The Bhopal-based artist, Yusuf, has an austere vision. A pioneering printmaker, he had set up a graphic workshop at Bharat Bhavan in Bhopal. Jagdish Swaminathan (1928-1994) had invited Yusuf to join him in the formative years of Bharat Bhavan, which was established in 1982. The recent exhibition of his works, Vision Unveiled: The Canvas Symphony of Yusuf (curated by Prayag Shukla and held at Aakriti Art Gallery), proves that his is essentially a monochromatic vision. More than gestural brushwork and flamboyance, his forte is building up textures that lend a contemplative quality and tranquility to his works.

Yusuf’s pieces play on the imagination of the viewer and, in these mixed media works, he has meticulously created varied textures with only two colours — various tones of grey from charcoal to silver and a light shade of Indian red. The effect is that of complex geological formations that take shape over aeons. In one composition, a rotund form sprouts tentacles. Again, as in many of his works, intricate stippling does the trick. In another, the first stirrings of life are visible inside a giant egg (picture). In possibly a first, a grotesque creature seems to have emerged from someone’s imagination. It could be a vermin held under a microscope. Another seems to be a mass of no particular shape in motion. These untitled works are open-ended and can be interpreted in various ways.

One element that keeps appearing in every work is the white parallel lines running across the width of each of them as if they were being drawn on the page of a notebook. This is a leitmotif in all the works; it is a constant that adds stability to them. However, this doesn’t work in the paintings in which he dabs colour all over. The effect is too dazzling and seems to blind the viewer for a moment. The tranquility is shattered. This is not compatible with the general effect of calm that Yusuf’s works produce.