It is an exhibition that is (in)complete and composed of ideas that work in isolation. Yet, the pieces manage to lead to a conversation between the artist and the viewer, says SHALINI SAKSENA

There is an adage— beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. This saying can’t be more apt when applied to art. To each his own is what works here. What may appear to be dull and dark and not worth even looking at, can be a piece of art worth lakhs. Hence, it has been seen that the young artists are. It just experimenting with the medium but the concept of what art is all about. It is no longer restricted to canvas, wood or clay. Today, artists display a concept and sell that to the audience who understands what the creator wants to show.

The work on display at Dharti Arts Residency Open Studio by Serendipity Arts Foundation in the Capital by artists Khursheed Ahmad, Dharmendra Prasad and Farah Mulla are a case in point. In fact, 26-year-old Ahmad’s work is more about what he wants to say through his work rather than the art itself. He tells you that his work is a reflection of what is happening in the Valley.

“A piece that I have created — a shrine made from wood with windows — with a video where I am banging the wall with my hands wearing shoes is symbolic. A shrine is a place of peace and a place of worship. People go there to soak in the peaceful ambience. But then there is this violent banging, a noise, that is disturbing the tranquility in the shrine. One can draw a similar here with what is happening in Kashmir. It is such a beautiful place, yet there is violence everywhere,” Ahmad explains who belongs to a performing art community from Budgam.

He tells you that as a child he used to accompany his family to performance at a various events. “We belong to the bhand community. Our performing style involves a traditional folk theatre of play and dance. So I was inclined towards art. After finishing my schooling from a Government school, I joined an art college in Srinagar. It was here that I learnt how to fine tune my body art performance. I was introduced to painting and photography. I learnt how one could use different strokes to tell the audience what we want to convey. The idea is not to sell my work but to introduce  people to different aspects of art. That doesn’t mean that I turn down work when it comes to me. Sometimes people like the photographs that I have taken and want me to paint that on a canvas, other times, they want a big poster size of the photograph; it all depends,” Ahmad tells you.

Dharmendra Prasad, who is from Guwahati tells you that his art is what a farmer would perceive as art. “The piece that I have created is what my life has been. I was born in Bihar and lived there for 10 years and then moved to Guwahati. I did my schooling there and pursued painting from an art college. I then moved to Hyderabad but went back to Guwahati and visited many villages. It was living in an urban city and then in a rural area. This got me thinking how I could use this into my art. I wanted to use the knowledge that I had gathered and my interest in ecology led to me create a work that showcased that aspect. I am working with farmers and artisans in different seasons. When I came to Delhi, that got me thinking what I could create to show my background. I wanted to treat the space I was given as a field. The piece shows the agrarian side of India using hydraulics, irrigation technology and different kind of agricultural byproducts and mixing this with my creative side,” the 32-year-old says who agrees that a piece like this is not what people would be wiling to buy.

“The idea is not to sell art in the form that we are used to. My idea is to tell people that art is not just a western concept and for people who wear suits. Art is for everyone, even a farmer. Nobody is going to buy a running water system or crop residue. But that doesn’t mean that it has no value, it does for the people from rural India. But just like a video can be sold, my work can also find buyers— not in it’s entirety but at least in part,” Prasad says who passed out of an art college in Hyderabad and since then he has been trying to create a space for his kind of work.

“I am based out of Guwahati where there are no takers for my work. So I make do by painting portraits. The path that I have chosen is tough but I want to reposition myself. Life is not just about making money. Art is everywhere. I want to be in a place where I can bring all the knowledge that I have gained and put it on a single platform. For me art is not just a painting on canvas. Art is not restricted to any genre or medium,” Prasad explains.

Smriti Rajgarhia, Director, Serendipity Arts Foundation & Festival tells you that as an arts foundation, they are pleased to be able to provide a platform for artists  and to be part of the process of creation while they explore their individual artistic practices and grow their network within the arts community.

Sunil Kant Munjal, Founder Patron, Serendipity Arts Foundation: “The Dharti Arts Residency allows artists to create and collaborate with peers, and to connect with the artist community at large. 2019 marks our third edition, and we are proud to be able to support four artists again this year during the early stages of their creation by offering them inspiration, space and time to focus solely on enriching their practice and building their arts network.”

Farah Mulla, a sound artist and a curator, tells you that the her research is all about sound and it’s effects on humans; how acoustic soundscape helps us to navigate the social and public place and how it influences us. “Sound does not have material quality yet it speaks of materiality of objects.

That got me interested. I work with cross model sensory perception where one sense can enhance the experience other. I wanted to have these little transfusions between different mediums and started building different insulations that are on display like there is a piece that has been created to make sound by touch,” Mulla says and adds that art is a sensory perception that engages your senses and makes you interact.

“I am interacting in a different medium. My medium is sound and I find it interesting because it is immaterial, it is reproducible, at the same time recording is not a reproduction. The morality of the medium interests me,” Mulla says who travels constantly for work.

“There was a time when there were not many takers in India. There was a time when most of my work was outside of the country. The good thing is that things are changing here. My work has taken me to Baroda or deep into the Himalayan mountains,” Mulla says.

Writer: Shalini Saksena
Courtesy: The Pioneer

Ruma Devi beat several trained experts to bag an award for her designs. But that is only the surface of her amazing story, says Saimi Sattar

A pallu stays firmly fixed on her head. The hands are unwaxed, nails clipped short and painted red. Ruma Devi is different from the immaculately turned out designers that we often see on the ramp and Instagram photographs. But maybe it is this or perhaps that fact that she effortlessly won the Textile Fairs India Fashion Awards even while competing with 13 trained designers, which makes her stand apart.

