In a unique interpretation, ‘RE-CLAIM / RE-CITE / RE-CYCLE’ presents art beyond the boundaries of its physical context

New Delhi: LATITUDE 28 presents RE-CLAIM / RE-CITE / RE-CYCLE, an exhibition of more than thirty works in various media like videos, digital prints, watercolours, drawings, photographs and paintings “on the concept of recycling” at Travancore Art Gallery, Travancore Palace, Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi from April 22, 2009 to April 30, 2009. The exhibition will also include recycled objects (paper bags, folders, jute bags etc.) made by Tihar inmates and a part of the proceeds from the exhibition will be given to them.

Curated by Bhavna Kakar, the show includes works by Justin Ponmany, Chitra Ganesh, Chittrovanu Majumdar, TV Santhosh, Tushar Joag, Atul Bhalla, Rajan Krishnan, Prajakta Potnis, Manjunath Kamath, Rajesh Ram, Prajjwal Choudhury, Vivek Vilasini, Prajakta Palav, Ravi Agarwal, Mansi Bhatt, Sharmila Samant, Bhagyanath C, Sajjad Ahmed and Fariba Salma Alam.

Says curator Bhavna Kakar: “This exhibition propagates not only the recycling of material things but also the recycling of cultural & spiritual values, human memories, emotions, existence and even sexuality. It is an attempt to analyze and document artistic imaginations and representations of recycling.”
For instance Sharmila Samant will display a saree installation and the photographs of installations made from Coke and Diet Coke bottle tops. Through her works, the artist interrogates the effects of globalisation on the cultural economy of India. The saree and Coca-Cola, both transcend boundaries geographically as well as culturally within India. The saree cuts across social, economic and religious mappings, while Coca-Cola remains in India an elitist product. Says the artist: “By using the different coloured Coca-Cola crowns I could create the various aspects of the saree like pallu, border and motifs. The saree took me four months; the process was performative, from collecting crowns from bars around where I lived in Amsterdam to sorting, washing and then drying them.”

Similarly, another series of photographs would be showcased by Ravi Agarwal whose pictures titled Passage Rites are based on the concept of rebirth. He says: “Recycling implies a transformation at the ‘end-of-life’ whether of objects or of living beings. However, there may be no beginning and no end-of-life. The beginning and the end exist only in human perception. Each moment, itself without beginning or end, is only a continuum in time, in eternity. As I pass from this world to another, through cremation rites, these become symbols of my ongoing journey. The cremation ghat is the place I rediscover myself.”

Atul Bhalla’s photograph titled Dhaula Kuan is yet another very interesting and dramatic compilation of shots of Delhi’s slum people trying to find a solution to their water woes.

If Atul Bhalla and Ravi Agarawal choose photography for conveying their message, then Bhagyanath C, Rajesh Ram, Rajan Krishnan and T V Santhosh opt to paint to highlight the concept of recycling. Rajan Krishnan’s paintings titled Reconnection are generated from the process of recycling of memories. Each work arbitrates the individual ability to recollect and reconnect, with geographically marked or defined, time and space. Each work is a frame of reference, a juxtaposition of known and unknown, distance and closeness, of natural and human-made, but placed between remembrance and oblivion. Explains the artist: “Every mark seen in the present is a memoir of the past. Every moment one is engaged in a process of recycling memory in order to connect and identify with the world around. The loss of memories is equal to the loss of the self, of the essential core of being. Hence, the ability to recollect becomes critical, both for the individual, and for a society.” But contrary to the idea of human emotions are T V Santhosh’s watercolours which deal with images resulting from re-using a series of clarifications and deliberations. His imagery is driven impassively, he even calls them ‘rational paintings’ and not expressive of the personal state of mind.

Moving on to the genre of installations, Prajjwal Choudhury makes a concrete mixer with matchboxes. The mixer looks similar to those used at construction sites. He says: “There will be 2000 match boxes placed inside the mixer which will be falling on a moving steel plate. All the match boxes will be accumulated together and once the mixer is empty they will put back into the mixer by vacuum process so the process of recycling begins.” On the other hand, Prajakta Potnis’ installation consist decaying objects like dustbin with sediment of mustard seeds in a fungus-like formation. Clinical and voyeuristic, her oeuvre truly exposes the contemporary urban physical and psychological landscape where almost everything that exists is oozing decay and death but paradoxically suggesting a new revival rather than permanent disappearance. She seems to have stepped into the role of a curios kitchen scientist, when she decks up these mundane objects with ephemeral materials like bubbly pearls and mustard seeds and turns them into fantastical tools that force the viewers to reconsider the materiality of the objects and their metaphorical associations.

