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Art Gallery at the Rose Theatre
The Art Gallery at the Rose Theatre provides Brampton artists the opportunity to exhibit their work in the upper lobby of the Rose Theatre Brampton for a period of three months.
Hours of Operation:
Mon - Sun 12PM - 8PM
Please see Box Office staff or security on site for access to the gallery.
KAAMAR THIYA
~ March 8 - June 3 ~
Explorations of the Divine Feminine
When renowned actor and celebrity Suresh Menon first walked into an exhibition of artist Kaamar Thiya’s work back in 2004, he instantly became a fan. A big supporter of the arts, Suresh knew good work when he saw it, and Kaamar’s work was very good. So moved was Suresh that he became a collector and friend to the young artist. Now eight years later, their friendship remains and Kaamar’s artistic presence has blossomed across two continents.
Born in India as the youngest of seven children, Kaamar idolized his older brother, also a professional artist. From the age of six, Kaamar started to paint. His artistic appetite was insatiable. Looking through the kaleidoscope of childlike wonder, he found nirvana in the unassuming beauty of nature. Nature was his teacher, subject and mistress all at once. Encouraged by his family, he dedicated himself to his craft, developing artistic proficiency and vision well beyond his years.
As time went on, he studied for his Masters of Fine Arts where he went on to develop a unique style of drawings he terms “psychological line drawings”. He was subsequently commissioned to lecture at the university on the relationship of his drawings and how they related to his paintings and the world of art in general.
Concurrently, his artistic work became featured in some of India’s most prestigious galleries and exhibitions. With a growing body of work behind him, he set off to explore opportunities that opened for him in North America. His unique and captivating style found a strong following in America. The intense feminine beauty captured in the work, combined with the Indian influence of the form was in high demand. An Indian success story in the great melting-pot of America, Kaamar was soon exhibiting in shows and galleries across the continent. As fortune would have it, he met an adoring fan of his work in Toronto, Canada and the two quickly fell in love. The happy couple was soon married and Kaamar moved to Canada to start life in Toronto with his new bride. The perspective of the new world combined with his Indian heritage has given him much material for future work.
This past decade has been a prolific one for Kaamar. Working primarily on paintings, he set out to explore the divine nature of femininity through his art. His work is luxurious, sensual and personal. Replete with curvaceous geometry, brilliant colour and additions such as pieces of mirror, stone and beads attached in patterns, it calls to the senses like sirens of yore.
The addition of these materials have become part of his artistic signature. Each bead, stone or mirror piece is painstakingly applied by hand in very ornate and organic patterns. These elements add several new dimensions to the two-dimensional paint work beneath. Besides the purely physical change to the canvas landscape, the entire piece becomes more alive as the light dances and glitters in reflection. This light play presents an optic fluidity that sets Kaamar’s work apart from others. The work becomes a living organism reflecting the context of its surroundings. Much like the relationship of one’s soul to the human body, it embodies the spiritual essence of the work.
Painting is a very personal experience for the artist. His desire is for his work to connect with the soul. In fact he refers to it as “soul food”. When someone is able to make a connection with his art, he feels they connect soul-to-soul. It is obvious that this is a personal and spiritual journey for him. He prefers to paint at midnight, inspired by the ethereal serenity of the hour enveloped in the warm yellow glow of his studio lights. It is almost as if his artistic sensitivity heightens to capture the magic of the witching hour. Seeing as the subject of his artistic expression is the beauty of the divine feminine, he is wise to garner inspiration in the purity and solemnity afforded in the midnight hour.
In conversation with Kaamar, he goes on in depth about his fascination with the female form. He sees it as the pinnacle of grace and beauty. Inspired by nature, he recognizes the inherent artistry in patterns and forms in everything from a budding rose to falling rain. The harmony of nature orchestrating itself from chaos to clarity with mathematical precision is an endless source of creative curiosity for the artist. Across times and cultures, feminine beauty has been revered and celebrated as the pinnacle of aesthetic perfection. In Kaamar’s work, one sees influences as varied as Cleopatra, Venus and Aphrodite. One recognizes that while these influences are from different times and cultures, their collective beauty unites them, transcending time and space.
Over the past two years, Kaamar’s work has literally taken on a whole new dimension as he has started devoting more of his time on sculptural works. In the highly competitive world of commissioned artworks, only the most promising of artists are able to see their work realized. Kaamar’s sculptural works have been commissioned in his new home town of Toronto. Several sculptural pieces have been produced for a local social club, in addition to many of his paintings. The club, The Sorrkkam Club has strong ties in the Indian community and has embraced his work.
Having seen his work at Sorrkkam, the prestigious Granite Club of Toronto has now commissioned him to complete a major sculptural installation. Located in the heart of Canada’s financial capital, the Granite Club remains a beacon of taste and aesthetic among Canada’s power elite. Kaamar has begun working with Canada’s leading specialty fabrication firm, Great Lakes Scenic Studios to help build this project. A project of this scale requires the help of a large fabrication facility that specializes in just such work. Great Lakes Scenic Studios has worked with artists from Karim Rashid and Dennis Oppenheim to clients such as Disney and Cirque du Soleil on their specialty fabrication builds.
With his existing body of work and prestigious clientele, Kaamar’s meteoric rise in the art world makes him one to watch. Following in the footsteps of many other great Indian artists, one thing is for sure, Kaamar will continue to innovate as he captures the hearts of art adorers around the globe.
For more information on the Art Gallery at the Rose Theatre please contact: konrad.skorupa@brampton.ca
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