I had planned to spend the weekend with two of my friends in the hills of Yelagiri, trekking and painting. We had to cancel the trip because of forecast of heavy rain and gale. I remained indoors missing my usual Saturday afternoon session of outdoor painting. I read, drank gallons of tea as I watched the sky weepy and wet. Like a miracle the sun came out for a brief time, soaking my terrace in ethereal light. Tens of dragon flies flashing rainbow wings descended here to celebrate.
The sun played hide and seek the afternoon I visited the Theosophical Society . The rains had washed clean the leaves and the branches were heavy with moisture. I was glad for the few hours of sunshine, the rich light that filtered through the foliage appeared surrealistic.
During my previous visit to the Society I caught a glimpse of Blavatsky Bungalow through the the dense spread of the large banyan tree. During this visit I did not even know that I was moving towards the bungalow because I came upon it from the other side. I found an old building impressive with tall pillars, doors painted blue , and light bounced off the lime washed walls.
I walked around the building and suddenly came upon this sight and only then did I know that this was the Blavatsky Bungalow I saw from the other side of the banyan tree.
This building is one of the oldest in the Society, I came across a plaque that stated that Rabindranath Tagore stayed in the bungalow in the year 1934. The rooms were locked and there was no one anywhere close to the building. I sat on the cool portico and sketched. I sat in silence drenched by the prism of light and thought of the silent march of the banyan tree close and closer to the building . On the left flowed the Adyar river, the path leading to the river covered with brambles and weeds.
George Arundale (1878-1945) was the president of the Theosophical Society, Adyar. He was married to Rukmini Devi who was a pathfinder in the classical dance form of Bharatanatyam.
There is a house in the Theosophical society named after Arundale, it was probably here that the celebrity couple who made history in their own fields, lived. It is a beautiful old house shaded by trees, not very far from the Adyar river. The river at the back yard, the sea not too far might have offered a rich environment for creativity to blossom. It might have been the place where dreams were born, the Arundales have left behind a world class academy for performing arts and music in Kalakshetra.
I did the sketch of the Arundale house on a brick red tinted paper, mainly to capture the old world look of the place.
I was captivated by this arch of creepers outside a fairly new building that is the administrative block of the Society. I have used green tinted paper to minimise work on creepers and plants.
Mauve Sea 