While, Justin Ponmany’s work comprises of swastika motif recycled in video and fibre sculpture, Artist Chitra Ganesh explores in her digital collages the concept through the medium of digital printing. She pairs text with images to uncover the social and historical exploitation of Indian female sexuality. In her work titled Under the Bed (from Tales of Amnesia), the semi-naked, sari draped Indian female torso is fetishized by the onlookers. The dismembered writhing along with the innovative speech of the traditional Amar Chitra Katha figures that the artist uses is certainly an effective way of recycling historically established and reinforced beliefs. Using the similar medium of Digital Printing is artist Sajjad Ahmed's work titled Nuclear Day-dream and The Lonely Astronaut. Explains the artist: "Events, species, geography, individuals, religion, philosophy, economics, everything is constantly in a circle, which has a common key point to start and end. All our lives, we keep on re-inventing that point. Be it a naïve infant turning in to a sophisticated astronaut or a bedside lamp sharing its visual structure with that of a nuclear mushroom cloud, the start and end point is shared as one. That’s where the life breathes." Artist Tushar Joag’s work titled Crawford Market is another noteworthy digital print inspired from Crawford Market of South Mumbai. Says the artist: “The Crawford Market which is also a heritage site is on the anvil for reconstruction. The redevelopment of the market has been mired in controversy in the recent past. I will use the architectural elements from the market to create a recycling machine that produces packaged real estate.”
Just in case you thought recycling was only about paper, check out this show!

Gallery Espace brings to Delhi a solo show of Nilima Sheikh after a gap of six years

New Delhi: Gallery Espace presents Drawing Trails; Work on paper 2008-09 by Nilima Sheikh, a solo exhibition of 16 large works (tempera on sanganer paper) and 15 book illustrations by veteran artist Nilima Sheikh. The exhibition comes after a gap of six years at Gallery Espace, 16, Community Centre, New Friends Colony from April 17, 2009 to May 30, 2009. The exhibition will also be accompanied with a well documented catalogue with a comprehensive essay by Baroda-based scholar Deeptha Achar.
Born in New Delhi in 1945, Nilima Sheikh studied History at Delhi University (1962-65) and Painting at Faculty of Fine Arts, Baroda (1965-71) where she taught painting between 1977 and 1981.

In the current show, in her characteristic style, which engages the contemporary through a careful positioning of diverse techniques and histories, Nilima’s works engage with violence, trauma and grief in the lives of ordinary people in troubled regions, using the mediation of the written word. Her imagined geographies set up a play between the fantastic and the real in a way that allows the emotional landscape of the remembering self to emerge. While exploring the theme of community suffering in the face of sectarian violence and state brutality, her language works its way through art histories of visual traditions, particularly of Asia.

Many of her works are accompanied with excerpts from various articles and poems. For example her work titled A girl called Bhawan includes a poem by Nund Rishi/ Hazrat Nuruddin (1356-1440 C.E.). Similarly, My hometown carries an excerpt from the article ‘My Hometown’ by MK Raina, published in Communalism Combat, January 2005. Route 2 and Tree Planter are her works on Kashmir, with a focus on the poetry of Kashmiri poet Agha Shahid Ali.
What happened that day 3 with an excerpt from Shalimar the Clown by Salman Rushdie carries the following text in it: “What happened that day in Pachigam need not be set down here in full detail, because brutality is brutality and excess is excess and that’s all there is to it. There are things that must be looked at indirectly because they would blind you if you looked them in the face, like the fire of the sun. So, to repeat: there was no Pachigam any more. Pachigam was destroyed. Imagine it yourself. Second attempt: The village of Pachigam still existed on maps of Kashmir, but that day it ceased to exist anywhere else, except in memory. Third and final attempt: The beautiful village of Pachigam still exists.


Her illustrations in the book Moon in the pot by Gopini Karunakar showcase the story of a child’s urge to play with the moon. The story is narrated through the eyes of a small kid whose grandmother Guddawwa creates a magical world of stories for her grandson. Old Guddawwa faced a life full of struggle and hardships and her only muse were her grandchildren and other kids in the community. An extract from the book to which Nilima has added her colourful illustrations reads as follows: In the summer, one evening, it rained very heavily. That night the flame-of-the-forest tree in our backyard blossomed with stars. My little brother, Peerubabu, my little sister Vasanta, and I, went near the tree. The tree glittered bright with stars. Vasanta looked at the tree in wonder and covering her mouth with her hands exclaimed, “Oyyamma! So many stars!” I caught hold of a branch and shook it. The stars fell to the ground like flowers. We gathered the stars in our clothes and ran to Guddawwa. ( We call her Guddawwa because she has only one eye.) the stars glittered in our hair, on our clothes. We shone brightly as if we wore stars for flowers in our hair and starry shirts and frocks! Pointing to the stars on her frock, Vasanta said, “Awwa, look! So many stars!” “But they are not stars. They are fireflies”, said Guddawwa. “Fireflies! What are they, Awwa?” I asked.

