A tribute to legendary artist S Elyaraja 'The King of Realism Art'

S Elayaraja with his realistic art

S Elayaraja, a legendary artist born in 1979 and left the world last year due to Covid-related complications at the age of 43. Ilayaraja was a realistic oil paint artist, his paintings are known for their stunning looks.

Elayaraja was born in the Sembiyavarambil village near Kumbakonam and studied art at the Fine Arts College in Chennai and his paintings have been published as illustrations to stories in the Ananda Vikatan right from 2010 and he gained prominence.

Elayaraja was a recipient of several state and national awards. His beautiful paintings were inspired by his large joint family he grew up in and made it his own identity. His paintings mainly depicts the emotions, culture, traditions, and lifestyles of Dravidian women and paints his observations with such finesse that people often misinterpret it as a lens captured photograph.

Elayaraja specialized in Realism Art which has few exponents throughout the world and his works have been recognized in the USA and other countries too. He is said to have had the ability to draw 300 oil paintings in four days or so. His focus was mainly on Dravidian women in their day-to-day lives such as cooking, worshipping, during puberty rituals, pregnancy, tending to her child and many many more respects of their lives portrayed in all its glory.

S Elayaraja ’s paintings are a blast of exquisite innocent expressions revealing the story of each woman he paints. This realistic artist successfully brings out the essence of a peaceful village life soothing the eyes who have only witnessed the exhausting urbanization.

He specialized in Oil Painting, Watercolor Painting, Knife Painting, Acrylic Painting, Printmaking, Photography. His realistic art is greatly capable of building a bond with the audience.

S Elayaraja composes his oil paintings with great panache and is a great player with light and show. He brilliantly captures the scene without compromising on light, reflection or even a crack in the wall. The finish seen on the drapes of the Indian costumes in his paintings gives them a realistic appeal leaving the audience flabbergasted. He had a long connection with the Tamil film industry due to his passion for all kinds of arts including acting and dance.