Segarism : The artistic genres

by Gwen Herat

Part 2

Segar's paintings highlight an innovative approach to colour and composition. He developed its potent the moment he realised that's where his notion of beauty lay. He explored ranges of responses that he was to incorporate in the future as his brush became stronger and powerful.

But Segar never depended solely on notions. He tried to be very practicable but slipped once in a while when theory of painting challenged his canvas. As he progressed, the dissonant colour mix often formed fragmented abstract figures.

That was the start for Segar who never looked back.

Human figures

Segar soon evolved to encompass objects apart from human figures, subjects familiar from history and spiritual figures such as Jesus Christ, Buddha and Lord Ganesha.

His paintings are of flawed individuals and so much like the real universe, they are not perfect. Splashing the canvas with seductive colours to expose the sunsuality of women in particular, are often superimposed.

I do not think his source of imagery are reproductions from books because he uses planes of colours to offset striking elements in the subjects he identify for painting.

The individuality is the key signature of his paintings that art lovers have come to identify as from Segarism. He is in the process of creating his own school of art that I am able to forecast for the future; not classicism, impressionism, Romanitcism or any such school from the past.

Traditional genres

I also see his attempts at reinvigorating the traditional genres and they do not necessarily belong to Sri Lankan identity but more Indianish.

Segar should try to focus on the face of Sri Lanka if he wishes to be the formal artist in Sri Lanka to popularise Segarism. He must not put to test his spectacular career. The intrigue and visual communication must be Sri Lanka. Not that he does it intentionally but that is the art of Segar.

Treating things differently has been my success in whatever I had undertaken especially where aesthetics was concerned. If Segar too can treat his subjects differently, he will emerge a very powerful artist. A modern painter, Segar was indefatigable in his endeavours to step into a new world of art in which he see a great future for the next generation of painters. Even today he feels a sense of fulfilment and mental discipline that any other profession could offer him.

The challenging conventional ideas never came between his painting as the composition in most of his abstract figures, rose above this theory.

Segar would never allow himself to be influenced nor manifests his inner desire if his art was to suffer its consequences. He was no poet nor musician who had the ability to put rhythm and beauty of words found in books or scores. As much as he tried to explain his colour theories and abstract art, it took time and years to register its artistic minds.

Experience

Art is essentially a spiritual experience for Segar as he paints to escape from everyday reality feeling guilty at moments when he fails to put on canvas the natural world around him. He is profoundly drawn to sacred images he paints his own way.

Take a look at the dying Christ on the cross done in cubic form and titled with His last dying words.

Subtle colours ranging from muted browns into darkening blues with His head lowered and eyes closed is amazing.

In galloping horses, he reverses the colours. The colours of the horses are shifted to the background and the sage grey painted to make the animals look in motion. His collection of paintings are in abundance that I find it difficult to select a few to describe.

Medium

He uses all types of medium that vary according to his whim and fancy such as oil on canvas, mixed media, watercolour, acrylic, charcoal and oil on board.His early works were confined to figuratives from a world of mythology and rituals while others were legendary. As he advanced to date, his paintings can be divided into impressions, improvisations and compositions.

Thus, Segar became his own master.

Concluded