Suresh Jayaram



How to cross a road in Bangalore

Matthias Beckmann is our resident from Berlin in autumn 2022, living and working in 1Shanthiroad Studio/Gallery. As he walks with his bag and small stool he is followed on the streets by young children and curious onlookers. The first question in the minds of these locals is “What is this man doing?”, and then they decide to peer over his shoulder and see him document the reality with swift strokes, a touch of watercolour, and the image appears magically on a paper pad without erasers or scales. His imagery is direct and he is trying to make sense of the chaos of this city that is punctuated by the calmness of a nook or corner. 

Beckmann is quiet and observant and nothing misses his eye, he is always on the move to pause and start working. In a new foreign city he has taken time to sink into its rhythms. Everything looks exciting but some scenes from everyday reality seem to stop him in his tracks. He decided to park himself on a corner of
a street and capture the reality in front of him, framing it into a composition that is ubiquitous to us but strange to the German way of life, that is supposed to be precise, systematic and orderly. His mind is focusing on this new city that functions despite all odds and he seems to touch its pulse and find a method in the madness of cow-stopping traffic, honking vehicles in a traffic jam, multiculturalism and the cosmopolitan social and cultural context of a vibrant metropolis - Bengaluru.

Beckmann speaks through his works, he simply looks and has trained his eye
and mind to observe and recreate what he sees. In this process of documentary drawing of objects, street life and architecture, that is old and new, he consciously decided to move beyond the colonial gaze of picture postcard views that focus
on the obvious. His graphic ability is not to be hyperrealistic like photographic documentation of a subject but a careful gathering of details to capture the essence and the aura of a place, and his curious gaze does not avoid the random slice of
life that has passed by without us noticing it.

Beckmann collects these visual images like a flaneur who wanders in this locality of central Bangalore in general and the Shanthinagar district in particular, and absorbs the multicultural society where the poor, middle class, rich, native and migrant
are cheek-by-jowl with each other. The contract of reality is visible and tells of a cosmopolitan neighbourhood with a rich diversity of caste, community and class.
So one sees images of a Hindu and Jain temple, a Muslim mosque and a roadside shrine to Mother Mary in a blue sari with infant Jesus. His love for vibrant places like the KR Flower Market or the characteristic Johnson Meat Market with the smells of food, spices, flowers, meat and vegetables is obvious. He is amused by the ubiquitous cow that stops traffic and the street dogs that are in plenty.

There is much more to his work than pure documentation, when he uses accurate lines to trace the outline of his subjects and the hint of watercolours to highlight
a specific detail in focus to capture the ambiance of the place and time. The straightforward observation is essential to the fundamental of drawing from life, and Beckmann creates with patience and skill his work that is enduring, and it makes us invest in drawing as a way of thinking, looking, and making memories. With this set of works Beckmann has been embraced by the people of this locality and the kindness of strangers. He was gifted with fruit, coffee and conversation about an urban culture that is in constant change and conflict. These drawings have made him pause and will make memories that will last in his work and in our minds.