S Elayaraja, The Realistic Painter | Coloring India Foundation

The year 1979 saw the birth of a legend, S Elayaraja, who left the world in amazement witnessing his exquisite artistic skills and his diligence for oil colors. Born in the land rich of culture and tradition, Tamil Nadu, he grasped and explored his artistic skills from Govt. Fine art College, Chennai. S Elayaraja is one of the most refined and experienced amongst the few existing realistic Indian artists existing today. His interests include exploring different mediums in art- watercolor, oil paint, and acrylic. But his love for oil paints is inconvincible and his well composed and awe-inspiring paintings are an irresistible proof.  Before we deeply study the legend lets rush through characteristics of oil paintings.

The process of painting with the pigments composed of a drying oil as the binder is called oil painting. The artist begins with sketching the subject onto the canvas with a charcoal or thinned paint and then starts with the actual work. The rule of fat over lean is must follow according to which each additional layer should have more oil composed than the previous one in order to allow proper drying. The failing of following the room might end up the painting to form cracks and peel off. The prime benefits of using oil paintings are that it consumes time to dry and it is beneficial to the artist as he is free to make the changes either by adding and an additional layer or often peeling off the unwanted portion.

S Elayaraja is known for his oils and has embarked a renowned place in the world of art. He draws his inspiration from the land where he was brought up and portrays them onto his canvas will a million microns of richness and vibrant colors. He mainly focuses on the Tamil women, their culture, tradition, and lifestyle and paints his observations with such finesse that people often misinterpret it as a lens captured a photograph.  S Elayaraja ’s paintings are a blast of emotions and expressions revealing the story of each woman he paints. This realistic artist successfully brings out the essence of a peaceful village life soothing the eyes who have only witnessed the exhausting urbanization.

S Elayaraja composes his oil paintings with great panache and is a great player with light and show. He brilliantly captures the scene without compromising on light, reflection or even a crack in the wall. The finish seen on the drapes of the Indian costumes in his paintings gives them a realistic appeal leaving the audience flabbergasted. There is no doubt that S Elayaraja is a perfectionist and a risk taker who is not ready to compromise any element that loses the feel of the scenario.

With the advent of modern art, people often fail to realize the importance of realistic art which is capable of building a bond with the painting and the audience.

Coloring India Foundation’s effort to contribute to Fine Arts Education turned a discussion with Shri. Elayaraja for 2-day workshop in Bangalore.

And Story of Oil Colors the 2day workshop is happening on 29th & 3oth of April.