Lucknow: Synapse International Art Gallery and The Centrum Hotel have jointly presented a group painting exhibition featuring five contemporary artists—Amarnath Sharma, Amitesh Verma and Sambit Panda from Vadodara, along with Uma Shankar Pathak and Satadru Sovan Banduri from Delhi.
The exhibition features 30 acrylic and oil paintings on canvas, each exploring ideas that invite viewers to look beyond conventional forms and interpretations. A distinctive feature of the exhibition is the artists’ departure from traditional square and circular canvases, using varied formats to visualise their thoughts and artistic expressions.
The exhibition was inaugurated at 5 pm on Saturday, September 19, with a lamp-lighting ceremony presided over by Chief Guest Ashesh Srivastava, senior architect of Lucknow. Entrepreneur and film producer Sarvesh Goel, senior architect Savita Agrawal, Padma Bhushan awardee and editor Purnima Varman, and Bhagwati Pant, General Manager of The Centrum Hotel, were also present.
Rakesh Kumar Maurya, owner of Synapse International Art Gallery, addressed the media and spoke about the concept and vision behind the exhibition.
Amarnath Sharma’s practice is deeply connected with wood and its relationship with human life and nature. Coming from a carpenter family and having grown up in a village, Sharma developed an early understanding of different types of wood while spending time with his grandfather. For him, wood carries a sense of life and represents an enduring connection between human beings and nature. Patterns revealed through cutting wood become metaphors in his paintings, allowing him to explore emotions, existence and the relationship between people and the natural world.
Amitesh Verma’s works focus on the human experience and meticulous anatomical observation. His oil and charcoal paintings reflect his longstanding interest in drawing, particularly his detailed studies of horses and human figures. Verma studied at the Delhi College of Art between 1999 and 2008 and pursued extensive studies of horse anatomy at the Delhi Race Course. His dedication to observation has resulted in a highly detailed artistic vocabulary. Based in New Delhi, he continues to contribute to the contemporary art landscape through his practice and exhibitions.
Sambit Panda’s work engages with environmental values, inherited traditions and the consequences of urbanisation. His paintings often depict living organisms without the presence of humans, creating a space to reconsider the relationship between nature and contemporary society. Through unusual imagery, Panda examines ecological consciousness and changing perceptions of the natural world within an increasingly cosmopolitan environment.
Satadru Sovan Banduri’s paintings bring together memory, mythology, ecology and deep time. His works move beyond conventional historical chronology, imagining fossils dreaming of unborn species and extinct creatures returning as spectral witnesses. Ecological loss, particularly the destruction of forests and displacement of wildlife caused by urban expansion in Hyderabad, informs his visual language. Earthquakes, tectonic fractures and hybrid life forms become metaphors for survival and the less visible forms of violence against nature. Luminous electric pinks and toxic blues create unsettling landscapes where beauty and catastrophe coexist. Working across canvas and paper, Banduri approaches drawing as a form of visual poetry.
Uma Shankar Pathak explores the contrast between urban and rural existence. His works reflect the tension between the village and the city, shaped by his own journey from a farming background towards the pursuit of new aspirations. Images such as streetlights and the ploughshare become visual expressions of the coexistence of contrasting realities, capturing the idea of “nothing in everything” and the complexities of migration and changing identities.
The exhibition will remain open until September 24, from 11 am to 7 pm every day, offering art enthusiasts an opportunity to engage with diverse contemporary approaches to nature, memory, ecology, identity and human experience.
