CREATING MEMORIES THROUGH WORKS OF ART






At an age when most would stay at home or holiday on land or sea,  74-year-old Prakash Bal Joshi continues to travel extensively; following his work to wherever it leads him.  A journalist and painter, Prakash has made impressions; both with pen and brush, respectively.  When working in the Times of India for 25 years, this Mumbai-based journalist has travelled throughout India.  And since painting on canvas, 15 years ago, Prakash has flown to the USA, the UK, Europe, Southeast Asia, and the Gulf to display his works of art.

Born in Achalpur, and raised in Igatpuri; both districts in Maharashtra, Prakash’s transformational journey from writing to painting began as an exploration of his potential.   It is in this regard that his  curation of a booth for an Indian Art Gallery deserves special mention.  It earned Prakash the 2018 New York ArtExpo’s Art Director’s appreciation.  Art enthusiasts in the USA and the UK found captivating Prakash’s work and art critics in Europe, namely, Paris, Lisbon and Venice felt his work is a confirmation of the power of abstraction.

Prakash’s art exhibitions in Southeast Asia, namely, Bangkok, Singapore, Seoul and Kuala Lumpur, too,  drew similar responses.   One piece of his work found place of pride in the precinct of the Indian Embassy in Nairobi.  Based on his visit to the Masai Mara forest and his  stay with tribals, this artwork has struck a chord with the art fraternity.   However, it is the responses from the Gulf countries; Muscat,  Cairo and Dubai that has started conversations on the intersection of tradition and modernity.

Prakash begins his day at 6.30am with yoga, followed by intermittent summing at a nearby pool.  He then spends his time at the studio attending to painting-related work,  Prakash’s day ends at 8.30pm after meeting art-lovers who visit him at his studio.  It may be apt to mention here that, when eight-years-old and on a visit to a relatives’, Prakash chased a paper boat floating on the river Surya.  With no swimming skills, he quickly was sucked in by the forceful currents.  “Though I almost drowned and blacked out, yet I still can remember the blackness and the ray of sunshine under water which I tried to clutch onto believing it to be a stick.  This childhood experience has not deterred me from loving the water…Hauntingly it has attracted me to it and inspired me to paint.”

Prakash’s passion for painting began as a teenager.  He kept private this pursuit between him and his family members.  So, when this journalist launched his solo show in Mumbai in 2006, it came as a refreshing surprise…Not only to his workmates, neighbours and classmates…But also to the show’s inaugurator, the then Honourable Chief Minister of Maharashtra . Artworks aside, Prakash has published two collections of his short stories.  These two books -  Maitrinichi Ghost in Marathi (meaning A Girlfriend’s Story) in 1985 and Gateway in English in 2015 are dedicated to his parents and detail Mumbai’s changing life.

Prakash’s life too has undergone change.  He lost his wife Disha to ill-health in 2015.  His son Tushar, who also is a Mumbai-based journalist, has had to move home to be closer to work.   Prakash now is more focussed on painting, writing, mentoring and coaching amateur talents. .His blog "Inner Impressions" fuels his energies.  The humble author-painter-speaker is proud of his achievements.  The  felicitation that he received in 2018 at the British Parliament Committee Room and his inclusion as jury at the 2014  international art competition which  led to the full-day exhibition of the 15 award winning entries at the Belgravia Art Gallery in Mayfair, London UK; speak for itself.  And the recent reunion with seven classmates who, after 50 years, visited Prakash and in his studio bears testimony that the then eight-year-old’s nightmare has become the dream that lives on and on.

SOPHIE MENEZES

Comments

  1. Anita GoodJune 15, 2025 at 6:06 PM

    Sophie. Brilliant writing of this wonderful artist.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sophie's ChronicleJune 30, 2025 at 10:53 PM

    Thank you Anita; appreciate your positive feedback.

    ReplyDelete

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