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BHUBANESWAR: Artist Chaita Basu Jena’s Chaita@30, an exhibition of prints, was inaugurated at Lalit Kala Academy here, Monday. The five-day exhibition will conclude February 16. Fundamentally, prints have been a private art form, designed for connoisseurs and collectors, pub- lished in limited editions and hid- den away in portfolios. The 20th century saw the de- velopment of a more public role for prints. Apt for the title, the artist has displayed her work done over the past 30 years at the art gallery.
Interacting with Orissa POST, Chaita said, “I am probably the first artist to display 60 graphic art works in Bhubaneswar”. According to painter Ram Hari Jena, “The etchings are clear representations of her concern for the environment and its state of decline. Right from fish to hu- mans, birds to flowers, she has captured all the expressions so em- pathetically”. Metal plates are normally used for intaglio print- ing; especially zinc plates with needle with both front and back stopper are used. Even intaglio, wood cut and paper work have also been employed.
Various lines, dots, or other indentations are etched, scratched or engraved into the plates to create a design. Printing ink is forced into the indentations. Superfluous ink is
first removed with gauze and then usu- ally the palm of the hand, so that only a thin film of ink or no ink at all, is left on the surface of the plate. Owner of many acco- lades, Chaita Basu has made critics to re- think and review her work quite closely as she is one of the most cele- brated con- temporary Graphic and etching artist both in state and national level. Chaita heads a leading research programme wherein she tries to en- liven the art of etching into fine arts practice. Her works are a combi- nation of both modern and traditional processes. The journey from printmaking to reformed stage of final print, might be read as a metaphor for her images, which frequently reflect on the plight of environment that is being threat- ened at the cost of modernity.