To put things into perspective, the jury members included heavyweights like fashion guru Prasad Bidapa, designer Rakesh Thakore (Abraham and Thakore), chief advisor Rajasthan Heritage Week and publisher Seminar Magazine, Malvika Singh,  supermodel and choreographer, Nayanika Chatterjee, designer Payal Jain and head, creative studio, Royal Enfield, Sarat Som.

While many might feel that this is one among the many awards that are handed out often by the fashion industry and nothing exceptional, one has to delve a little into Ruma’s journey to understand what makes it so path-breaking. Her life story is almost a throwback to the film, Sui Dhaaga. She hails from Barmer district of Rajasthan and has made it on the dint of her unflinching resolve to “do something” to alleviate her conditions. “There is hardly any rain in the area so there is no water to drink and no roads. Agriculture is not enough for sustenance and women just sit at home and do applique work and embroidery,” she says, with a slight lilt that is ubiquitous with the residents of the Western state.

As we sit down to chat in the temporary lounge that has been designed in hall number 10 of Pragati Maidan, she receives incessant phone calls congratulating her for the achievement. A gentleman, who is from her district and has set up a stall at the fair, is quick to snap a selfie with her. “Bhabhiji has done so well. I will put this on Facebook and Instagram,” he proclaims as he saunters off.

Ruma takes up her story from where she had left it and tells us that when she got married, her financial condition was not sound. The lack of education meant that not too many avenues were open to her. “I decided to make use of my talent. So 10 women got together and we made bags with embroidery and sold them. After a few months, we collected Rs 100 and bought a second-hand sewing machine in 2008,” she says. And things started turning around. ungry for more work, Ruma approached an organisation, Gramin Vikas Chetna  Sansthan, of which she is now the President. “The secretary gave us some stitching and embroidery work, which we finished on time and this set the ball rolling for future contracts,” she says as her voice takes on an element of child-like excitement. There is no trace of artifice and her voice rises and falls depending upon what she is talking about.

Having successfully fulfilled the order, Ruma decided to add more women. “I had started working as I was facing financial problems but there were a lot of other women who were worse off and couldn’t even afford a square meal in a day,” she says as she brushes back her pallu. By 2010, the 10 women had swelled to 5,000 and Ruma started marketing for them. “The same year there was a fair in Delhi, which we decided to participate in. At this time I discovered that there were more than a lakh artisans in Barmer who do applique and embroidery but no one knew about them,” she says.

But the going was not easy. In Rajasthan, where patriarchy rules, women are veiled and stepping out of the house to work is a strict no-no especially in the rural areas. “Often men were drunkards and wouldn’t care about how the family survived. Women worked at home and in such a scenario even if they got Rs 100, that was a lot. I walked from one house to the other as there were no roads. I had to practically force my way inside and then men often told me that I would teach their wives things that went against our culture. Even when my family didn’t say anything, my neighbours taunted me. But it is these people who now stand with us. Earlier, it was difficult to get even one woman to accompany me to Delhi, now 10 are willing to when I need just one,” she says.

But then as often happens, a push is all she needed. “My father-in-law supported me as he realised that if everyone is sitting at home, how would one eat?” she says.

The women started out with making cushion covers and bedsheets but soon market forces demanded that they up their game. “People buy one bedsheet or two but clothes have a greater demand. So we started making garments and doing fashion shows. Initially, we made kurtis and saris in cotton. Then we graduated to silks and now we make them on velvet as well,” she says. Ruma is excited about the different types of material that are available at the fair and wants to expand her repertoire further.

“We have a network of 22,000 women now, organised into several informal groups in the area. They are directly linked to the market for orders. Every group has orders worth about Rs 1-2 crore,” she says. However, it was not the larger picture that she looked at in the beginning. “This journey makes me so happy. When I had started, I had never thought that we would be able to do such good work. Apan ki roti ke jugaad ke liye kiya tha. Lekin aaj itni mahilaon ki prerna ban chuke hain (I started doing this for my own livelihood but now I’ve become an inspiration for others),” she says as the Rajasthani lilt again comes to the fore as she feels overwhelmed and happy with what she has achieved. But even in the midst of all the excitement, she has not forgotten the people who powered the victory. She says, “I sent a photograph to the artisans and told them that we have won the first prize. They are very happy and everyone is calling up,” which explains the barrage of calls that she receives within the 15 minutes we sit together.

Prasad Bidappa, with whom she had been in touch earlier, encouraged her to take part in this competition for a reason. He says, “I respect her integrity and her commitment to the thousands of rural women whom she encourages and empowers. She makes sure they earn money in their own right and are not dependent on their menfolk. She has created an amazing business. If we followed her example, we could transform rural India.”

The collection that she has put together is done entirely in black and white with hints of maroon. “Most designers want to use a wide variety of colours so we decided to stick with these two only,” says Ruma, pointing to 12 garments out of which eight were put out on the ramp and won her the prize. “These took about 1.5-2 months to make,” she adds.

Talking about the collection Bidapa says, “Her appliqué collection was classic and beautiful. She stuck to classic silhouettes and styles like the ghagra, the choli, the kurta and the sari. It was a clean, well-executed collection.” He goes on to point out that, “All the members of the jury agreed that she had made very good use of the fabric and her positive/negative appliqué work looked very sophisticated and stylish. The fabric usage was extremely important here and Ruma Devi was working with machine-made fabric for the first time.”

Ruma says that she also makes kurta, salwar, palazzo, dupatta, lehenga and Western wear. “Initially I had no understanding of the larger market and catered only to the local one,” she says.

