ART Attack

As me-too curators proliferate to cash in on the art boom, alarmed artists and gallery owners find themselves up against a new challenge: spotting trained professionals for the job

Artist yusuf Arakkal was recently aghast to see a painting of his8212;that of a hungry, poverty-stricken child8212;put up for display in an ornate gold frame. The exhibitors 8220;took great pride in showing it8221; but the painter could not but feel sorry for his creation. 8220;The child in rags was in stark contrast to the heavy rim around the painting. It simply nullified the impact of the work,8221; says Arakkal. nbsp;

This is just one example of what bad aesthetics can do to a good work of art. The assault on your senses can only get worse in the case of a poorly curated show for then it isn8217;t just a solitary painting that is at the receiving end, but multiple works of art mauled by unthinking design. Unfortunately, most art exhibitions today are handled by untrained people. nbsp;

8220;It8217;s fashionable to be a curator you see. All it takes to be one, according to the prevailing standards, is to be able to hang some frames together. And lo! A new curator is born. Simply disgusting,8221; says veteran critic and art enthusiast Aruna Vasudev. Osian8217;s head Neville Tuli agrees, 8220;Today the very concept of curating has been abused and anyone who puts up an exhibition calls himself a curator.8221; nbsp;

The new 8220;hot occupation8221; is an obviously spin-off of the booming Indian art market, which is on an all-time high. With an appreciable increase in the number of galleries and exhibitors in recent years, there has been a marked rise in the demand for proficient curators. 8220;Those even remotely related to art have aggressively responded to the need. But in the absence of proper training, the result has been an amateur breed of 8216;me-too8217; operators,8221; says curator Alka Pande. Or as artist Gopi Gajwani puts it, it8217;s convenient to be a curator, hence the numbers. 8220;You need to have some mettle to be an artist and a fat bank balance to be a gallerist. But all that you need in order to be a curator are good contacts,8221; he adds. nbsp;

So, what is it exactly that makes the job of a curator so challenging? Experts insist that the task is not just about picking up works at random. A curator serves as a bridge of understanding between an artist and the audience. Leading gallerist Arun Vadhera explains, 8220;It requires profound knowledge in art history, sociology, philosophy and a multitude of subjects to be a curator. The idea is to be able to process words and theories and make a sensible selection of works in sync with the theme of the exhibition. Curators have to keep the audience in mind. A group show makes the task of a curator even challenging.8221;nbsp; nbsp;

The other intricate and crucial aspect of a curator8217;s job is, of course, actually putting the show together. The works may be in consonance with the basic theme of the exhibition, but the conceptual thread should be clearly reflected and spelt out in the final display. A recent show in the Capital, says curator Alka Raghuvanshi, showcased a number of saleable artists but came across as nothing but a jumble of works. 8220;The frames didn8217;t justify the theme and even more jarring was the way they were placed,8221; she adds. Hanging paintings on the wall, according to her, 8220;is itself an art8221;. She points out, 8220;One has to take care of the theme, genre, size of the frames, materials used, height at which they are erected, lights and available space.8221; Raghuvanshi put in eight months of extensive research to put together a show for the Gulf Art Fair this March Silent dreams, voluble realities 8220;The idea was to showcase the difference between the internal and external realities. Most of it was culled from the 49 th annual show of Lalit Kala Akademi. However, the works were not enough. So I had to study works of a number of other artists to identify more names. It was challenging to look for paintings to match the theme.8221; Adds curator Madhu Jain, 8220;Literature for the exhibition, especially in case of a group show, is very crucial. One has to know the work and style of the artist to be able to help the audience relate to the show.8221;nbsp;

The present crop of curators might have ignored the said imperatives, but one thing they have surely mastered is the art of selling. More than putting up a great show, the merit of a curator today, say experts, is measured on the basis of how well they can sell an artist and how elaborate their client list is. 8220;Emerging as absolute merchandisers, curators have turned into mere dealers. Quality can be taken care of but there is no compromise on the budget,8221; says Pande. A well-curated show indirectly helps the artist sell but as culture czar Rajeev Sethi says, 8220;Good curating doesn8217;t separate aesthetics from function; it simply brings them together.8221; How many in the business today know that well enough to be able to make a difference?