The Old Guitarist

The Old Guitarist

By Nikhil Krishnan

Draped in blue rags, an emaciated old guitarist sits cross-legged, strumming his guitar in a desolate setting. Shrouding behind his instrument he sits, a miserable morsel of a once whole being. His shoulders slump under the burden of eons and his legs sit crossed, weathered from destitution. His clothes rest, tattered upon a broken frame; a frame powerless to hold up its own flesh, melting under the weight of being. He sits exhausted. His shut eyes, slouched head and limp body betray it, but even in this frail state he still clings to his guitar, the lone source of joy in his life.

The whole scene is shrouded in a blue haze encapsulating his depravation; a soul that has seemingly given up, unable to fight the cloud of depression haunting his every move. His figure seems to mesh with the surroundings, his white hair and pale skin blending with the blue background.

Contrasting this gloomy background a ray of hope sits in his arms. His fingers wrap around a guitar. A guitar that sticks out from the morose scene behind, yet feels at home in the hands of the old guitarist. The guitar stands upright and strong resting on the arms of this tattered individual. Its vibrant colors shine through like beams of light on a gloomy day illuminating the painting, almost managing to lift the blue haze. The brown of the guitar represents the only digression from the blue of the painting, purposefully setting itself apart from the misery encompassing the guitarist.

His ragged clothes and broken posture further accentuate the importance of the guitar. His body cradles the guitar, almost a slave to it yet with it in his hands everything else falls by the wayside.

The painting is done predominately in blue- the color of melancholy, to emphasize his mood with only the guitar breaking the murk. The artist's depressed state is vividly