Her exposure has now been placed on an elevator which will give her a bird’s eye view of the fashion market as the prize also entails a visit to the fashion capital, Paris. So while most people might talk about the wines, the cafes or even the various monuments of interest in the city, Ruma is focussed, “I will get to learn more as to what is happening in the fashion world outside and we will make our products accordingly.”

As often happens with working women, it is family that she falls back on to look after her child while she is flying high. “I stay in a joint family and my in-laws look after my seven-year-old son. Despite his age, he keeps on telling me to go and bag another award,” she says with a happy laugh, her voice taking on that sing-song lilt yet again.

Writer: Saimi Sattar

Courtesy: The Pioneer

Bashar Tabbah’s book, A Map & A Lens: Jordan Sights Unseen and Stories Untold, through photographs and texts, tracks the unfolding of the entirety of Jordan’s history

One can divide writings about countries into three broad categories — academic or journalistic narratives about their politics, economics, international relations, history and future; literary travelogues — such as Lawrence Durrell’s Bitter Lemons about Cyprus — describing one’s encounter with a country’s life, people, landscapes, cities and villages; and coffee table publications with engaging photographs of places of tourist interest, including historical sites and information about how to visit these, their significance and past.

Bashar Tabbah’s book, A Map & A Lens: Jordan Sights Unseen and Stories Untold (Jabal Amman Publishing), is a significant addition to the third category. It is perhaps the only one of its kind that covers all important sites of tourist attraction in Jordan, which has a long history with evidence of human habitation as early as the Paleolithic Age. Bashar has arranged his photographs and text (the latter co-written with Jane Taylor) according to the various periods that have followed one another chronologically, beginning with the earliest Paleolithic, Bronze and Iron Age sites like Bayda, where the first settlements date back to 8,300 BC and Ayn Ghazal, founded around the same time and remarkable for its lifelike human statues.

Next comes the Nabataean period with the famous remains of Petra. The Romans and Byzantines, who followed, have left their imprimatur in cities like Jerash, Umm Qais and Umm al-Jimal and the exquisite mosaics in Madaba and Umm ar-Rasas, a complex of 16 churches that have been declared by UNESCO has a World Heritage Site. The sites of early centuries of Islam depicted include Qusayr Amra and Qasa al-Hallabat. Monuments of the crusaders, Ayyubids and Mamluks, which feature in the book, include the Karak, Shobak and Ajlun castles. The Ottomans, who ruled for several centuries, have left behind numerous buildings and forts like the Hasa Hajji Fort.

The photographs and texts in the volume track the unfolding of the entirety of Jordan’s history, including what is described as the Abrahamic Sites, which include Bethany, the place, a little north of the Dead Sea, where Jesus was baptized and the tombs of a number of prophets mentioned in the Old Testament. Jordan and the region around have been witness to multiple events connected with the emergence of Christianity and Islam, particularly the former. It has seen the rise and fall of empires and kingdoms and the marches of massive armies and battles, including those that Prophet Mohammad and his associates fought.

It is by no means easy to chronicle such an eventful journey in time and its architectural legacy in photographs and texts. Photographing historical sites poses its own special problems in the sense that it is not just a matter of pressing the shutter. Each building looks different under different light conditions — during day and night, dawn and dusk, on sunny and cloudy days. What lends it its identity is its structure, its constant feature. What makes the identity of a historical monument different from those of other structures is its aura arising from its being a witness to time, with its flows of people and events, bearing the silent imprint of the eras when life surged around it. A subtle, invisible emanation of the accumulated vibrations of the past, a monument’s aura glides into the consciousness of those with a sense of history, a proneness to wonder how life might have been in the remote past and the ability to imagine living in its midst. Not many fill the bill.

Even among those who do, the aura’s awareness comes in special moments when solitude enables the absorption of signals from the past, which are not overwhelmed by those from the present when multitudes swirl around, particularly chattering, shouting, selfie-clicking tourists, disgorging from buses and shepherded around by guides.

To be a true reflection of a historical monument’s transcendental persona and not just calendar art, a photograph needs not only to capture its aura but, like the monument itself, make one wonder about quotidian experiences and events centuries or millennia in the past. To achieve this, a photographer needs to know a monument’s history, and sense the imprimatur of its past on its present, stand before it in silence, with the vents of beyond-sensory perception open for times bygone to flow in. For this he/she needs to be relatively alone with the monument, which in turn demands presence in early or late hours when few are around, and repeated visits if the magic moment proves elusive. In a country like Jordan, with its many and widely separated historical sites, it means thousands of kilometres of travel.

All this requires perseverance and deep commitment manifested in sustained hard work. If his photographs are any criterion, Bashar Tabbah shows both in amplitude. These are not just of monuments but of the spaces in which these are located and the skies above, particularly at night when millions of stars sparkle and wink. A bonus is his photograph of the Dead Sea on a January evening.

There are many publications with stunning photographs of monuments and human settlements, and many with informed histories. But not many that combine both. More, one is caught in its web once one opens it. Simply put, it is unputdownable. India could do with a book like this on its rich and widely dispersed legacy of historical sites.

(The writer is Consultant Editor, The Pioneer, and an author)

Writer: Hiranmay Karlekar

Courtesy: The Pioneer

Issues such as mounting disease burden, the need to boost preventive healthcare and improving access to affordable and quality care were completely missed out by Modi 2.0, despite it getting a huge mandate. This is highly discouraging

Kiran Nadar Museum of Art presents Submergence: In the midst of here and there. The exhibition of Arpita Singh offers an opportunity to view six decades of her art practice. It focusses on her long commitment to painting and its evolution into a personal expressive language. When: Till July 14 Time: 10.30 am to 6.30 pm Where: KNMA, Saket.

