Wednesday 31 May 2023

MILLENISMAL/:/

The ethos of the era that began with the aspiration of a highly advanced future and the metamorphosis into that future, together, form the quintessential pieces of storytelling in this exhibition.

  1) Image: Left astist - Anupama Dey, Ashwathi Avinash, Dattaram Nerurka, Curoter - Smita Kinkale and Bhaskarjyoti Gogoi.
Jehangir Art Gallery - Kala Ghoda

The world changed politically in 1991 with the collapse of Soviet Russia and followed by further mutations, brought over by technology, the information revolution, genome sequencing, communication, and AI. Biology became ideology and a strange moral preoccupation eclipsed the clarity and sanity of mind, twentieth century struggles with reality and reality became extremely complex with the introduction of virtual reality and a never expanding cyberspace brought in a dimension hitherto unknown to the human race. New loneliness and new meaninglessness challenged the existence on the one hand while on the other neoliberal capitalism with its ability to metamorphosis continuously and quickly introduced a new alienation & isolation, cutting off the individual from his or her social threading. Anthropocene, and the derangement it ushered unweaving of the strands embroidered over thousands of years between man and nature, not the world, the universe of the Man, and the universe within the universe changed and is still changing. This is a continuous cycle that takes place and, in this cycle, somewhere a pause occurs and everything starts with a new beginning like a renaissance.

Similarly in the field of art too we can see many changes. Artists had started to explore their surroundings which we can see in their paintings, religious themes had taken a back seat and replaced with present-day happenings and events also with insight into the future were depicted. These paintings were more fantasized, and romanticized at the same time depicting the real truth and the practicality. A new approach towards bright color new mediums can be seen hence paper and canvas were not the limits. Here only seeing and painting with a realistic approach was not only art, whereas combining the seen with own thoughts and providing it with a self-touch was also art.

Jehangir Art Gallery

Expressing oneself in their desired expression in different ways whether it is color, brushing, forms like geometric forms, distorted forms, etc., or whether it is any other medium for the depiction of thoughts.

 

1)Image : Artist Nilesh Kinkale, Raj Shirke and Hansodnya Tambe  2 ) Prakash Waghmare and Dattaram Nerurkar 3) Shri. Vishwanath Sable, Dean, Sir JJ School of Art, Pradeep Palav and Gurmani Das - Nine Fish Gallery 

But still, the fundamentals and principles kept running in this whole process which made the works look stronger and elegant in depiction which also helped the artist convey their thoughts to the viewer’s strongly. ”Good composition is like a suspension bridge -each line adds strength and takes none away. No one is an artist unless he carries his picture in his head before painting it and is sure of his method and composition” -Robert Henri. This purely defines the concept here, when we are practicing art having strong fundamentals with a concept will give great results.

Our practicing artists of the show are completely immersed in their works and excellently depict their thoughts and surroundings with a fundamental perspective with the help of their respective mediums. Which directly connects their thoughts and works with the viewers.

 Anupama Dey



Born and brought up with a rich artistic background in a small village in West Bengal, Artist, and Printmaker Anupama Dey tries to depict the connection between humans and neglected creatures such as house lizards. She strives to kindle human emotions towards nature through her work.

Intrigued by the way house lizards move and communicate, the artist found inspiration in their rhythm and body language. She carefully observed their every movement, taking note of the sounds they made and the energy they exuded. Eventually, this fascination with the tiny creatures infiltrated her art, as she began to incorporate their unique qualities into her printmaking and drawing. Through her creations, she was able to express the beauty and complexity of the lizards in a way that honored their existence as much as it celebrated her own artistic talent.

Her expertise lies in various methods of printmaking such as etching, lithography, woodcut, serigraphy, etc. Post-pandemic, her interest in masks grew slowly which sparked her interest in going back to the concept of masks and how they were traditionally made and used. From ancient times masks were used to survive in the wild to the present day where a different version of these masks help us fight diseases is a concept that she is currently engaged in studying and researching to be able to effectively represent it all in her works.

She has done a Bachelor degree (B.F.A) in painting at Govt. Chitrakala Mahavidyalaya, University of Nagpur and received a one year fellowship at Nagpur Govt. Art College. She completed her master degree (MFA) in Printmaking at Indira Kala Sangit Vishwavidyalaya, Khairagarh and recieved a junior fellowship of ministry of culture, New Delhi an still continues to practicing and explore printmaking at Indira Kala Sangit Vishwavidyalaya, Khairagarh. Currently she is pursuing her PhD in Printmaking from IKSV, Khairagarh.

