Print Off the Old Block

Chennai and Thiruvananthapuram, in August.

Kashinath8217;s revivalist movement was preceded, of course, by the founding of the mother ship at Mumbai8217;s J J School of Art. One-time dean, 75-year-old Vasant Parab recalls how the etching press was discovered. 8216;8216;It was 1952 and I was assistant lecturer, when Y K Shukla became my guru. He was the pioneer of the print movement in Mumbai,8217;8217; says Parab.

Shukla found an old printing press in the school8217;s godown and started evening classes. Fifty years later, the graphics department is flourishing under the tutelage of Paul Koli.

However, the printmaking university studio where artists share materials is difficult to duplicate after one graduates. Tamal Mitra remembers making his last print at the Kanoria Centre in Ahmedabad five years ago. 8216;8216;I8217;ve stopped making etchings. Linocut is the only easy method I can practise,8217;8217; says Mitra.

Meanwhile, Delhi, known for printmakers8217; associations like Ghadi, has a new champion art aficionado, Aditi Modi. A show curated by Rattnotma Sengupta Graphics8212;Today and Tomorrow8212; on till July 31, at Habiart Foundation, in the Habitat Centre, is just one of her bids to revive the spirit of printmaking.

8216;8216;The intention behind this show is to educate the public and create a taste for printmaking,8217;8217; says Modi whose future plans involve a venture with Mumbai artists. The show features 15 graphic artists including Anupam Sud, Abijit Roy, Bulbul Sharma, Yashpal Singh and Kanchan Chandar. Each artist displays two prints. One highlights technical prowess, while the other maps their stylistic growth through the medium.

8216;8216;Buyers often complain of a print not being 8216;original8217; since there are more than one print. If an artist comes out with limited editions, the buyer can still feel he8217;s getting his money8217;s worth,8217;8217; reasons Modi.

Though it8217;s not always that clear cut. Mumbai-based Milind Limbekar reveals, 8216;8216;Not all artists take responsibility for their limited editions. I know of many who make several prints and spread them across various galleries. Then the uniqueness of a creation is lost.8217;8217;

Printmaking has its own losses, too. Kulkarni, who bought her own litho press from visiting lecturer Roy Delgarno, had to give up her stint of creativity with it due to a health problem. 8216;8216;First it was my hand and then my back. The doctor said I shouldn8217;t lift those stones anymore. However, I8217;ve never left behind the graphic sensibility. It pervades my drawing and even my installation work,8217;8217; she says.

Others have just tired of the medium. Artist Kausik Mukhopadhyay is internationally known for his installation art, but few know that he has a specialisation in graphics. Having studied at Santiniketan and Lalit Kala in 1989 and at Kanoria, Ahmedabad in 1991, Mukhopadhyay found he was quite 8216;disillusioned8217; with the medium.

8216;8216;The problem is that there8217;s far too much emphasis on technicality. No one pays attention to content. All they talk of is how to get a good aquatint. I wasn8217;t satisfied with the image, so I moved away from printmaking,8217;8217; he says.

Which is why one wonders if printmaking remains one of the more affordable yet under utilised forms of art.