Nilima’s practice has embraced various kinds of paintings, from the hand-held miniature to the construct at an architectural scale, and from conventionally hung paintings to scrolls and screens for the theatre stage. Usually blending her colours from pigment with casein or other tempera medium, there is a sensuous immediacy in poetic representations of the everyday and the supra-mundane. She uses, and indeed, often constructs the surface of her work with the stencils made by the Sanjhi artists of Mathura. Having spent almost all of her student and professional life in Baroda, she acknowledges her debt to teachers like KG Subramanyan, and to the older Santiniketan experiment which recognized the value of history in reinventing tradition and in bridging the dichotomies between craft traditions and studio practice.

Seher presents myriad moods of devotion in the 3-day Bhakti Utsav at Nehru Park

New Delhi: Seher presents Bhakti Utsav ’09 - a three day musical extravaganza of devotional music from April 03, 2009 to April 05, 2009 at the sprawling Nehru Park, Chanakyapuri from 6:30 p.m. daily. The annual festival is being held in association with Govt. of NCT Delhi, NDMC, Sahitya Kala Parishad and First City. For more information, log on to www.sehernow.in Entry to the festival is free.

There’s no doubt indeed that there is an immense devotional music talent in various nooks and corners of India. The capital will witness a musical treat with the soulful singing of the Manganiars from Barmer to Borgeet from Guwahati; from Gurbani and Sufiana Qalam to the traditional Carnatic and Sopana renditions of Kerala; from the Fakirs of Nagore to Rabindra Sangeet and Sufiana Qawwali, all being part of perhaps the most awaited musical event of the year.

The participating artists include Manjusha Patil Kulkarni (Pune), Manganiars from Barmer (Rajasthan), Jayati Ghosh (Delhi), Fakirs from the Nagore Dargah (Tamil Nadu), Harshdeep Kaur (Mumbai), Sadanam K.Harikumaran (Palakkad, Kerala), Ravi Joshi (Nainital), Parinita Goswami (Guwahati), Bhai Harjinder Singh (Srinagar Wale - Ludhiana), T.M.Krishna (Chennai), Krishnambika Nambiar (Delhi), Kaushiki Chakrabarty (Kolkata), Mewati Jogis (Alwar, Rajasthan), Paban Das Baul (Birbhum, West Bengal), Warsi Brothers (Hyderabad) and students of Gandharava Mahavidyalaya (Delhi).

Says Sanjeev Bhargava, Festival Director: “We celebrate spirituality through music in this festival and our attempt every year is to present as much variety as possible, from places one would never normally venture to. We hardly ever repeat our artistes. This year we have a line-up of 16 artistes from all over India, all specializing in various traditions, both popular and niche. This festival aims to promote harmony, tolerance and peaceful co-existence amongst citizens. Also, this is the only way to get a first-hand experience to hear Kabir, Ram Charitmanas, Baba Bulleh Shah, Thyagaraja and Amir Khusrau all at one place!”

Bhakti Utsav, the only dedicated, thematic festival in the country that showcases devotional music in its myriad forms brings a truly bewildering variety, richness and intensity of music prevalent in many parts of contemporary India. Cutting across all regions, sects, religions and faiths, one can hear from Sanskrit chants to Bhajans in folk and popular traditions, Sufiana Qawwali to Bauls and Dhrupad, verses of Kabir, Sur, Tulsi, Meera, the saint poets of the north to Carnatic devotional compositions. The Utsav promises to create a grand spectacle whereby artists, one better than the other, will present different forms of bhakti songs.

