Shining like a sun!

The 72-year-old artist Jayant P Shidhaye has a lot to tell when it comes to his artworks.

Jayant Shidhaye is a solar energy expert and in a career of over two decades spent all his time developing and marketing Silicon – Solar Energy Systems.

And he makes sculptures and portraits out of the solar plates and he rightly titled his artworks 'Sollage'.

About his artworks, he says, "This art form was an idea that I have got when I was working with the solar power industry.

I used to work with solar panel plates about 30 years ago.

And these solar plates fascinated me because it had a wonderful shine and colour.

Somehow, I wanted to utilise them, and I asked the workers if they could do something out of these silicon chips.

The material was so delicate that they could not use it for anything.

I collected all these pieces and started to think about what best could be made out of them and then I came up with this art form.

Usually, things stuck together is called a collage and so I have named my artworks as 'Sollage', which means solar pieces struck together as an art piece."

Jayant Shidhaye informs that working with these plates was not a cake walk.

"Breaking them and figuring out what can be done with them is certainly a task it takes months to figure out what can be done with each and every tiny solar piece.

These pieces are so fragile and delicate that they just crack with the snap of your fingers."

Having a garage filled with sculptures and portraits every art piece is a true example of perfection.

"When I start collecting these pieces and frame them, I have zero knowledge about what this is going to be turned into.

For example, there are pieces where I start off sticking on the frame, with different pieces I manage to make a tree, house, a person, etc, which suites the for the frame."

Jayant says that creating the shape of a human face is very difficult in this art form, however, he got a grip on it after practising it with sheer determination.

Jayant Shidhaye shares that it takes a minimum of three to six months to complete an art piece.

"I make a collection for all the artworks that have done, I barely sell them as this is something special and close to my heart.

I have showcased my works at a few exhibitions, and they did fascinate people."

Looking at his works many of his friends and dear ones challenged him to make something unique out of these pieces he definitely did so.

Jayant Shidhaye has a school and he imparts this artwork to young students; however, he says that Gen Y is not that keen in art.

"I have been teaching children this art form but as you know that this generation barely spares time and so they were not able to get the grip of this art form.

Since I am the only person doing this work there is no one who can carry this art form forward."

"I was always told that artists are recognised once they are dead, but I wanted to make an impact when I am alive and so I came up with this art form.

Soon, I want to conduct more exhibitions like these for people to be aware of this art form," he concludes.