Allure Art presents Tres Maestros by three artists Niren Sen Gupta, Niladri Paul and Nupur Kundu. It sports a collective of fresh canvases that dazzle with the brilliance of colour applications, triggering liberating moods and definable strokes. When: July 22 to 26 Time: 11 am to 8 pm Where: Artizen Art Gallery, Pearey Lal Bhawan.

Rupa Publications India presents the book launch of Visible Muslim, Invisible Citizen by Salman Khurshid. It will be followed by a panel discussion among Asaduddin Owaisi, Seema Chishti, Subramaniam Swami, professor Apurvanand and the author. when: July 12 TIME: 6.30 pm Where: Grand Ballroom, The Leela Palace.

The Piano Man brings a soulful experience of jazz. It is led by one of the top jazz singers in India.

The band featuring Paddy on piano, Bihu on drums and Aditya on bass brings to the listener an evening of swing jazz, post bop jazz. WHEN: July 12 Time: 9 pm to 11.55 pm Where: The Piano Man jazz club, Safdarjung Enclave.

ACT Arcus en Ciel Theatre presents Ashadh Ka Ek Din by Mohan Rakesh. The play received a Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for best play in 1959.  When: July 21 Time: 7 pm Where: Akshara Theatre.

Writer & Courtesy: The Pioneer

When one is in complete connection with the inner self, one is able to fill the void in his heart and realise the true meaning of god, says Manoranjan Bhattacharya

The highest and ideal goal of the human life is the realisation of god, the one who is ever-existent, ever-conscious and ever-blissful. The primary requirements for this could be purification of the mind and its orientation inwards. Worshipping god, in any form, as cherished by an individual, is a standard and common process, which serves this purpose and finally enables the aspirant to realise the ultimate reality of life.

Worshipping processes in the Hindu mythology consist of a series of steps and each step is spiritually significant in advancing the purpose of purifying the mind and making it turn inwards, which finally result in the attainment of supreme spiritual enlightenment of the aspirant.

From the Puranas, we find that when the gods and the demons churned the ‘Kshirode’ sea nectar, which immortalises one who drinks it, had evolved from the deep sea. The gods were in search of a fitting vessel which could hold this immortalising Amrit. Lord Biswakarma, the chief engineer of the gods, was called and urged for an immediate solution of the problem. He thought seriously over the matter and then built an extremely powerful pot by taking a part of energy from each god. This sacred powerful container was given the name Kalasa, as it was built by taking Kala or part, energy from the gods. This is, possibly, some feasible background for the pitcher (ghat) to be considered as a sacred vessel. Generally, a pitcher is made of earth. In many cases, however, it is also made of metals such as brass, copper, etc.

The gods and goddesses are first welcomed to take their places inside the sacred powerful pitcher. When an idol is made to worship the designated god, the question arises — why should a pitcher be installed to welcome the deity? It is required because only the designated god can be welcomed as the idol.

From the spiritual point of view, the pitcher represents the cavity of our heart which is believed to be the abode of gods and goddesses. It is also believed that consciousness originates from deep inside our hearts. When the sacred mantras or hymns are being chanted with great devotion to welcome the gods, they respond to the mantras by welcoming them.

For the installation of the sacred pitcher inside the heart, many items such as water, fruits, generally a green coconut, stems and leaves of sacred trees, mainly mango tree, etc., and some other items are required.

When the worshiper chants the hymns, embracing the depth of his heart and completely realises the meaning of their lyrics, a kind of heavenly emotion is developed in him/her. And the water in the pitcher represents this heavenly emotion. In this celestial zone, the worshipper might feel that the gods have taken cherished forms.

Usually, a fruit is placed at the top of the pitcher, which symbolises knowledge and wisdom. When a truth seeker unravels the mystery in his matter of search and gets to the bottom of the truth, s/he experiences ethereal emotions of joy. Spiritually, when, through knowledge, wisdom and true devotion, the worshipper reveals herself/himself to the god, celestial emotions develop in the worshipper. Only then is the worshipper regarded ideal or fit to worship. Head is the centre of all knowledge. Generally, a green coconut, with a part of the stem attached to it, is the fruit which is placed on the top of the pitcher. It has the shape of the head and the stem attached as if representing the flame of knowledge (Shiksha).

Fresh leaves with stems of five different sacred trees are placed on the mouth of the pitcher. These are symbolic of the five organs of action — the organ of speech, hands, feet, evacuation and procreation. In the water, five different gems are placed, which symbolise the five organs of perception — ears, skin, eyes, tongue and nose. Also, below the pitcher, five different grains are placed which are symbolic of the five subtle elements (Panchatanmatra) — akash (the vast space), vaayu (air), tejas (fire), op (water) and prithvi (earth) in  their rudimentary, uncompounded state. The subtle body (Sookshm sharir) of a man is composed of these five subtle elements. The subtle body covers the source of consciousness or soul (Atma), which, as per the Hindu Vedanta philosophy, lies deep inside the heart. According to the Vedanta philosophy, when a man dies, his soul exits the body.

When the hymns associated with Ghatasthapan are chanted with complete concentration, where one fully realises the meaning of her/his existence, the worshipper experiences the appearance of the gods.

