A quick glance at international shows of contemporary Indian art

Several talented Indian artists are coming up with work that responds to the present complexities and realities. Here is a recap of contemporary Indian art shows this year

‘Bring me a Lion’, ‘A Wild Gander’ ‘Have I Ever Opposed You?’, and ‘In Transition’

‘Bring me a Lion’ at Cecille R. Hunt Gallery (St.Louis, USA) featured Dhruvi Acharya, Chitra Ganesh, Tushar Joag, Jaishri Abichandani, Bari Kumar, Jitish Kallat and Reena Saini Kallat. The idea was to map the contours of the recent art practice of India to underline the theme. ‘A Wild Gander’ at Brooklyn’s BRIC Rotunda Gallery courtesy the South Asian Women’s Creative Collective (SAWCC) featured Jesal Kapadia, Yamini Nayar, Divya Mehra, Mala Iqbal and Chitra Ganesh. They all reflected on the complex issues, which frame South Asian identity, based in a gamut of social-personal spheres - gender, media representations, or politics.

Geneva based Faye Fleming & Partner hosted talented emerging artists from India and Pakistan, entitled ‘Have I Ever Opposed You?’ (March– May). On the other hand, ‘In Transition: New Art from India’ (May- June) at Richmond Art Gallery in Canada featured TV Santhosh, Sudarshan Shetty, Shilpa Gupta, Thukral & Tagra, Reena Kallat, and Hema Upadhyay.


Art Basel 2010

It was a celebration time for contemporary Indian art at Art Basel 41 in June that featured five leading galleries from the country, namely Chemould Prescott Road, Chatterjee & Lal, Sakshi, Nature Morte, and Gallery SKE. They presented some of the best works, reflecting the current trends, to a global audience. Chemould’s curated booth had two artists from different generations: Bhupen Khakhar and Atul Dodiya. Gallery SKE presented ‘Zero Knot’, an installation and publication by Sreshta Premnath. Chatterjee & Lal showcased Nikhil Chopra, known for his performance-based practice. Nature Morte displayed works by Suhasini Kejriwal, Schandra Singh, Thukral & Tagra, Gauri Gill, Atul Dodiya, Aditya Pande, and TV Santhosh.

Indian Highway’ and ‘Indian (Sub)Way’
Indian Highway’ (September- October) at the Reykjavík Art Museum in Iceland traced the impact of early technology stretching to the information superhighway. It also involved reflections on significance of the road for migration, movement, and development. ‘Indian (Sub)Way’ (September- October) at London based Grosvenor Vadehra, dealt with the various facets of challenging day-to-day existence in the country marked by opulence as well as its seamier underside that defines the edgy, subterranean its theme.