 Ashwathi Avinash




She completed her early education at Sacred Heart High School, Navi Mumbai. In 2014, and final schooling from Atomic Energy Junior College, Mumbai, in 2016.

In the year 2022, she completed her education in BFA ceramics at the Sir J.J. School of Art, Mumbai.

The start of her professional career involved working as an intern in a well-known pottery studio. This experience proved to be valuable as she gained a lot of expertise in creating high-quality tableware products. Her creations were appreciated by renowned celebrities and design houses. Additionally, during her internship period, she demonstrated her versatility and creativity by designing unique porcelain buttons for a fashion designer.

In her capacity as a ceramic artist, her creations and the diverse experiences she has accumulated in the course of her artistic practice stand as a testament to her creative abilities and expertise. Her body of work is a reflection of her artistic prowess, manifested through her technical skills and intrinsic understanding. She made clay compositions and glazes from scratch. Her work was also displayed at the Embassy of Switzerland for the “Every Mother in India” Stakeholder event in New Delhi.

She inspected and practised 10 gas firings of glazed wares and acquired knowledge about the slip decoration technique. Currently, she's working at Studio White & Grey Lifestyle, designing and creating products for a fine interior company, The Great Eastern Home. Also, putting on her skills on the combination of wood with ceramic in furniture and as art.

Bhaskarjyoti Gogoi



Bhaskarjyoti Gogoi is a skilled and experienced artist who hails from Assam Guhati. He pursued his education in the field of fine arts and successfully completed his bachelor's degree in 2016 and masters degree in 2018 from Indira Kala Sangit University Khairaghar, which is an esteemed institution for arts education. His talent has been recognized by various authorities at the state and national level in the form of numerous prestigious awards. As an active participant in the art community, he has showcased his work in multiple group exhibitions all across India.

The artist hails from a region that is naturally diverse and rich in culture. This influence is evident in his works, which are executed in a minimalist fashion. He creates a pleasant atmosphere in his paintings with the use of cool tones, which provides a soothing and relaxing experience to the viewers. His artistic skills are evident in his ability to beautifully depict the culture, people, flora, and fauna of north Assam in his paintings, where every painting captures the essence of the region's rare flowers, birds, textures, and colors. His artworks showcase the unique beauty of his native region in an exquisite way, and they are a true reflection of the artist's love for his homeland.

The artist's body of work is not simply a reflection of his hometown's landscapes, but a call to action aimed at individuals to do their part in preserving them. By using artistic pieces that display the charm and potential of the natural world we inhabit, he prompts onlookers to conserve and secure their environment. The artist's work can act as a compelling tool for conservation and is an excellent example to inspire everyone to recognize the need to protect and preserve the earth.


Dattaram Nerurkar



Dattaram Sudhakar Nerurkar is an upcoming Indian artist born in Mumbai. He completed his bachelor's degree from Sir J.J .School of Art in the year 2018. He has received numerous national awards and has also been selected for the France based scholarship Euro art, a culture exchange scholarship for sculpture in the year 2019. He has participated in many group shows namely "Rupayatan" Postage group shows in Chandigarh and Busan.

His expertise lies in various mediums, out of them all, he is fond of working with metal and wood. He generally works on topics related to migration and depicts his thoughts through the grains and lines of the wood which helps him portray his thoughts clearly. Wood is his chosen language of expressing his thoughts through its natural textures and lines in these sculptures.

 Artist : Tanuja Rane, Nilesh Kinkale, Apurba Nandi, Tathi Premchand, Raj Shirke, Hansodnya Tambe,
Prakash Waghmare, Dattaram Nerurkar, Vishwanath Sable, Pradeep Palav and Gurmani Das - Nine Fish Galler
y

The sculptures of this artist are an exquisite mix of Indian philosophy, tradition, culture and modernity. Through his work, he beautifully captures the essence of culture at the level of consciousness, which has evolved over thousands of years. The core of his sculptures lies in the form and beauty of culture, which is intricately woven into his art. His sculptures are not merely objects of beauty, but also serve as a reflection of our shared heritage and cultural legacy. Through his fusion of ancient and modern concepts, he brings to life a new and dynamic vision of Indian culture, one that is both timeless and relevant to our contemporary world.

Our artists being from the millienismal period are the touch bearers who preserve the past and inculcate the future to create and document  our present and the past and portray it through their own style to the viewers. Which is a part of this huge and continuous cycle of our contemporary art.