Thus, for true worship, the worshipper must be in a state of complete awareness of his subtle body. With this serenity in the background and a sense of peace with the inner self, when the worshipper offers flowers and other offerings to the gods in the pitcher, he feels, as if, he is placing those in the void of his own heart, which is believed to be the abode of all gods and goddesses. This is what we call worshipping the god in the ideal sense.

(This article is based on the book Poojatattava by Brahmarshi Shree Shree Satyadev.)

Writer: Manoranjan Bhattacharya

Courtesy: The Pioneer

The do-not-touch policy no longer applies to artworks as they evolve and change with the participation of the audience, says Chahak Mittal

It was on a summer evening in 2013 when a video, showcasing a group of performers who presented a flashmob recreation of Rembrandt’s famous painting The Night Watch, surfaced on Youtube and went viral overnight. One must remember that this was a pre social media sensations world. The stunt was organised to coincide with the return of the painting, which is considered one of the Dutch artist’s greatest works, to Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum.

Fast forward to 2019 and you have “Public Radio,” a unique art installation at District Hall’s outdoor plaza in the Seaport, Boston’s home for innovation. Standing 10 feet tall, elegantly sloped along at its front face with the soft rainbow LEDs glowing behind half inch of frosted acrylic, it’s an innovative way to activate a public space using a combination of interactive art and technology. You can turn the metal-rimmed dials to tune to a different station as the corresponding LEDs light up on this giant radio inviting the public to play with and listen to the latest broadcasts and music. Built by New American Public Art in the Microsoft Garage at the New England Research and Development Centre, Public Radio is an interactive art installation with microprocessor parts and a futuristic look that encourages a spirit of community, working and grooving together.

In interactive art works, where the art itself engages with the audience at a public space, it is presumed that the viewers are no longer passive onlookers but the ones who complete the work’s purpose through participation. These could also be deliberately left open-ended in order to make it more understandable and readable for the audience and draw them into what was once considered erudite and classic.

Street art

From art in caves to graffiti and sign illustrations in churches, fresco in mosques and tombs, Madhubani art to miniature paintings on fortified walls, the age-old tradition of street art is the first one that comes to mind when we talk about art in the public space.

Giulia Ambrogi, co-founder and curator of the St+art India Foundation, talks about how street art directly engages the population, triggering conversations and beyond the confined walls of a gallery.

“The idea was to move away from the elusive nature of the uptight art gallery concepts that the cities offer. It’s important because cities need identities. The great power of street art, the skills and the sensitivity of the artists speak, everywhere they go they try to respond to the local narratives. Street artists have to keep in mind a lot of things while making the murals — the architecture, texture of the wall, specific city in which they are, country, colours around them, the people that they meet, area that they breathe in, flora and fauna, everything should merge together in conceptualisation and eventually execution of their pieces.”

She feels we live in a time and age where people are disconnected because of the fast chaotic life, “There should be some moment in which we recognise ourselves in our own cities.” For instance, artist Dattaraj Naik, who recently painted one of Goa’s biggest football-themed murals, where a child is sitting in a classroom and thinking about football, which is below his feet. The artwork aimed at representing the common aspirations and feelings of school students who try hard to keep a balance between academics and sports.

Artist and illustrator Rohan Chakravarty’s Gaj Yatra was a series of comic strips displayed at the Mandi House Metro Station, engaging people and triggering conversations around vanishing habitats of elephants.

Time Changes Everything at the Lodhi Art District changes with the angle of the sun. Come at noon to see the wall’s metal cut-outs cast perfect shadows that spell out words like “hope”, “ambition”, time”, “people”—all concepts that shift meanings over time. At 6 pm, the shadows are melting; at night or early morning, there are none at all. It is a commentary on the nature of street art. which is ephemeral because once a piece has been made, it is abandoned.

Flashmobs

At the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA) recently, a group of performers dressed in the costumes from the 19th century, who casually converged in the central atrium of a mall and broke into a dance in the city. The presentation aimed at recreating artist Raja Ravi Varma’s Portrait of a Family, where the artist captures a South Indian family in their respective attires.

Kiran Nadar, chairperson, had earlier said that since Indians are deeply fond of dance and music, so what could be a better way to connect with the public for spreading awareness for Indian art heritage?

Tactile art

In most art galleries and museums, the ‘Do Not Touch’ rule is non-negotiable. But there could be some people who can’t resist flouting rules. However with more innovative art coming to the fore, the rule doesn’t really stick to them by including people in the pattern that the artwork follows.

For instance, the Mirror Box at the Museum Centre in Krasnoyarsk, Russia creates a never-ending myriad of reflections of everyone who peeped inside the box. On the other hand, Alan Parkinson’s Luminarium installation allowed the viewers to step inside a circular pavilion surrounded with vibrant colours and soft lights. It is important not to confuse these for 3D artworks.

Anahita Taneja, director, Shrine Empire, tells us about their recent curation at the gallery, which allowed viewers to engage in a direct conversation with the artwork on display.

The installation titled, One Thousand Tears by artist Suchitra Gahlot, asked a thousand people from the audience ‘Why did you cry last?’ Their one word replies were labelled on to a thousand small vials. They were then filled with a saline solution that matched the exact composition of human tears. An accompanying use and throw book had the one-word replies printed on tissue paper. Once read, the answers are lost forever.

Taneja says, “It was so beautiful to see how people were constantly getting attracted towards the work. It showed how interactive works make a difference to people, especially the artwork that is touchable. Other sculptures and paintings in a gallery are mostly looked at and forgotten but such works stay within the person even when s/he walks out. They would not only be engaged with it at that time, but would also tell the story to people they know outside.”

