A turning point in the post-Independence period of Indian art

The Romanticization of Indian reality by the then Company Painters and the mannered portraits of Ravi Varma and his ardent followers gave way to the Bengal School of Painting. Nandalal Bose, D.P. Roy Choudhury, Abanindranath Tagore, A.K. Haldar, Kshitindranath Mazumdar, A.K. Haldar and Kshitindranath Mazumdar were among the artists who belonged to this school. Those like Rabindranath and Gagnendranath Tagore preferred more personal idioms through Santiniketan Institute.

On the other hand, Benode Behari Mukherjee and Ramkinkar Baij opted to express their love for nature and its rhythms. Inspired by the spirit of Mahatma Gandhi's teachings, Jamini Roy drew his strength from the simplicity of Indian folk art. Another wave of change came in the 1930s from the bold, post-impressionistic colors of artist Amrita Sher Gill, and through the 'socially responsive' work of the Calcutta Group, a decade later.

During the pre-Independence era, and well into the 20th century, the propensity to question the Western thoughts became even more pronounced in the expression of ‘inward-looking’ Indian artists. In the 1930s, a wave of change arrived in the form of bold, post-impressionistic colors of artist Amrita Sher Gill, and through the 'socially responsive' work of the Calcutta Group. The country's partition and Independence in 1947 might have actually seemed like the catalyst for a form of expression to match the momentous occasion.

However, the so-called 'artists of transition' like K.K. Hebbar, Shiavax Chavda, Sailoz Mukherjea and N.S. Bendre were more engrossed in a contemplation of life's simpler, smaller pursuits through their art practice. The formation of Progressive Artists Group (PAG) was a turning point in the post-Independence period. K. H. Ara, M.F. Husain, S. H. Gade, S. Bakre, F. N. Souza and S. H. Raza were all determined to fashion an art entirely Indian, albeit modern. Their modernism was more in the spirit of the peculiar Nehruvian internationalism, largely relying on Parisian abstract Expressionism and post-Impressionism.

Three Generations of Wyeth courtesy Christie’s

Christie’s is presenting an ambitious Spring sale of American Art that features modern masters Georgia O’Keeffe, Edward Hopper and Milton Avery among others. The event will include works of art from several prominent private collections like ‘Three Generations of Wyeth: The Collection of Eric & Cynthia Sambol’, comprised of a group of 13 pieces by Jamie Wyeth and N.C., Andrew plus select offerings from the Andy Williams collection.

Comprised of about a dozen works of art by N.C., Andrew, and Jamie Wyeth, it includes important works spread over three generations of what’s considered among the most remarkable art family dynasties of their times in America. Six works by Andrew are on offer in the Sambols’ collection. ‘Rocky Hill’ (estimate: $1,800,000-2,400,000) well embodies all the hallmarks, which have made him a popular and enduring figures in the annals of American Art.

He mostly worked in series, devoting himself to specific locations and the subject matter, thereby letting him lend genuine sincerity to his style sans sentimentality. ‘Rocky Hill’ revolves around Nell, his faithful dog. Wyeth often revisited the pet as a subject. The piece apart from embodying a feel of loneliness pays tribute to the gradual passage of time and also the places and people that inhabit his daily life in Pennsylvania and Maine.

Works from the collection of Andy Williams that are there in the sale include a couple of important Milton Avery paintings, ‘The Musicians’ (estimate: $400,000-600,000) and ‘Pale Flower’ (estimate: $250,000-350,000) denote Avery's ability of modernizing a familiar domestic scene with his very carefully done orchestrated arrangement of both color and pattern. His knack of translating the subjects into a unique lexicon of forms and shapes that jell to build a cohesive composition is evident.

The sale will offer a wide array of Impressionist artworks, including ‘In a French Garden (estimate: $800,000-1,200,000) by Childe Hassam that demonstrates his abilities at the peak of his career. ‘The Palm’ is among the sale’s other key Impressionist highlights.

An abstractionist driven by a deep rooted, esoteric worldview

Rightfully considered one among India's best abstractionists, G. R. Santosh attained fame for his marvelously mystical paintings that unfolded the secrets of one of our closely followed philosophies not only within the country but also internationally.There was a silent streak of self-introspection evident in his paintings, which at times, revolved around the theme of chronic, inexpressible loneliness that enveloped modern man. His landscape, as if, depicted the vicissitudes of heart rather than finer points of any geographical region.

