo’s Last Supper when he produced his version of the Last Supper, which inspired me to take some elements of the latter painting to portrait the people and (a) place that had a lasting influence upon my vision and style.

In a second batch I’ve tried to capture the soul of the artists that inspired the two previous paintings. The first triptych concerns Leonardo da Vinci. He is widely considered one of the most diversely talented individuals ever to have lived. Though the religious aspect of Leonardo’s mental universe forms the central piece of this installation, it is doubtless that most of his convictions were carried by the wings of his artistic and scientific alter egos. Hence, the uncertain looking middle piece is flanked on the left by an image that represents his artistical drive and on the right the critical scientifical facet of his personality.

Figure 3: Leonardo. Mixed techniques on cardboard 75 x 50 cm by Shaharee Vyaas

Dalí drew inspiration from Leonardo Da Vinci, who lived 500 years before him. Dalí believed that every artist should have a broad education and be well-versed in the sciences to achieve completeness in their artistry. In the central panel of this triptych, Dalí is portrayed as a messiah, drawing upon Da Vinci's famous Salvator Mundi as a source of inspiration. The left panel of "Salvador Mundi" paints the artists in an uncharacteristic pose of ignorance while the right panel shows him from a more familiar angle as a showman. Known for his aura of arrogance and omniscience, Dali was often perceived by most of the Parisian surrealists in the 1920s as Avida Dollars, an artist teetering on the edge of being a conman.

Figure 4: Salvador Mundi. Mixed techniques on cardboard 75 x 50 cm by Shaharee Vyaas.

To make the circle round, I finish with two self-portraits that illustrate how previous influences have shaped my own perception: The first one is called "Inspiration" and the second one is called “The Final Solution”

Figure 5: Inspiration. Mixed techniques on pressed cardboard 50 x 75 cm by Shaharee Vyaas.

Figure 6: The Final Solution. Mixed Techniques on pressed cardboard 50 x 75 cm by Shaharee Vyaas

Before inspiration was used to refer to the act of breathing in and it had also a distinctly theological meaning in English dating back to the 14th century, referring to an influence upon a person by a divine entity. The sense of inspiration often found today (“someone or something that inspires”) is considerably newer than either of these two senses, dating from the 19th century. The second painting is grafted upon the background of the crematoria of Auschwitz. This last one is a reflection upon the historical recurrences of genocides throughout human history, a phenomenon that is sadly enough still not eradicated.

About:

My actual occupation is to create a new metaphysical concept that could reunify the fragmented human skills and knowledge, and I sometimes refer to it as a contemporary philosopher´s egg (see my manifest The All is an Egg).

My visual art develops along a stylistic concept that I call "surpressionism". It is an exciting new art style that merges the fluid brushstrokes and vibrant colors of impressionism with the otherworldly and dreamlike qualities of surrealism. This unique blend creates a sense of movement and depth in the painted scene, encouraging the viewer's imagination to take flight. The originals are rarely for sale, but prints can be purchased at https://www.saatchiart.com/en-es/shaharee

My literary activity is a blend of fiction and non-fictional publications. My latest novel, “The Maharajagar” is an epic historical fantasy that has been set in the first half of the 20th century and that is grafted upon the storyline of The Mahabharata. My latest non-fiction publication is called “ A Standard Literary Model: Analyzing Major Works of World Literature Through the Metaphorical Lens of the Standard Model of Particle Physics.”

A more expanded inventory of all my works and thoughts can be found on my website www.maharajagar.com.