Augmented reality

Priya’s Mirror, the art exhibition, curated by art connoisseur Mukta Ahluwalia, brought together a range of artworks and augmented reality installations by four different artists that aimed to invoke in people a sense of responsibility towards the society. The artworks were divided into four chapters, featuring India’s first female superhero, ‘Priya Shakti.’ She is a rape survivor, who helps a group of acid attack survivors to find their strengths and overcome their fears — finding similarity with the way she had conquered her fears after the brutality she went through.

One of the visuals had a young girl, in a quiet land, sitting on the back of a tiger. To make it appear real, one had to install a free application on their phones called Blippar, and scan the image through their phone’s camera. The app would activate the digital programme, which in turn would allow people to see the images moving. Here, the girl sits on the back of the tiger and flies away.

She explains that since art is capable of instilling in people a sense of responsibility, then “why not make it more interactive through various media we have today?”

Astral, by Australian illustrator and designer Stuart Campbell (popularly known as Sutu), features a sequence of 21st century tableaux vivants that give participants the sense that they are actually stepping into the paintings.

In another illustration, Dark, by California-based digital artist Steve Teeple, technology and organic matter converge within an inverted, globular space where a few multi-coloured lights pierce through the uncharted inky black terrain of deep, dark space.

Writer : Chahak Mittal
Courtesy: The Pioneer

Sakshi Sharma Anu Menon, popularly known as Lola Kutty, asserts that regional accents are bound to influence the way we speak English. By Sakshi Sharma

A centre parting with braided hair, profusion of jasmine gajras, a small bindi on her forehead, Kanjivaram saris teamed with heavy gold jewellery and a strong as can be Malyali accent. If you put out this description to a 90s kid, nine times (or maybe even 10) out 10, the answer would be Lola Kutty.

Anuradha Menon, who played the much-loved Channel V VJ, will be seen in a stand alone comic show on Amazon Prime called ‘Wonder Menon’. The show is a collection of her observations, a style that she has favoured since she started out. Through this, she aims to boldly expose the absurdity of life and language with humour and multi-lingual jokes. “In this show, I have tied together all my observations and writings, which luckily make that one hour special, really special,” she says.

Her style of comedy is observational coupled with humour rather than one where she delivers traditional punchlines. With Wonder Menon, Anu has exhausted all her writing for this Amazon show so much so for any other programme she will have to start from a scratch.

Anu started comedy in the 90’s when it did not feature high on the list of ‘the thing’ to be pursued. She paved her own path while combating challenges that are inherent in a field that is new and relatively unexplored. Talking about the evolution of the comic industry, the chirpy VJ cum actress says, “I think in the current scenario, there are far more platforms to showcase your talent and connect to people”. In keeping with the times, she feels, if she was doing Lola Kutty today she would have gone through the web route as opposed to television. “The game is changing as there are so many web platforms which  have created more avenues and opportunities for stand-up comedy to flourish as well other different kinds of stories.”

For her, comedy is merely jokes and does not convey any lesson. “Everyone portrays comedy differently. Some people are into dark humour, others do lighter comedy while still others are more political. Each one of us have different strengths and this is what makes the comic industry appealing. The various voices offer different perspectives which perhaps one might have not thought about,” she says.

In India, off late, it is the political satire that has been making waves. Anu feels that everyone has a different route to humour. “People believe, with humour, the point is understood smoothly and it also lightens a heavy topic,” she says.

Menon has been accused of making fun of the Malayali community because she imitated the accent. However, she counters saying, “In this country we take offence easily. For me, stereotypes are there for a reason, because they are true. In fact, I don’t think there is anything wrong with people having a strong regional accent as the way we speak our regional tongue possibly infiltrates our English accent.” She strongly feels that we should not be apologetic about the way we speak. As she was playing a character from a particular social setting, it was essential for her to zone out of Anu in order to play it convincingly.  She is also the last one to pay heed to what people think about her. Asserting that it is fundamentally impossible to please everyone every time, she is glad that because of her some people feel that Malayalam is a cool language.

With respect to films, she laughs and tells us, “I would not fit into the role of a conventional heroine because I would never survive in this industry as she is a healthy Malayali girl.”

Anu has always given primacy to stage, for a reason. “The stage has always been my first love and it will always be the focal point of my life,” she asserts.

Since Lola Kutty was an iconic act, does she have any plans to reprise it? “I would be happy to to do so if people want to see Lola back in 2.0 avatar. It is always overwhelming to see people remembering Lola,” she says with a sigh.

Writer: Sakshi Sharma

Courtesy: The Pioneer

Olga Bogroff’s small suite is testament to the genesis of Indian contemporary art in Paris. By Uma Nair

Picture this, artist Ram Kumar arrives in Paris at the end of 1949. He has a few works with him, which were done in India. Among them is a work titled Twins. The price of this gouache on paper is Rs 65. Another is called Why Can’t I Get Sleep, which has a romantic reverie about it as you see a young maiden reclining with a woman who is sitting next to her in companionship, perhaps presiding over the travails of the world. The work belongs to Olga Bogroff, a gallery persona in Paris, who used her home as a gallery for young unknown artists. It was called Galerie Olga Bogroff and these works today form Grosvenor’s stunning South Asian Modern Art exhibition.

Romancing the figurative

Kumar’s works are a reflection of an early romance with the figurative and a study on female studies that unravel like jewels from the yesteryear. Twins and Why Can’t I Get Sleep are two succinct works steeped in history. This is perhaps the best time to go back in 1993 to Ram Kumar’s words as he recalled, “Perhaps every artist starts with the figurative because when we go to an art school, there is a model and we have to do drawings, learn anatomy and all that. So perhaps it is a very natural thing, along with landscape, at least for me. The reason I made these sort of paintings, was that I was a bit inspired by the left politics at that time and I was inclined towards the tragic side of life. It all started here, becoming more mature in Paris. And even if I had not been inspired by politics, perhaps I would have made the same kind of paintings because that is a part of my nature some sort of sadness, misery or whatever it is. Also my short stories are always towards people who have suffered.”

