A Thrissur gallery pays tribute to the legendary artist Namboothiri, still painting at 97

A retrospective of artist Namboothiri, still painting at 97, curated by Gireesan Bhattathiripad at Punnayurkulam Art Gallery showcases sketches, handwritten notes and new Kathakali canvases

Bhima in M T Vasudevan Nair’s 1984 iconic novel Randamoozham came most completely to life through artist Namboothiri’s drawings. He sketched Bhima in his inimitable style — large body with a comparatively small head, conveying complex emotions in just a squiggle of the eyebrow or a tilt in the gait. Namboothiri gave form and shape to many a literary hero and heroine in Malayalam — illustrating the works of authors such as S K Pottekkat, Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai to Madhavi Kutty (Kamala Surayya) and VKN to mention a few. 

Some of these original sketches will be on show among 200 of the artist’s original works at Rekhayanam ‘22, an exhibition dedicated to the artist at Punnayurkkulam Art Gallery in Thrissur. At 97, he isn’t as prolific as he used to be, but continues his art practice at his home in Edappal in Thrissur district. Two of his newest works (paintings based on Kathakali) will also be part of the show. 

Artist and photographer Gireesan Bhattathiripad, curator of the show, is an ardent follower of Namboothiri’s works. “He has been a singular force in line drawing in Kerala, inspiring generations of artists,” says Gireesan, who had planned the exhibition in 2019. “It did not take place and then COVID-19 happened. But it gave me more time to plan and showcase lesser-known rough sketches unearthed from a trunk at his home where most of his works have been preserved. This is a tribute to his genius,” he adds. 

Gireesan spent almost two years getting the show in order. He made several visits to Namboothiri’s house, picking and choosing the sketches. “Most of them are rough ones done on ordinary A4 sheets. The trunk contains works that he had done for Mathrubhumi and other contemporary publications among drawings for books,” says Gireesan.

His original sketches for Madhavi Kutty’s celebrated work, Neermathalam Poothakalam (1994), works for V K N’s books, the live location sketches he did on the sets of G Aravindan’s 1977-film Kanchana Seetha and his sketches of Sree Narayana Guru and EMS Namboothiripad are part of the works that will be displayed.

“Some of the works contain his hand-written notes alongside the drawing.” Since all the original drawings are small in size, they will be displayed in long, strippish frames containing four to five sketches each, says Gireesan. 

K M Vasudevan Namboothiri, popularly known as Namboothiri, started his career as a staff artist in Mathrubhumi weekly, Kozhikode in 1964. He is a product of the Government College of Fine Arts, Chennai, where he learnt under the founder principal of the institution, Debi Prasad Roy Chowdhury. During his stint in college, he met abstract artist K C S Paniker, whom he assisted and who is believed to have had an influence on his early artistic process. He stayed at Paniker’s Cholamandal Artists’ Village, completing a course in art.