From its very first edition in 2008, India Art Fair has only grown from strength to strength. As the mega-art event, now in its 5th edition, there will be once again a deluge of Indian and international art at the exhibition venue of NSIC grounds. With as many as 106 exhibitors from 24 countries part of the fair this time, there will be a lot to absorb, so here is just an inkling of what one can watch out for. Do not miss Biju Joze’s sculptural installation at Dubai’s 1×1 gallery booth. Titled Agni I1, this is a long cylindrical form of a missile scooped out of a tightly packed body of books, exhibiting various titles selected to satirically approach the subject of war. The book visible at the forward end reads ‘Don’t Look Down’ obliquely suggesting a warning not to see the misshapen aftermath of destruction. At the same booth, a handful of Middle Eastern artists will make their debut – especially noteworthy is work by artists like Mohammed Kazem and Patricia Millns who are some of the most experimental and innovative artists of the Emirates.
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At Vadehra art gallery booth, conceptual artist Shilpa Gupta presents her new work Holy Waters. The work extends from her earlier projects such as Blessed-Bandwidth.net of 2003, where Gupta investigates faith and religion in the real and virtual world. Here we are presented with four almost identical images of holy waters from revered rivers of Ganga and Jordan, and sacred places like Amritsar and Mecca, which very simply question the separation instigated by different religions.
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If you are fond of life-size installations, Siddhartha Kararwal’s solo project, presented by Latitude 28, is your best bet. Titled Albanoalba, this is an 8-feet-high rabbit made of led tubes, red bulbs and sound sensor which will be stationed at the very entry of fair grounds. The artist has chosen a reference of an Alba rabbit and by making an animal out of lights, he desires to give a new life and a name, to ‘a socio-cultural being’, now that this particular genetically modified species does not exist in nature. Outside the media lounge, Dilip Chobisa has installed a 7-feet-high room-like structure titled Problem of Interaction which will be adorned with printed canvases with images of landscapes, doors and windows. Inside the structure, there will be text and few images as well decorative stuff which will be etched in mirror. This interactive work will engage viewers psychologically as well optically.
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For video art, check out Gautam Kansara’s intimate family videos and Priyanka Dasgupta’s video showcasing a military jacket that reference acts of deliberate violence and inexplicable aggression exercised by people upon one another at Shrine Empire booth.
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And if it’s traditional art that appeals to you, at Singapore’s Indigo Art, you can see over 100 drawings and sketches by Indian master artists spanning six decades of Indian art history. From bold, powerful strokes and sensuous contours to naked, linear purity, this one is a comprehensive collection. Giving a new twist to the good, old canvas art is Gallerie Ganesha whose artists have focused on going small. Artists like A. Ramachandran, Ganesh Haloi, Ganesh Pyne, Jayasri Burman, Jogen Chowdhury, Paresh Maity, Satish Gujral and several others have made works in miniature sizes – some as small as eleven inches – in an attempt to draw the viewer into an intimate dialogue with the artworks.
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Watch this space for more on India Art Fair.
INDIA ART FAIR 2013 is being held at NSIC Exhibition Grounds, Okhla, New Delhi from February 1 till February 3, 2013. visit www.indiartfair.in for more details
Poonam Goel is a freelance journalist and has covered the arts for over 15 years. She contributes on visual arts for various newspapers, magazines and online media. More about her on Story Wallahs. Write to her @ poonamgoel2410@gmail.com