College of Art presents its 56th Annual Art Exhibition

New Delhi: College of Art, New Delhi presents its 56th Annual Art Exhibition bringing together a unique collection of over 2000 works by the students of Bachelors of Fine Arts (BFA) & Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) from March 17, 2009 to March 21, 2009 at College Of Art, Tilak Marg, New Delhi. The exhibition, a much awaited event in Delhi’s cultural calendar, showcases paintings in oil, acrylic, water color and mixed media, drawings, posters, campaigns, layouts, display/packaging design and photography, sculpture in bronze/fiber glass/cement/stone/marble, ceramics and prints in etching, lithography, silkscreen, mosaic and weaving. The exhibition will be inaugurated on March 17 by Shri Tejendra Khanna, Lt Governor, Delhi.
Says Prof. Vijayamohan, Principal, College of Art: “The Annual Art Exhibition of the College is much more than a mere display of selected works produced during the year. It showcases the thoughts, the beliefs, the passions and the struggle of the students on road to creative self- expression. It is a summary of the various skills and techniques that they learn and explore throughout the year.”
The purpose of hosting the annual exhibition is to open avenues for the upcoming artists and give them the opportunity of experience, thrill and satisfaction in organizing solo/group shows in future or become capable curators. The exhibition provides a ‘spring-board’ for the essential professional/commercial exposure in order to broaden their horizons. No wonder then, not only do the works raise myriad issues of economic and political concern but also showcase the young artists’ sensitivity to environment and society. Issues like adoption, women’s emancipation, political turmoil, societal pressures, recycling, media, education all form a vital backdrop for the works.

Keeping up with past tradition, the Painting Department has once again produced works which are visually stunning as well as creatively stimulating. For example MFA final year student Megha Katyal’s work Weaving Self shows how Indian women constantly weave their life in the threads of social norms. The gloomy-looking face of a woman is deliberately done in tapestry and acrylic on canvas to showcase the constant struggle of a woman to balance herself as an individual in the restricted social structure. On the other hand, Megha’s junior Bharti Verma, BFA IIIrd year student, paints open windows, in her work tiled Pratibimb, to let the entry of blowing winds that brighten-up old memories. The window panes signify the transparent and illusionist reflection of our past. The contrasting background and foreground explains how everything else fades out in front of our bright memories. Akhil Arora (BFA IIIrd year) in his work Chess- the world’s Game attempts to reflect on the competitive world and our struggle to move forward in life. He believes that society is like a chess board on which all human beings act with a motive. Adarsh Sinha (MFA Final year) says of his work titled Indian Proverbs: “I paint building and monuments because the structures and the linear quality fascinate me. I also use Indian proverbs in my works through visual imagery.”

The exhibition also includes prints produced through lithography, silkscreen and etching. Mural, assemblage and weaving also form part of the exhibit. These works explore the realms of both realism and abstraction. Mosaic comes under 'mural' and is a traditional technique practiced from the medieval times and is still one of the popular mediums practiced by many of the 'muralists'. One can find very intricately 'tiled' colourful images on various topics like portraits, landscapes, still-life, interesting abstracts and large narrative panels. Students have displayed printmaking mediums by combining the traditional as well as modern techniques. They have produced excellent prints of various kinds with images from life around the city in its real and imaginative terms.

Sculpture specialization students have shown their skills and learnt techniques giving emphasis to figure drawing, portraits, creative compositions etc. Their creativity has found expression in stone, wood, glass, assemblage, metal casting etc. The subjects treated by these young sculptors at times also carry social messages. For instance, MFA Final year student Rahul Visaulia’s stone sculpture titled Jebkatra is an interesting socio-political work inspired from daily life. He explains, “I come across many people while traveling daily by bus and jebkatras are one of them. These jebkatras remind me of our politicians who are perhaps no less. My sculpture is, therefore, a message that it’s important to be aware of the surroundings for a prosperous future.” While Rahul keeps himself busy raising issues of social concern, the younger Daljeet Singh, a student of BFA IInd year, loves to indulge in his own fantasies and creates his sculpture of a dream bike titled Assemblege by using waste material.

Not to be left behind, students of Applied Arts department, too, have shown their skills in product design and social campaigns, graphic design, animation and illustrations portraying various issues like old age, adoption, impact of media etc, thereby, bringing awareness amongst the masses. For example, MFA Ist year student, Madhulika Thakur’s work SBI Education Loan provides a solution for those who want to pursue higher education but can’t afford it. She says: “I just want to spread the message across that money should never act as the hurdle of your career.” On the other hand MFA IInd year student, Aditya Sarkar opts to choose the most debated topic of credibility in Electronic Media. He explains “I wish to communicate that though every channel covers the same story but it is NDTV that appeals to me the most. The difference lies in the approach with which NDTV broadcasts its news to present a perfect analysis and massive depth in the story.”
Established in 1942, College of Art has nurtured many great teachers/artists/thinkers who have had the passion and vision to work for the development of the aesthetic aspect in life of the region. Their bond with the College is so strong that they come back to share their experiences. From amongst the alumni a few names from the vast list of those who have established themselves are Anupam Sud, late Manjit Bawa, Rameshwar Broota, Shobha Broota, Jai Zharotia, Amitava Das, Paramjit Singh, Sumedh Rajendran, Ashish Bagchi, Neeraj Goswami, Paresh Maity, Subbha Ghosh and Shukla Sawant.