Modern women

Twins has two female figures, their saris billowing in the breeze, while Why Can’t I Get Sleep has a reclining young woman with a bare midriff, eyes wide open resting in leisure while another sits next to her. The division of the space into a grill and the foreground textured with small strokes speaks of both simplicity and sophistication. In this composition, Kumar creates a tableau vivant. This painting combines the realism and cultural symbolism of a social construct with the contrast of two complexions — the bronze skin and the fair toned lass, who is unable to get sleep. Indeed it also reflects a romantic dalliance in the features that Kumar created with a softness and feminine aura that sparks hope, and the subtle play of pensive poise.

The third figurative is another head turner from 1949. Sorrow has a number of women with the elongated dark faces and hollow eyes. The drapes on these women are indeed a testimony to modernism and the beauty of weaving in a language that was ahead of its time. Even when he created figurative, Kumar had a deep understanding of fluid lines, fervour and creating an expression in his triangular faces that was unique to its time and place. Kumar was acutely aware of his urban surroundings and the sense of togetherness in sorrow is the mood that he binds in this historic image. It is an insight to both technique and treatment. In this image of women in sorrow, Kumar treats the feminine figures with a sombre tenderness, invoking the idioms of both sympathy and sorrow. It is the mood of the gathering and the grace in sadness that transcend their own circumstances.

While looking at these epic early works one recalls the words of India’s greatest abstract guru, the thinker, the critic and the genius J Swaminathan when he wrote in an essay on Trends in Indian Modernism, for the Lalit Kala Contemporary published in 1995.

“Ram Kumar, an artist born and brought up in the atmosphere of the city middle class, looking into the empty souls of people ground down by the gruelling run of the daily mill, looking into eyes that have lost their animation, eyes that are windows opening into nothingness, is again a painter who has relied on his personal vision for his artistic endeavors, sad drooping figures, rendered with childlike directness, lingering like shadows in gloomy surroundings of gaunt and empty streets and houses.”

And then there is the brilliant observation of Shyam Lal who wrote, “As a young artist, Ram Kumar was captivated by or rather obsessed with the human face because of the ease and intensity with which it registers the drama of life. The sad, desperate, lonely, hopeless or lost faces which fill the canvases of his early period render with pathos his view of the human condition.” This small suite belonging to Olga Bogroff is the stuff of history, the testament of Indian contemporary art’s genesis in Paris and the connection of great French ambassadors and diplomats who played such a seminal game in the growth of Contemporary Indian art’s masters The Progressives.

Writer: Uma Nair
Courtesy: The Pioneer

Great music, good food aplenty, guests from different walks of life and the underlying bonhomie between our two countries made for a memorable Russia Day

Classical music that was zesty and foot- tapping wafted through the air at the Russian Embassy as it geared up to celebrate Russia Day. The occasion commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR) on June 12, 1990. Given the long-standing relationship that India shares with the country, the embassy in Chanakyapuri was abuzz with guests from all walks of life.

Foreign Secretary V K Gokhale was the chief guest while Najma Heptulla, Governor of Manipur, was the guest of honour. Heptulla was also presented with the Russian State award called the Order of Friendship.

The food at the do was catered by the LaLit Group of Hotels. The highlight of the evening was the ensemble, STRADIVALENKI, which comprised four virtuoso violin, accordion, piano and double-bass players and played numbers that had the guests shaking their heads.

Nikolay Kudashev, Ambassador of Russia to India, while addressing the guests, reiterated that Russia highly valued and respected India’s rich history, culture and traditions. “We are very proud to note that one of the first major international initiatives taken by new Russia was the signing of the Treaty on Friendship and Cooperation with India on January 28, 1993 which reaffirmed the continuity of our unique relationship,” he said. He further elaborated that the Declaration of Strategic Partnership of 2000 laid the foundation of the modern relationship, which since 2010 has enjoyed the status of Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership that is immune to any changes in domestic affairs or vagaries.

He went on to add, “In 2018 our leaders, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, met twice for bilateral summits both informal and the full-fledged one and several times on the sidelines of various international fora.”

The ambassador also highlighted that Russia and India are time-tested partners in the military and military-technical spheres and recent years have seen a host of deals being signed for production of military equipment under the Make in India programme. “Economic cooperation is also one of the top priorities of our relations. The 2018 October summit in New Delhi resulted in a new series of important agreements and MoUs, introducing a new platform for aspiring entrepreneurs — Russia-India Business Summit, which showed eagerness and ability of our companies to enhance trade, economic and investment partnership.”

He was pleased to note that the relationship was not confined to the two governments as “it is gratifying and inspiring that people-to-people contacts and mutual affinity are the key drivers of the Russian-Indian friendship giving new impetus to the ever-expanding areas of our cooperation. This is the reason why we proudly declare that the amity between Russia and India has become a deep-rooted popular tradition in both countries.”

The evening ended on a high note for the guests and the delegates.

Writer & Courtesy: The Pioneer

A free sprit to entertain us, Karol Zine (previously Harshali Zine) is an Indian television actress. She has done her roles in various Indian television shows like Hitler Didi, Diya Aur Baati Hum, CID, Fear Files: Darr Ki Sacchi Tasvirein, Savdhaan India, Haunted Nights, Ishq Kills, Kismat Connection, Aahat, and Bhanwar.

