Artist Vijayraj Bodhankar
The life we have already lived is forever a part of the past, while the life yet to be lived holds far greater significance. What awaits us is always new—something unfolding for the first time—yet it is deeply intertwined with memories, experiences, and tradition. Despite this paradox, humanity constantly strives to understand the world anew, to re-experience existence as if freed from the weight of history. This attempt to see and live life afresh is not merely psychological; it is also artistic. We find a clear manifestation of this in the art of Vijayraj Bodhankar. History and traditions, along with the perception of sound, which is essentially the perception of memory, have been central to his art.
Vijayraj Bodhankar's artistic journey began with the human figure as his primary subject, his work rooted in narrative, physicality, and cultural memory. However, over time, his work gradually underwent a decisive shift towards abstraction, moving towards an abstract representation of sound. This evolution marks a significant turning point in his artistic vision. Sound—abstract, ephemeral, and formless—becomes both subject and medium, propelling his work beyond the visual world into the realm of sensation and perception.
His recent paintings do not depict sound in a literal sense; rather, they attempt to give it an abstract form, where sound, freed from the limitations of its linguistic representation, becomes a new experience at the level of feeling.
In his working process, Vijayraj often begins with dense, layered abstract structures of colour. These initial layers are rich, textured, and emotionally charged. The presence of vibrant colours in them seems to express the immediate existence of life. As the work progresses, he gradually introduces thinner layers of lighter colours, especially applying translucent layers of white in the final stages. This lightening of colours in the painting is not merely aesthetic; This is conceptual. It's something like the human body being freed from its physical weight, entering a weightless state of the soul. In this way, a delicate dialogue is established between the visible and the invisible, between what is revealed and what remains hidden. The deeper layers beneath the surface persist as traces, hinting at memory, time, and accumulated experience. What emerges is a visual field that is both real and ephemeral, much like sound itself.
This interplay can be understood as a form of memory-awareness.
Vijayraj Bodhankar explores the formless existence of sound—the word before meaning, the vibration before articulation—while remaining deeply rooted in tradition. Each painting becomes a quest: for the self, for one's place in the cosmos, and for a silent existence in an increasingly noisy and sound-saturated world. In this era of constant auditory stimuli from media, technology, and urban life, his work fosters a quieter, more contemplative engagement with sound, viewed as an internal experience rather than an external disturbance.
The tradition from which Vijayraj Bodhankar hails plays a crucial role in shaping this exploration. He comes from a lineage involved in the creation of illustrated manuscripts, a practice inherited from his ancestors. These manuscripts were not merely decorative objects; they were vehicles of knowledge, memory, and cultural continuity. In his early works, he drew directly from this heritage, incorporating human figures, manuscript-style illustrations, and script into his compositions. In this phase, the script functioned both as a visual element and a carrier of meaning.
Initially, the writing in his paintings was clearly legible, allowing viewers to recognize the letters and words.
However, over time, this writing began to dissolve, gradually moving from form to formlessness. This transformation reflects a profound philosophical shift. Writing, in its essence, is a pictorial representation of sound—visual symbols that give structure to spoken language. By liberating writing from its form, Vijayraj frees sound from linguistic constraints, allowing it to exist as pure emotion. In his earlier works, the recognizable letters were a means of reconstructing a lost or blurred identity within a contemporary visual language. In his recent works, the lack of legibility gives way to a more universal, experiential encounter.
Vijayraj Bodhankar has often expressed concern about the growing alienation from tradition and memory in contemporary life. In this age of digital communication and social media, the written word is rapidly becoming marginalized. Today, people connect more with images and sounds than with text. Even within visual culture, listening often takes precedence over seeing.
However, the act of listening is often passive. Whether the listener plays an active role or maintains a depth of engagement remains a question. In contrast, reading demands an active role from the mind. It requires interpretation, imagination, and concentration. It is this active mental participation that Vijayraj seeks to revive through his paintings.
The written form of language—the script—represents one of humanity's earliest attempts to visualize sound, but when sound is liberated from writing and transformed into painting, it acquires an abstract, non-representational existence. Sound does not require meaning to exist; it can be experienced purely as vibration, rhythm, or emotion. Vijayraj's work evokes this presence. His paintings do not attempt to convey a fixed message; instead, they emerge with infinite formal and emotional possibilities.
He often describes her work as "painting sound," emphasizing that sound—not image or narrative—is the conceptual core of her work.
Throughout history, artists have attempted to represent sound in various ways, from scientific graphs depicting frequencies and vibrations to symbolic representations of music and rhythm. Among these artists, Wassily Kandinsky holds a significant place. Kandinsky translated musical melodies into abstract compositions, equating colour and form with sound. For him, painting music was a spiritual act, a movement from physical existence toward transcendence. Sound, understood as vibration, became a bridge between the physical and the spiritual.
Vijayraj Bodhankar doesn't consider any comparisons between artists appropriate.
He says that each artist has their own experience, based on which they create. Therefore, when discussing the depiction of music in Kandinsky's art, he doesn't claim to replicate Kandinsky's achievements, but rather shares his aspiration to hear sound through colour and abstraction. He says that Kandinsky was a great artist who gave a new direction to art in his time. He says that he sees a depiction of sound in Kandinsky's works, as well as in Paul Klee's, but that this is his personal experience. However, his approach is deeply rooted in memories—both personal and collective. Humans carry countless memories, both visual and audio, yet many remain dormant or unnoticed. By awakening these memories, he aims to expand the viewer's present moment. Without memories, life loses depth and continuity. Thus, his paintings become spaces where memories can resurface, resonate, and transform.
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| Voltaire |
The French philosopher and writer Voltaire once said that artists use colour, texture, and composition to evoke emotional states—light colours for dreams, dark colours for clarity or intensity. This principle is clearly visible in Vijayraj Bodhankar's work. His restrained use of colour, particularly the layers of lighter colours over a darker base, prevents the paintings from becoming overly expressive or overwhelming. Furthermore, the layers hidden beneath the surface suggest emotional residue—thoughts and feelings that may fade with time but never completely disappear. They persist, waiting to resurface when circumstances permit.
In his early works, Vijayraj often relied on structure, narrative, and symbolic form to express spiritual and philosophical ideas. While these elements provided clarity, they also risked limiting interpretation. In his recent paintings, he has deliberately distanced himself from such constraints. To this end, he employs more abstraction at the structural level. Furthermore, texture is more prominently expressed in his latest works. Thick layers of paint, often in the final layer, give the impression of a chaotic script. By avoiding recognizable forms or clear symbols, he gives the viewer greater freedom to engage with the work.
The paintings function as visual soundscapes—open, fluid environments through which the viewer can travel, guided by their experiences and emotions, between their past and present.
The question of whether musical notes can truly be expressed through color is not new, yet it remains unresolved. However, it is certain that rhythm exists in painting, just as it does in music. This rhythm emerges from the arrangement of colour, form, and composition. In Kandinsky's work, rhythm was often manifested through geometric shapes and dynamic structures. In contrast, Vijayraj Bodhankar avoids geometric rigidity. His abstract paintings resemble emotional or atmospheric landscapes rather than structural density.
Through this approach, form in Vijayraj Bodhankar's art transforms into visual sound. Sound is no longer something to be read or interpreted; it becomes something to be felt. His paintings invite contemplation rather than interpretation, sensation rather than narrative. By freeing form from definition, he allows sound to exist as a pure experience—limitless, resonant, and deeply personal. In doing so, Vijayraj Bodhankar not only gives his art a new direction but also offers a new way to connect with memories, traditions, and the overlooked aspects of modern life.
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