When the National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi had hosted a retrospective exhibition of Jehangir Sabavala, one of India’s most distinguished figurative artists, in 2006, the 84-year-old had regaled his audience with a fabulous one liner: “There was a time when I was paid a few hundred rupees for my work and that too […]
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Author: Poonam Goel
Art Beat :More Than Just Love
Love is blind, they say. Or is it? Your first love is your last love, most believe. But does love last forever? Love should be celebrated at all times, and everywhere, we’ve been told. What happens when this emotion begins to destroy, sometimes cruelly? Love is perhaps the one word that has been so oversimplified […]
A Love Lost, But Not Forgotten
There was a time not so long ago when the royal courts of Lucknow shimmered to the lilting melodies of thumri. Around 1847, the Nawab of Awadh, Wajid Ali Shah and his court singer Sadiq Ali Khan are credited with developing thumri into a popular style to which the courtesans danced. It is to revive […]
Art Beat:Beyond Boundaries
Purists may yet dismiss the emerging trend in art practice, namely use of technology, acceptance of new media and a growing market for artefacts, as ‘dumbing down’ of traditional art forms, but this trend has undoubtedly spurred the process of demystifying visual arts and bringing it within the reach of the common man. The […]
It’s Not Trash Anymore
Next time you look at a damaged CD, a mangled video tape or even an obsolete walkman, show some respect. Or at least, that is what NID alumnus and artist Haribaabu Naatesan will compel you to do, especially after you have been to his latest art outing at Art Positive in New Delhi. Electronic waste […]
Endless Journey
Every artist spends a lifetime pursuing immortality through his art. Very few, however, in the face of imminent death, craft a language that is full of hope, courage and dignity. Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, whose 150th birth anniversary the country celebrates this year, was one such artist who penned 15 hauntingly serene poems during the […]
Abstract Frames
When a gallery moves out of its premises – to host a show at an external venue – for the first time in 56 years – one knows for sure that the show has to be something rare and important. Kumar Gallery, which is one of the oldest galleries in the city having started in […]
Layers Of Reality
When Khoj Studios, an NGO located in Delhi’s Khirkee Village, announced a day long workshop at their premises to introduce the concept of ‘augmented reality’ in art, and requested the participants to carry their own smart phones, the first reaction was of confusion. Not because one didn’t own the gadget, but for the fact that […]
Art Beat: Fellowships Aplenty
While the Indian art industry continues to expand, with hundreds of artists and scores of galleries making their debut every year, some organisations are also facilitating an important behind-the-scene action. By providing scholarships and giving grants to emerging artists, the intent is to develop a holistic art market with not just commerce, but also inspiration […]
Art Beat: Let Them Play
Kanchi, Chicklet, Son Pari, Parachute, Pitcher, Gol Chakker, Chunniwala, Mickey Mouse…wondering why we are rambling about these unrelated words? Well, these are just a few names out of the 40 odd games that children of Khirkee village – a semi-urban area of South Delhi – have invented as part of outdoor playing. Nothing unique about this, […]
Delhi Sips From The Blue Mug
When a play has been declared ‘Housefull’ two weeks before it is being staged, you know its fame has preceded it. I would not have got to watch Atul Kumar’s The Blue Mug either (The last ticketed show is today at Delhi’s Kamani Auditorium), if it had not been for the intervention of a common friend […]
At Home In India
Typically, they arrive after finishing high school or college. But their aim is not to do the typical backpacker trail of visiting Jaipur and Agra and return with a bagful of pictures and stories about Indian exotica. Foreign students, who come into India on work visas as part of global youth organisation AIESEC’s international […]