Website of contemporary visual artist Chitra Ramanathan

Images  (Top): "Coruscation" (Bottom): " A Momentary Glance"

Permananent site-specific public art commission for MGM Mirage:

My paintings in the Bellagio are based on a couple of my early works " Coruscation" and  "A Momentary Glance"  that were spotted by MGM Mirage, who wanted me to create larger versions that borrow from some of the forms and intense colors used in the originals. I then based the Bellagio paintings with the surrounding colors and brilliance of the Bellagio Conservatory indoor botanical garden. I am glad the resulting works are not limited with titles as many responses have linked the flowers of the Bellagio with the intense colors and association to gardens associated with my pieces. My current work is inspired by garden blooms, and the dream-like quality of happiness that I consider ephemeral and fleeting, comparing the emotion to transitional flowers of spring and summer seasons, that are short-lived but cyclical. My prime inspirations have been landmarks such as the JClaude Monet's garden in Giverny and the Jardin du Luxembourg, Paris. Flowers and gardens and the irresistible qualities of the seemingly random colors of nature and the outdoors are yet so divinely organized in that nothing is ever jarring to the eye. I have endeavoured to use this quality of nature to my evolving paintings of the last few years.

For the Bellagio paintings, I initially planned to use a lot of color but ended up limiting my color palette as work progressed from autumn 2003 to September 2004 while refurbishment of the indoor of the Cafe Bellagio progressed, with the need to be mindful of the background and surrounding color-schemes, periodic color swatches provided by MGM Mirage combined with my visiting the site to study the surrounding architecture prior to beginning work.

URL:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZpsVS6GQM&feature=related