Born in 1929 to a modest middle-class family in Srinagar, G. R. Santosh hardly had any orientation in art. He had once recounted that he indulged in sketching and drawing from early childhood years. Inspired by the beauty and nature around, he took to a little landscape series, doing several of them before moving onto other art forms and evolving his own unique style.

Circumstances, as he had rewound back in an interview, forced the artist to search for odd jobs such as silk weaving, sign board painting, and even white washing walls to see himself through the tough times after his father’s death. Interestingly, he initially achieved name as a skilful papier-mâché artist.

The struggle for survival allowed him no luxury to focus on art, but he did not give up. It was long though, before he could turn his love for art into practice and take formal lessons in it. The talented painter finally was able to pursue his passion after he won the government scholarship in 1954.

He joined Faculty of Fine Arts at M.S. University in Baroda, where he studied under painter N. S. Bendre. And as luck would have it, he soon joined the much-celebrated Progressive Arts Association in Kashmir, soon after India’s Independence, formed at a nudge from S H Raza.  He showed his work at many galleries across the country as a leading member of the well-established art association.

Processes and philosophy of one of India’s legendary artists

Art, to Vasudeo S. Gaitonde, was a process complete in itself. It helped him move closer to his own self, as he kept on exploring transient realities and his inner spaces. This was a highly individualized and internal process that he rigidly followed. The entire artistic process reflected his deeply introspective and analytical attitude.

His paintings were invariably described as abstract in nature. Personally though, he rejected the tag. VS Gaitonde instead preferred to see them as 'non-objective,' visualizing more as a balanced juxtaposition of colors and texture. He meticulously maneuvered his medium on the canvas with precision, building up pigments to only strip them away and unravel hidden layers of the work.

The highly codified works carried an 'evocative power' that operated on more than one level. A sense of 'atmosphere blended with an approximation of music filled them. They gave rise to a mystery about the very experience of viewing, reviewing and responding, as if one was drawn into some ‘still centre of hitherto unknown experience’, as senior art critic Dnyaneshwar Nadkarni had described.

In a deceptively uncomplicated manner, he seemed to have solved the complex equation between linear structure and color – akin to an emotionally perceived relationship in which colors asserted themselves, sans any obtrusive emphasis on their physical parameters as paint.

Also influenced by ancient calligraphy, his large works on canvas, mostly monochromatic, exuded an ‘evocative power’. The flat, 2-dimensional pictorial space, held by seemingly floating forms, evoked a sense of infinite space. In a way, the master artist was least concerned with the process of representation but the painted surface itself. His ethereal paintings conjured up a veiled version of the natural world. Through a deft manipulation of color, form and technique, he transformed basic elements into carriers of spiritual introspection that made his works into mystifying masterpieces.

Bringing together artistic practice and spirituality

Nature Morte presents a two-person exhibit by AA Bronson and Michael Bühler-Rose at its Berlin venue.  ‘The Botanica’ refers to the Hispanic ‘botanicas’ tradition - magical and religious supply shops—in the Americas, and includes works, which deal with the art object as a venerated deity, its creation as mystic ritual consecration by artists who act as a shaman/priest. A press release explains, “Invoking spirits and evoking both real and imaginary religions, the two play with the conventions of ritual objects, magical supplies, rituals and spiritual consumerism, whilst engaging in the sometimes difficult conversation between artistic practice and spirituality.”

Since the age of 14, Michael Bühler-Rose’s study and practice of Vaishnavism (the branch of Hinduism dedicated to the God Vishnu), Sanskrit, kalpa (ritual), and philosophy have prompted extended stays in India, including one as a Fulbright Fellow. He is both Critic in the Department of Photography at the Rhode Island School of Design and purohita (Hindu priest) and his work on these platforms influence his artistic production.

In his photographs, videos, and installations his work expands upon recent theories of Relational Aesthetics and fold the dialectics of Conceptual Art with Vaishnavite ritual and image worship. His work has been shown recently at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, Delhi; Bose Pacia, New York; Chatterjee and Lal, Mumbai; Carroll and Sons, Boston and with SK Stiftung Kultur/Die Photographische Sammlung at Art Cologne.

