With this new body of work, Venkanna returns to the ‘self’. Not the narcissistic self, nor the prejudiced self, but the organic self. The ME in Love Me As I AM, is a collective noun that encompasses all sentient beings including nature and the environment.
In a world that is increasingly polarized, the artist makes an appeal to love and be loved as per the natural order of things. That love be the vehicle through which we reconcile differences of religion, caste, language and class. That love be open and celebrated, irrespective of gender or sexual orientation.
He asks that we not only love ourselves truly and fully, but that we also love the environment which serves as the foundation for all life on this planet.
- Abhay Maskara
