Down Memory Lane

It8217;s not everyday that time finds a match in the human mind. However, when ideas do come from the grey cells of the likes of Paritosh Sen, time is mostly likely to bow out.

Market mania and smart publicity mechanisms have rung the knell for old-school art groups

It8217;s not everyday that time finds a match in the human mind. However, when ideas do come from the grey cells of the likes of Paritosh Sen, time is mostly likely to bow out. Exactly what happened after Sen formed the Calcutta Group in 1943 in a bid to get modernism its due in the Indian art milieu steeped in traditional, tried and tested methods of expression. Standing beside him in his endeavour were sculptor Pradosh Das Gupta, painters Gopal Ghose, Nirode Mazumder and Zainul Abedin. The rest, to use a clicheacute;, is history. However, half a century later, art groups, which once used to top the list of priorities of artists like Sen, seem to have fallen out of favour with most contemporary artists.

Art galleries, online art clubs, virtual auctions 8211; with business, visibility and feedback just a click of the mouse away, the brainstorming of art groups evidently have fallen out of step with time. 8220;Things are managed with such clinical precision by public relations firms and art galleries these days. The sort of elaborate planning and debating we used to have might seem outmoded in comparison,8221; says artist Jogen Chowdhury who is still a member of the nearly 40-year-old Calcutta Painters. The likes of Chowdhury misses the discussions and debates which used to be the life force of such groups, but artists today don8217;t share the extreme enthusiasm.

The growing number of artists wanting a slice of the art boom probably find it more sensible to market their works individually with results. 8220;It has now become easy to break into the scene with galleries mushrooming across the country and the city. Therefore there8217;s too much competition around,8221; says painter Wasim Kapoor. Kapoor continues to be a part of the Calcutta Painters like Ganesh Haloi who is a member of the Society of Contemporary Artists. 8220;There is a group unity that still holds us together,8221; says Haloi. Not a case with young painters who would prefer to make statements individually, than establish emerging trends and styles like their predecessors.

While the groups in past was a platform for idea exchange, it also grew in size as artists found it difficult to find a toe-hold in the then restricted market for art all by themselves. 8220;We joined hands because it was important to create a market for what we did as a passion. In contrast, art is almost a sophisticated industry in the country now,8221; says Haloi. Galleries, exhibits, publicity, reviews and purchase 8211; all professionally managed like for most other commodities 8211; have therefore reduced art groups to just their intellectual relevance.

Thought too, seems to have run out of food, as artists say veterans have alienated themselves increasingly. 8220;Previously most fields of culture 8211; art, films, music, literature 8211; used to admit to a symbiotic relationship because their business value was still in a nascent stage unlike today,8221; says artist Suvaprasanna. So, growth needed association and that8217;s how the groups worked. 8220;Experimentation, which often is reduced to gimmicks by amateurs, sells today. In the past, breaking out of a mould needed a concerted effort,8221; says artist Isha Mohammad.

8220;I wouldn8217;t say people today don8217;t feel for art, as an entity and not a commodity, like they used to before,8221; says Haloi. But it is evident that limelight, which finds its way to the boy-next-door even through reality shows, is addictive. 8220;Art has turned into a giant market now. You can8217;t blame people, if they run after fame and profits by themselves,8221; says Kapoor.