“Understanding the past are steps to craft the future, thoughts breed actions and with action comes creation and inspiration takes hold and the cycle begins anew.”

 

-Smita Kinkale

Artist and Art Educator


Jehangir Art Gallery

30th May to 5th June 2023

Address161B, Mahatma Gandhi Road, Kala Ghoda, Fort, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400001 

Bengal Beyond Boundaries

The presence of Aakriti Art Gallery in contemporary Indian art is both exemplary and exceptional in its artistic evolution over the pst. It reveals its commitment to serious and meaningful pursuits.In a historic unveiling the gallery will showcase works of Bengal artists beginning from Early Oil paintings, works by Bengal Masters as well as important contemporary practitioners who have contributed to the making and evolution of Indian art.

The works which will be presented at Bikaner House titled 'Bengal Beyond Boundaries'. and curated by noted writer and art critic Uma Nair, will showcase a wonderful process and spirit that provokes a dialogue that will not question our own notion of culture but will also reflect the beauty of the human imagination.




In an remarkable assembly of works the show will be a quest to accomplish deeply impressive satisfying mélange of artists, each of whom possesses a sprightly distinctive approach. The compositional variety and the grammar of execution shall make for a lively diversity of angles as well as satisfying narrative styles.

Aakriti’s famous Masterpiece shows over more than a decade has defined them as a gallery that with works of artists who have been showcased along with Masters to ensure the very best representations of contemporary developments. Thus from a profusion of options the gallery has been able to distill a coherent and positive selection of artists over the years.

Aakriti’s exhibition history is one of explorations that run back and forth in melding the past and the present. It has always had a distinctive policy of having immense respect for senior and established talents and the discernment of a new promise through thoughtfully curated exhibitions. Its most coveted exhibitions like ‘Gen Next’, have put contemporary Indian and International Art before the public in an appraised and consistent manner. Though its emphasis has largely been on Indian art, in particular, it has also showcased meaningful works from abroad at regular intervals.



Aakriti is known for its archival collections, collectors, anywhere in the world may collect artwork from a huge range of works available on gallery’s website, online. The gallery has also produced a huge corpus of literature on Indian and international art, published a much sought after art magazine named Art Etc. Some of the sterling essays will be carried out in the book which will come out during the exhibition.

At the forthcoming exhibition, Aakriti Art Gallery under the stewardship of Gallery’s Director Vikram Bachhawat will present a mapping of the Bengal School along with a unique perception of the social and cultural future with Early Oil Paintings, the works by Masters and practicing artists through its interaction with the audience. Over the years Aakriti is known to create shows that provide rich audience perceptions, as well as understandings of the creative potential of some of fresh talents. In this unveiling there will be a conjunction of established artists as well as Masters and emerging names.


The range of mediums and compositional forms will make for a lively diversity of angles and satisfying narrative styles. Aakriti’s past experience with Indian Masters will be an abacus to ensure the very best representations of contemporary developments. The present may be interrogated in an attempt to decipher in it the heralding signs of a forthcoming event. Here we have the principle of a kind of historical hermeneutics from Anonymous Early Bengal, Hemendranath Mazumdar, Jamini Roy, Rabindranath Tagore, Abanindranath Tagore, Nandalal Bose, Manishi De, Somnath Hore, Gopal Ghosh, Rabin Mondal, Ganesh Haloi,Bikash Bhattacharjee,Sakti Burman, Bikash Bhattacharjee, Gobardhan Ash, Kartick Chandra Pyne, Jogen Chowdury, Arpita Singh, Lalu Prasad Shaw,Pradeep Moitra,Anjolie Ela Menon,Samir Aich,Shuvaprasana,Shipra Bhattacharjee,Paresh Maity,Jayasri Burman,Jayashree Chakravarty, Tapas Konar, Aditya Basak, Chhatrapati Dutta, Sudip Roy,Chandra Bhattacharjee, Samindranath Mazumdar, Akhil Chandra Das, Subrata Biswas, Tapas Biswas and others.



Venue : Bikaner House. New Delhi 

Date.   : 7 July To 16 July 2023.


Aakriti Art Gallery

(A unit of Chisel Crafts Pvt. Ltd.)
Orbit Enclave, First Floor
12/3A, Hungerford Street
Kolkata-700 017
Phones: +91 33 22893027 / +91 33 22895041
Fax No: +91 33 22895042
Mob No: +91 9830411115 / +91 9830411116