This exhibition will also display work done by the senior students of Fine Arts from twelve other premier Art Colleges in the country as well as a special section dedicated to paintings, drawings and photography made by IIIrd year students on their various study tours. In addition, there will also be on display works made by College of Art students for the Sankalp Utsav in the Bhagidari mela that took place in February this year.

Says Prof Vijayamohan: “We have got such a good response to the students’ work from both the commercial and artistic community during our previous shows, that we have decided to provide further specialization to our students by introducing five new full-fledged courses from this year - BFA & MFA in Printmaking; BFA & MFA in Visual Communication and BFA in Art History!”

SEHER presents SAMYUKTA - a unique jugalbandi of classical dance & music

New Delhi: Seher presents ‘Samyukta’; a three-day music & dance festival bringing together four top-notch exponents of Carnatic music and Bharatanatyam on a single platform for the first time ever. In a novel concept of collaborative effort between classical vocalist and dancers, the festival will be held at Fountain Lawns, India International Centre (IIC), 40, Max Mueller Marg, New Delhi from March 16, 2009 to March 18, 2009 from 7:00 p.m. onwards daily. The participating artistes are Leela Samson, Priyadarsini Govind, T. M. Krishna and Bombay Jayashri. Entry is free.

Sanjeev Bhargava, Founder, Seher & Festival Director, Samyukta says: “Samyukta literally means ‘coming together of two different streams’ and is based on the concept of jugalbandis. It is essentially a dialogue between Carnatic music and Bharatanatyam dance. There has been resistance from well known vocalists to accompany dancers live because they feel that there is a hierarchy involved and they don’t want to be subservient to the dancers. Through Samyukta, we are attempting to establish an exchange and sharing of talent to inherently strengthen the visual and the aural aspect of a performance and in turn giving the rasikas an unparalleled experience. Also, through this fest, we want to portray that music and dance co-exist and complement each other beautifully.”

The festival begins on March 16 with the resonant and mellifluous voice of T. M. Krishna along with Priyadarsini Govind’s strong lines of abhinaya (art of expression). A strict adherent of classicism, T. M. Krishna (Carnatic vocalist) says, “Samyukta is a wonderful concept. Till now, everyone saw dance and music as two separate things but through this festival, the audience will watch a conversation between our two forms of expressions that has never taken place before.” Echoes Priyadarsini Govind (Bharatanatyam danseuse): “The idea is to showcase the visual aspect of music and the musical aspect of the dance.” The second day (March 17) will see Leela Samson, Director of the famed institution Kalakshetra from Chennai perform in concert with Bombay Jayashri’s meditative music. Says Bombay Jayashri (Carnatic vocalist), “We have seen jugalbandis earlier between different genres of music but in this fest, T.M Krishna and I will be singing the same genre of music together on the last day.” And as for the grand finale on March 18, Delhities will be in for a treat as all the four artistes will perform together in a never-seen before symphony of music and dance.


ABOUT THE ARTISTS

BOMBAY JAYASHRI (Carnatic vocalist)– Born into a family of musicians with rich lineage and steeped in pedigree music, Bombay Jayashri represents the fourth generation of music practitioners in her family. Groomed under the guidance of legendry Lalgudi G Jayaraman and T R Balamani, Bombay Jayashri, today not only bears the torch of the Lalgudi tradition, but has also evolved a distinct style of her own. With a career extending over two decades, Jayashri is today among the most sought after Carnatic musicians. The myriad aficionados, spanning generations, that throng her concerts would bear ample testimony to this. Her repertoire of meditative music and rare poetry are best experienced through her compositions in her albums. She has also composed music for dance ballets and documentaries. In her voyage as a cultural ambassador of India’s rich heritage, Jayashri has performed extensively in India and abroad in the most prestigious foray, drawing critical acclaim wherever she performed. Her work has won her the acclaim of prestigious institutions in the form of prestigious awards such as the Sangeetha Choodamani and Nadabhooshanam. She also holds the distinction and the rare privilege of being the first Carnatic classical performer in the Opera House in Durban and the Russian Opera House in Helsinki, Finland. A skillful blend of uncompromising adherence to the core tradition of classical Carnatic music as well as a ceaseless quest for quality music in any form would best personify Bombay Jayashri.