Bronson’s work - as an artist, healer, curator, and educator - is marked by the practice of collaboration and consensus.  Born 1946 in Vancouver, he formed the artists’ group ‘General Idea’ with Felix Partz and Jorge Zontal in 1969. The group lived and worked together for the next 25 years, undertaking over 100 solo exhibitions, numerous group shows and public art projects. He served as the Director of “Printed Matter, Inc.” in New York City, from 2004 to 2010 founding the annual NY Art Book Fair in 2005. In 2009 he founded the Institute for Art, Religion, and Social Justice at Union Theological Seminary in New York City, which he now co-directs.

An artist’s fascination for football

Interestingly, Alok Bal dreamt of becoming a football player but failed to pursue his passion owing to unavoidable turn of events. Not disheartened, he opted to reflect his love for the game on canvas that captured its beauty and the human skills involved. Apart from painting ‘two feet poetry’, he started a football academy in 2007 in Baroda (XYZ Football Club) to encourage aspiring footballers. He has been playing football since his childhood. Terming this ‘beautiful game’ a way of life, he feels it’s more than just a sport – rather a philosophy and every sportsman a philosopher.

After his fascinating football series (‘Football Fever’; Priyasri Art Gallery, Mumbai), he produced ‘Black Landscape’ in 2007 that touched upon another facet of his artistic quest. Ironically, while on the one hand, individualism is on the rise, one’s identity is under threat, as the artist wants to bring to our notice. His landscapes refer to the self-inflicted problems arising from unplanned development.

They comment in a lighter vein on our tendency to manipulate the surroundings, regardless of the ill effects. Urban growth, resulting from blatant manipulation of natural resources and the resultant changes in ecology is inextricably linked to the very roots of human existence. He prompts the viewer to contemplate over issues that bear immediate significance and future consequences.

At a broader level, the artistic realm that Alok Bal depicts is materialistic to the core wherein the central characters are often effigies of voyeurism and egotism. This vicious world, often overlooked by most of us, is portrayed in-depth by this sensitive and observant artist who peeps into complexities of relationships; between people and their immediate surroundings.

Metaphorical usage of flying dainty figures, serene colors, the scratches and the realistically done attributes are all skillfully stitched together in his compositions that exude lyrical sophistication, hiding beneath it insecurities of self-existence. He raises a question mark the place and space of the individual lost in a city.

'Ember' by Alok Bal

The new Delhi-based Galley, Latitude 28, currently hosts a solo show by Alok Bal that includes over 40 works –done in wood, glass, found human waste (used cloth, plastic, medicine wrappers, pipes etc) apart from canvases and paper works that according to him is about ‘the theme of human suffering caused by the prevailing socio-political system and also the one that we happen to create within ourselves, to add to the pain’.

The outcome is an extreme imbalance in our outer and inner selves, leading to destruction, ultimately. He adds: “The main inspiration is my surroundings, people, life, nature and, of course, my inner self. Like my previous body of work, this show too is about cityscapes, but with a difference. Previously I would focus on the exterior, but this time, I have tried to get into the interior, the more psychological aspects of life of urban human beings.”

The gallery director, Bhavna Kakar, states that his current body of work is dynamic in its diversity. While his paintings are serene and metaphorical, his works in found human waste, wooden box and glass show his versatility in handling various mediums. Also a nature lover who loves trekking in the forests of Gujarat, it’s no wonder that he paints an unsettling picture of natural habitats being replaced by concrete jungles and the human tendency to tame nature in all its forms. He extends the environment versus development debate to reveal his concerns for the changing behavior and lifestyle of the human race as well as the effects on birds and animals.

A press release to his solo, entitled ‘Ember’ elaborates: “The contrast in topography from his native Orissa to the fast developing city of Baroda cannot be ignored in his work. From his studio on the 10th floor in Baroda, he has been witness to the changing Baroda skyline; the view of an endless sea of tenements with cement grey terraces blending with the smoky, polluted sky and this is a recurring source of inspiration in his works. These images also surfaced in his last solo show in Delhi in 2007.”