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Journalism of Courage
Santiniketan is a small place with a huge presence,quot; says art historian and artist Dipak Bhattacharyya. And although Rabindranath Tagore8217;s utopia is no longer untouched by the phenomenon of urban development, it continues to nurse its unique heritage, albeit in a more contemporary avataar. This assimilation of diverse influences, past and present, has manifested itself in the form of an exhibition titled Santiniketan: Aesthetics Redefined, put together by the Birla Academy of Arts and Culture.
Interestingly, all eight artists participating in this exhibition 8212; Pampa and Pankaj Panwar, Chandrima and Dipak Bhattacharyya, Manjari Chakravarti, Rashmi Bagchi Sarkar, Salil Sahani and Sukanya Das 8212; have chosen to live and work in Tagore8217;s land. quot;I selected them because I wanted to get the flavour of this place as it is today these works are nothing like the essential style we associate with Santiniketan. And while these artists stay there, they are not cut off from the outside world and addressthe same issues that concern urban life,quot; says Niyati Shinde of the Birla Academy, and curator of this exhibition.
Chandrima, the most well-known of the artists, describes her recent works as quot;my view of life and the worldquot;, and draws inspiration from dreams and nightmares. Her paintings reflect the bright rich colours and bold strokes that have gradually crept into Santiniketan art. quot;Chandrima weaves various intimate or personal happenings on a single canvas. The cluster of events are apparentlydisconnected but altogether create a multi-layered visual statement,quot; says Bhattacharyya.
Manjari8217;s paintings also function at a psychological level 8212; through the residue of childhood, to speak of the loss of innocence. quot;A broken doll, tattered pages of a child8217;s scribbles, a box in which I had stored carefully my treasures 8212; a few seeds, bits of tinsel, scraps of coloured cloth 8212; reminiscent of an innocent world which had harboured my hopes and dreams. Why is it then, when I look at them now, tears spring to my eyes?quot; says the artist of her present concern.
Pampa8217;s multi-layered paintings with three-dimensional quality are quot;related to visual feelings and moodsquot; and inspired by natural elements. While Rashmi8217;s works portray native pastoral scenes drawn from the life of the Santhal tribe. For Salil, painting is quot;an intimate dialoguequot;, and Dipak8217;s works are a quot;collaboration between my observation of the immediate surrounding and the vast body of work done by artists around mequot;.
Perhaps the most tellingstatement though, comes through in Sukanya8217;s works a critique on the world of advertisements. quot;The impact of advertisements on our daily life and its influences on the social, economical and cultural life of our country gradually became a serious thought process for my recent paintings,quot; she says. Sukanya believes that art for art8217;s sake has less relevance in today8217;s world. quot;She juxtaposes the unreal world of glamour and glitter against the real world of the common man, his poor condition and day to day struggle,quot; says Bhattacharyya.
Finally what emerges from this collaborative effort is a curious mix of the old and new styles and ideas. Despite sharing the same geographic space, each artist has brought along a distinctly individualistic flavour to the show. quot;They appear to have overcome the vexatious balance between legacy and exploration,quot; says Shinde.
At the Birla Academy of Art and Culture. Till Oct 30, 1998. Time: 11.00 am to 7.00 pm.