T.M. KRISHNA (Carnatic vocalist) - Belonging to a family of music connoisseurs, T.M Krishna was exposed to the Carnatic classical music from a very early age. Taking notice of his talent, his mother put him under the tutelage of Vidwan Sri Seetharama Sharma at the tender age of six. Later he underwent special Ragam Thanam Pallavi (a special component in a Carnatic music concert) training under Sri Chengalpet Ranganthan and advanced training from Dr. Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer for more than seven years. Known for his tremendous manodharma (imagination) and sampradaya sangeetha (traditional music), T.M. Krishna’s music is marked with a very high level of aesthetics in conception and execution. His complete involvement and ability to unfold ragas with ease have left many a listener lost in his music. His renditions of vilamba kalam (slow tempo) compositions are soaked with bhakti (devotion) and bhava (emotion) are a treat to every listener. His first concert was at the Spirit of Youth series organized by the music academy of Chennai (India). Since then there has been no looking back. Traveled widely in India and abroad, he has won applause from both connoisseurs and critics; received numerous awards and titles from many leading organizations and has also released many music albums from leading audio companies.


PRIYADARSINI GOVIND (Bharatanatyam danseuse) – Bharatanatyam has always been her first love ever since she was six. She specialized in abhinaya under Padma Bhushan recipient Kalanidhi Narayanan from the age of nine and received advanced training from Guru Swamimalai K. Rajaratnam, exponent of the Vazhvoor School from the age of ten. Imbibing the best of both her teachers, she says "Dance is such a complete line with visuals, poetry, drama, music…you use your whole body to communicate all of this". Selected to dance at the prestigious Festival of India in Paris, 1985 at the age of 20, Priyadarsini has since participated in several festivals like Swarna Samaroh, Khajuraho Dance Festival, performances at extensively in Europe, besides in countries like the US, Tunisia, South Africa and even Afghanistan. She has also received numerous awards like the Vasantha Lakshmi Narasimachari award (1998), the Kalaimamani award from the Government of Tamil Nadu for artistic excellence (1998), Yuva Kala Bharathi, Madras (2000), Krishna Gana Sabha award 'Nrithya Choodamani' (2002), awarded the title of 'Singar Mani' by the Sur Singer Samsad, Bombay, K.V. Mahadevan award for excellence in dancing by Sree Bharatalya, Madras. Priyadarsini has also undergone training in Kalaripayattu, the martial art form of Kerala and Nattuvangam from Kalashetra, besides learning to sing and to perform on television.


LEELA SAMSON (Bharatanatyam danseuse) - India's most dynamic and technically brilliant dancers, an outstanding representative of Kalakshetra, Chennai, Leela Samson had joined Kalakshetra as a young child and her formative years were spent in imbibing the nuances of Bharatanatyam and related arts at the feet of celebrated gurus. Over years of independent work, her dance has metamorphosed from the best of her alma mater into an exquisite personal expression. Her personal style is unostentatious, serene and characterized by an impeccable technique that blends geometrical precision with vibrancy and an unfettered ease. Her rhythmic acumen is apparent in dance compositions containing varied and challenging percussion patterns. One of her attributes is her multi-dimensional role as a performer; a teacher and a choreographer of the style. In September 1995, she launched a group called ‘SPANDA’ to explore new areas of creativity in Bharatanatyam. Literally meaning ‘a vibration’ or pulse - Spanda presents new works, in an attempt to rediscover and reinterpret traditional vocabulary, while establishing in every work a more meaningful and intimate dialogue between dance, music and stagecraft. Her performances are popular all over India and many countries of Europe, Africa and the Americas. Among the many honours conferred on her, Leela Samson was awarded the prestigious Padmashri by the President of India in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the art of Bharatanatyam as well as the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award instituted by the apex cultural body of the Government of India.



PROGRAMME
Monday, March 16, 2009 - 7:00 p.m. onwards

T. M. Krishna (Carnatic Vocal) in concert with Priyadarsini Govind (Bharatanatyam)

Tuesday, March 17, 2009 - 7:00 p.m. onwards

Leela Samson (Bharatanatyam) in concert with Bombay Jayashri (Carnatic Vocal)

Wednesday, March 18, 2009 - 7:00 p.m. onwards


T. M. Krishna and Bombay Jayashri (Carnatic Vocal) in concert with Leela Samson and Priyadarsini Govind (Bhartanatyam)

Shri. Pranab mukherjee, external affairs minister to inaugurate South-Asian Bands Festival’09

New Delhi: Shri. Pranab Mukherjee, External Affairs Minister will inaugurate the South-Asian Bands Festival ’09 at Purana Qila, New Delhi on February 20, 2009 at 5:00 p.m. The three-day musical fest, which will culminate on February 22 with a show-stopping performance by Mumbai’s Vishal-Shekhar, is being held by Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) in collaboration with Ministry of External Affairs & SEHER. For further information log on to www.sehernow.in

Presenting various genres of music ranging from the ethnic to the fusion, the participating bands performing from India are Vishal-Shekhar (Mumbai), Jasbir Jassi (Delhi), Parikrama (Delhi), Them Clones (Delhi), Agnee Band (Pune), Shaair + Func (Mumbai), Swarathma (Bangalore) and Skinny Alley (Calcutta). The other performing bands are Aryan Band (Afghanistan), Miles (Bangladesh), Soul Sounds (Sri Lanka), Robin & The Revolution (Nepal), Trio (Maldives) and Who’s Your Daddy (Bhutan).

