Night View
Uma Shankar Shah, 2010
Etching
50.8 × 101.6 cm

© Uma Shankar Shah

I first came to Kathmandu after completing my MFA at Banaras Hindu University. Coming from a village in Mahottari, eastern Nepal, this was a completely new experience for me. I was awestruck by the numerous temples located in the capital city of Nepal. Night View is one of the works inspired by this first experience. I believe that long ago Kathmandu was inhabited by various gods and goddesses who have now transformed themselves into stone images. Today, Kathmandu is an open museum, a city of temples with spiritual ties which formed the basis for my inspiration. Gods and goddesses, rituals and temples are thus recurring themes in my work. The Night View etching incorporates the temples of historical and cultural importance across the valley. The most famous temples featured in the work are Pashupatinath, Swyambhunath Stupa, Changunarayan, Boudhanath Stupa, Taleju Bhawani, Kasthamandap, Golden temple, Nyatapola, and many others. Similarly, small chaittyas are also seen among the temples. The agitated pace of modern life in the fast-changing city of Kathmandu is also a subject I enjoy depicting in my canvases and prints. The juxtaposing of the old temples in this painting contrasts with contemporary Kathmandu. I tend to be most creative at night, and enjoy a nocturnal existence, painting well into the morning and sleeping the whole day. This habit translates into my work, which rarely tells stories of bright sunny days, but instead depicts morning, evening and night scenes, especially moonlit nights that illuminate the cityscape of Kathmandu.