Harshali Zine, born n brought up in Mumbai based Maharashtrian family. About my family, I have two siblings, an elder sister n younger brother. Mom n dad both used to work; hence our upbringing has been very independent. I’m fiercely independent individual living life on my terms n conditions. I’m a hotel management graduate; studied n worked in gulf before perusing my dreams to become an actor. It’s been 9years I’m working as an actor and it’s been an awesome journey so far. I have been part of Marathi, Kannada n Hindi TV and films. So far I have survived but now I want to rise above survival and do something life changing. Currently I’m awaiting my Marathi film release on 6th October called Bhavishya Chi Aishi tashi, I play lead role in it. It’s an astrological thriller. I intend to produce and direct films in future but for now I’m focused on acting.

With Inputs from Nithya Ramesh – Bureau Chief Fashion & Entertainment Desk, contact: nithyajs23@gmail.com

Ralph Rugoff’s choice of three Indian artists speaks of his acumen, his observation and his erudite understanding of knowing that his role is one of great responsibility and deep understanding.By Uma Nair

For his group show, May You live Interesting Times, at the Venice Biennale, curator Ralph Rugoff’s has chosen three Indian artists from 79. The choice speaks of his acumen, his observation and his erudite understanding of knowing that his role is one of great responsibility and deep understanding.

Amongst the three are Shilpa Gupta who has a penchant for reinventing herself with each installation, Gauri Gill who has spent years blending the verbal and visual in research tenets of marginalised communities in far-flung places such as Maharashtra and Rajasthan and the youngest of the lot, 30-year-old nocturne hunter, Soham Gupta who walks into the other side of midnight in Kolkata to find his subjects unravel an angst that we have never cared to observe.

Rugoff’s title

When we look at the three artists, we are aware that he has picked them for the prowess in creating commentaries on the power and pathos found in communities, both past and present. When asked why he chose his title he has stated, “I also wanted a title that wasn’t too specific, but framed the times we live in. This Biennale responds to this moment in time and that is what is interesting about such events. They give you a form to think again about what happened in the last two years and what new ideas are changing the future that we are moving towards. What I was really interested in, was artists whose work is very open-ended and is more about asking questions than providing answers and experiments with the way we look at images and think about stories. A lot of this came from the ideas of Umberto Eco’s 1962 piece, The Open Work, where he gives a perfect description of what the culture of contemporary art has been for the last 60 years and continues to be and why it has value for society.”

Soham Gupta’s Kolkata

Soham’s Angst, a poignant series of portraits, entirely shot at night, portrays people in Kolkata who live on the margins of society. In an interview he states, “ I have been working on Angst since 2013. It is a work in progress. It has now evolved into a hopeless tale of a fictive night-time hellhole, whose nooks and crannies are inhabited by decaying souls. It has its roots in my childhood riddled with severe asthma attacks and in my troubled growing-up years spent trying to come to terms with the world’s expectations. I want this work to ultimately stand as testimony to the requiem of countless dreams, even as it is a record of my angst-ridden youth.”

Shilpa Gupta 100 poets and Gateway

Shilpa Gupta creates history of sorts for having two immersive installations in the Venice Biennale. Rugoff obviously understood her brilliance and her ability to reinvent the vitality of research and installation to present a comment on society. Shilpa Gupta’s new multi-channel sound installation gives voice to 100 poets who have been jailed through time for their writing or their beliefs. On entering the dimly-lit space of the Fire Station, visitors will encounter 100 microphones suspended over 100 metal rods, each piercing a verse of poetry. Over the course of an hour, each microphone in turn recites a fragment of the poets’ words, spoken first by a single voice then echoed by a chorus which shifts across space.

The poets’ words emerge from microphones, fitted with speakers, a device Gupta has adopted in earlier works to remind us that the microphone is not simply something to speak into, but a means to broadcast a message on a large scale. Here the microphones literally and symbolically give a voice to those whom regimes from around the world have sought to silence.

The idea of creating an archive of 100 emblematic instances is an approach the artist has adopted in previous works as well. Someone else: a library of 100 books published anonymously or under pseudonyms (2011), had brought together 100 books published by an author under another name as the author wanted to remain anonymous. Each one was etched in metal.

Shilpa’s second installation is a gate that swings back and forth as it hits and breaks the wall that it is embedded in.

Gauri Gill

Gauri Gill, India’s archival photographer who has been creating stunning narratives of groups of people in marginalised peripheries, unveils two important series of works.The first Acts of Appearance was shown at the Met museum last year. It is a series of vivid colour photographs for which the artist worked closely with members of an Adivasi community in Jawhar district of Maharashtra. Gill’s collaborator-subjects are renowned for their paper-mâché objects, including traditional sacred masks. In these pictures they engage in everyday village activities while wearing new masks, made expressly for this body of work, which depict living beings with the physical characteristics of humans, animals, or valued objects. A range of scenarios and narratives, situated in both “reality” and dreamlike state, come together in the photographs, which simultaneously portray symbolic or playful representations as well as the familiar experiences of community members against the backdrop of their home and culture.

Gill’s second set of works is entitled Becoming 2003 and deals with a study of narratives that envision a documentation of the tapestry of time.

In choosing all three Indian contemporary artists Rugoff presents the finest in the search for societal commentaries that talk about universal truths and the widening of gaps between the richest and the poorest.

(The Venice Biennale runs till November 2019.)

Writer: Uma Nair

Courtesy: The Pioneer