Says Sanjeev Bhargava, Founder, SEHER & Festival Director, South Asian Bands Festival ’09: “Aimed at the youth of the country, this musical fest brings together some of the best fusion music bands from the sub-continent. This is the festival’s second year with a top-class line-up with a rare appearance of Vishal-Shekhar from Mumbai - and it promises to be a real treat for the music lovers of the capital. While the festival showcases some of the biggest names in the Indian subcontinent, it also gives a great opportunity and exposure to some of the upcoming young bands.”

Says Pavan. K. Varma, Director General, ICCR: “It is with great pleasure that the ICCR (Indian Council for Cultural Relations) announces the Second South Asian Bands Festival ’09. This festival which had its first edition in Nov-Dec 2007 saw an immensely successful response from people across Delhi, especially the youth, and represented a new area of creative interaction. In 2009, the festival will feature young talent from across seven countries of South Asia, highlighting the fact that music knows no boundaries and can play a significant role in strengthening people to people contact. We are sure that the festival this year will be as much a success as it was last year.”


PROGRAMME

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2009: 5 P.M. ONWARDS

Them Clones (Delhi)
Agnee (Pune)
Miles (Bangladesh)
Aryan Band (Afghanistan)
Jasbir Jassi (Delhi)

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2009: 5 P.M. ONWARDS

Soul Sounds (Sri Lanka)
Skinny Alley (Calcutta)
Who’s your daddy (Bhutan)
Shaair + Func (Mumbai)
Parikrama (Delhi)

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2009: 5 P.M. ONWARDS

Trio (Maldives)
Swarathma (Bangalore)
Robin & The New Revolution (Nepal)
Vishal Shekhar (Mumbai)

Jeram Patel Springs yet another surprise with Stainless Steel in his upcoming solo show of ‘Mirror’ Sculptures

New Delhi: Art Home presents a solo exhibition of sculptures in stainless steel and wood by Vadodara-based veteran artist Jeram Patel from February 6, 2009 to February 15, 2009 at Shridharani Gallery, Triveni Kala Sangam, 205, Tansen Marg, New Delhi.

Says Asit Shah, curator and Director, Art Home: “Jeram Patel is one of the artists who had turned around the Indian art scene by formulating a new visual identity and method of abstraction in the late 1950's and 60's. One can still see the trademark lyrical quality evident in his works. His forms are entwined into each other in such a way that they look like folded limbs and have a unique composition value.”

It’s not easy to change one’s oeuvre at the age of 78 but Jeram Patel has gone ahead and done just that! While most artists of his age would rather rest on past laurels, here is the war-horse, all ready for battle, even after last year’s angioplasty! For this new exhibition of 22 large works (2x2 feet) and 10 smaller works (1x1 foot), he has over the last one year painstakingly created a series of sculptural works that hark back to his younger days of vigorous and violent blow-torch experiments. Moreover, this is the first time that he has used stainless steel with wood to create what he calls “mirrors of life”. Says Jeram Patel, “I had experimented with the blowtorch in the 1960s, and then completely gave it up because I wanted to concentrate on paper works. I am revisiting that phase because my friends persuaded me. Besides, I wanted to see if I still had it in me.”

Steel was not the first choice though. Jeram Patel started with bronze, which gave way to aluminum and finally chose steel for its “tenacity and smoothness”. His innovative approach in handling wood as a material with technological interventions such as blow torch and enamel has enabled him to create significant works at Asit Shah’s Baroda-based industrial unit.

Finding material was easy, what with mechanical engineer turned art collector Asit Shah’s resourceful help, but the process wasn’t. Jeram Patel first made a number of detailed sketches for each work, finalizing the kind of effect and form that he wanted. Asit Shah’s carpenters meanwhile prepared the layered plywood ‘boxes’ chiseling them as per the artist’s specifications. Jeram Patel then transferred his sketches on the box surface with the help of chalk-sticks. By fitting the plywood sheets on top of one another, he has burnt some part of the ‘amalgamated’ wood, and literally nailed it here and there, adding some colours and fevicol also in some areas. The burnt out parts looks engraved and the un-burnt surfaces of the wood creates an enchanting, contrasting environ on the pictorial space. The burnt out areas in these works are marked with lines as well.

