The world inside Tanmoy Kayesen's head is vastly different from the one he inhabits. And he gives us a peek into his head via his Instagram handle, @the_cray_esen, which has post after post of his pen art. Others may call his work surrealist, surrealist automatism, psychedelic and what not, but for the 27-year-old, it's just glimpses of what's in his head. "Reality, to me, has always been an abstract concept. I realise that my notion of reality is an amalgamation of my upbringing as well as my personality. It is also my understanding that there are two types of realities that exist; one is the actual reality and the other is a reality one builds from his own perception of the world around them. Therefore, by that logic, the world roughly consists of seven billion realities plus one. How that relates to my work is that my drawings are a blunt reflection of the actual reality as I perceive it," says the Hyderabadi artist.
But it's surprising that he chose the humble pen as his tool rather than vibrant paints. We wonder if it's limiting in any way. "I started with a pencil but moved on to using a pen when we made the switch at school. Years of practising behind notebooks gave me a certain command over it. I have picked up gradation, light and shadows and many more skills through practice alone, " says the youngster who holds a Bachelor's in Architecture degree from Siddaganga Institute Of Technology, Tumakuru.
It's difficult to put into words, but we will try. There are abstract stick figures like drawings, patterns, very busy-looking dark illustrations — there is indeed a lot going on. There is even a series of artwork where he has interpreted the voice of people visually. Clearly, he is happy living in his head and with every post, his artwork only seems to be getting better. But the most striking aspect of his work is that his consciousness is completely absent from the process as he surrenders completely to his subconscious. "My body is simply a physical tool for my subconscious mind to communicate to both my conscious mind as well as to the rest of the world. Since my conscious mind can’t seem to access my subconscious mind directly, I need to let my subconscious mind drive the pen on paper to reveal the contents within it," says the youngster.
Since 2019, he has been getting commissioned work like album art, logo design and other small projects that he uses to test the waters as a professional artist. "I am at the peak of what I could be doing as an artist and I want to ensure I make the most of it," says the youngster who has been immersed in art since his childhood. And so far, he has managed to restrain this part of him from growing up so that his creativity flourishes.
Elements from his work and what they mean:
- Fruit: A ripe idea or youth itself
- Wood: The mental ability to grow
- Steel: The limitations of an inanimate object
- Eyes: Representative of consciousness
- Flesh, teeth and bones: Depict raw truthfulness
For more on him, check out instagram.com/the_cray_esen
