Dedicated to India’s heritage,an art show by a Van Cleef

The Van Cleef dynasty’s association with diamonds may go back to the early 20th century. But several decades later,Olaf Van Cleef,a descendant of the dynasty is contributing to their family business in a unique way — by painting gouache on paper and adding Swarovski crystals and chocolate wrappings to it. A counsellor at Cartier since 1982,Van Cleef’s artistic streak is what helps him merge his two passions. “I have always enjoyed painting and he has always drawn upon his Indian experiences has now become a part of his subconscious,” says the artist.

Van Cleef’s great grandfather began cutting diamonds in 1915 and since his childhood days,he has only seen diamonds in front of his eyes. “But I started using crystals in paintings when one day I entered an Indian temple and I saw the Gods with so many jewels that I feel surrounded by precious stones all the time,” says the 58-year-old.

Van Cleef’s Bejewelled Mosaics at the Cymroza Art Gallery is an exhibition of his work that is truly Indian and an ode to our heritage. Goddess Lakshmi with a Parrot,Call of Krishna,Reclining Vishnu,Gita and Kalki are few of the works displayed here and they show the sincerity and meticulousness with which he handles Indian themes such as princes,warriors and fireworks. “I am partly Indian by temperament. I have a deep knowledge of the Indian culture and hence I paint only Indian figurines and exhibit it only in India,” says Van Cleef.

The use of chocolate wrappings is perhaps,unique to his work. He gets chocolate wrappings,which most of us would just throw away,from as far as Japan,New York,the Netherlands and Argentina through friends. “They may be just one millimeter in size but along with the crystals,the effect they create is unique,” says Van Cleef.