Once the work was done, the entire box was covered with stainless sheets and where they neared edges of the gouged out form, the profiling was done in such a way that the metal merged with the wood. By increasing the thickness of the works considerably, the works not only gives a more distinctly sculpturesque look but they also look stunning with the smooth, reflective silver-grey of the steel contrasting dramatically with the coarser textures and scarred grains of the exposed blow-torched plywood, with several shades of brown layers. One can see one’s reflection, slightly distorted but shining back from the smooth stainless steel plates that cover the wood-based work exposing the gouged out abstract forms.

Steel may be new to the soft-spoken and versatile artist, but abstraction is certainly not. Born in 1930 at Sojitra, Kaira district of Gujarat, Jeram Patel’s abstract work in black and grey have always made strong gestural statements with expressionistic overtones. Living and working in Vadodara since the time he studied drawing and painting at Sir JJ School of Art, Mumbai and then typography and publicity design at the Central School of Arts and Craft in London, abstraction remains his signature style.

His canvases, paper works and sculptures contain floating black masses in consolidated bodies that seem to hang weightlessly amidst supernatural forces. The forms they acquire loom large but never overwhelming over the white space of the paper or canvas on which he paints, or the wood he sculpts, so thoughtfully does he condense the mass into a definable shape. The raw energy of the concentrated form appears ready to burst and explode any moment. There are other occasional hints of transparent colours - green or yellow or blue adding to the work’s visual impact. “I wanted to add an extra element that will give a tactile feel to my works, in addition to the blow-torch gouging and painting. So when Asit Shah suggested mirror-polished stainless steel that had an additional component of reflection, I decided to give it a try,” says the veteran artist.

As against Jeram Patel’s 1960s experiments with creating paintings that used neither canvas nor paint, or paper and pen, this time he utilizes a sculptor’s medium like wood and tools such as chisels, cutters and the blow-torch, but still his present work retains to have a certain dream-like quality. The abstract forms appear to be amoeba-like forms swimming, swirling, throbbing and floating in space, transcending the act of violence that created them. Some works mounted here have motif-like forms, which have appeared in Jeram Patel’s work for the first time - forms akin to the form of a bird, an arrow, half-moon, a flower, a plate, lips, butterfly and serpent to name a few. One is also reminded of mountainous ranges and a river flowing through them. The winding and unwinding paths, the zig-zag lines, gullies with round engraved forms, surrounded by the shiny steel-sheets also create an enchanting landscape. Jeram Patel’s brush strokes of coiled movements, serpentine, reptilian postures hint at calligraphic and primordial settings. His strokes are energized and have upward surges, similar to the energy of Ramkinkar Baij’s sculptures. It is this energy which holds the form together; the tension preventing it from falling apart. The feeling that each work is inundated with several engraved forms (bearing dozens of lines) and is marked with tinges of orange, mustard, purple, is overpowering in its simplicity, and this becomes the hallmark of these creations. The works are simple, direct, in their bare minimum entities, yet are multifarious in their visual appeal and intent. His preoccupation with black and white drawings, done in small and large format for almost four decades, has also perhaps got itself sculpted, in these works, with a fresh vibrancy.

And as Jeram Patel pauses and waits for the viewers’ response when the show opens in February in Delhi, he is already thinking of his next project. “The new work will be 4 to 4.5 inches thick and maybe I’ll also use colour,” he says with a twinkle in his eye, ‘but once this show is over in February, I might take a holiday before beginning work on that project!”

ABOUT THE ARTIST:

A founder member of the much talked about rebellious group called GROUP 1890, he is one of the revolutionary artists of post colonial India, acknowledged for his salutary influence on approaching art through abstraction and as an institution builder, who alongside NS Bendre and Sankho Chowdhuri set up the Baroda School of Art, where he taught until recently. Representing India at the Tokyo Biennale of 1963, the Sao Paulo Biennale of 1963, the Third World Biennale at Baghdad in 1980 and the Festival of India, London, in 1982, his works are featured in many prestigious collections including those at the National Gallery of Modern Art, Lalit Kala Akademi, Dhoomimal Gallery (New Delhi), Museum of Chennai Art (Baghdad), Chandigarh University, Society of India, Museum of Fine Arts (Bhopal). He has also been associated with various organizations including the Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, the Gujarat State Lalit Kala Akademi, the Royal Society of Arts, London, the School of Architecture, Ahmedabad and the Weavers' Service Centre, All-India Handloom Board, New Delhi. A recipient of the National Award from the Lalit Kala Akademi in 1957, 1963, 1973 and 1984 and National Award for Design in 1976, he has also won a silver medal from the Bombay Art Society in 1960. In 1994 he was awarded Emeritus Fellowship from the government of India.