Cubist Architecture, Temporary Custodians-II, Artist-Mentor show and more

NEWS



Art To Dye for -  Batik

(batik painting)

The Nehru Centre Art Gallery, Mumbai, presents a show of works by artist Suhaas Pole Manjrekar. Suhaas specializes in the art of batik prints, and this show displays some of her exquisite works in a show titled ‘Art to Dye for’.

The ancient art of batik that dates back to the 4th century comes alive in an art show. Batik’s origins can be traced back to ancient Egypt and Asia, where the art was practiced in the 5th and 6th centuries. Over the years, this wax-resist fabric dyeing technique has evolved into a common art form. It is deeply respected till date because the batik artist must work very intimately and swiftly. Also, the final design and shading must be conceived before the painting has begun. 

Sir JJ School of Art alumna Suhaas Pole Manjrekar has been practicing and creating batik art for 40 years. Her works are in the collections of dignitaries like A PJ Abdul Kalam . Her show in Mumbai features the most traditional designs of batik — that of village women, birds, animals, and Hindu festivals. 

The show is on view at the  A C Art Gallery of Nehru Centre, Worli, till the 10th of June 2013.



The End to End show - Temporary Custodians II

(a painting by Eleena Banik)

Apparao Galleries, Chennai, presents a group show titled, ‘End to End’ which is the second edition to their earlier show, Temporary Custodians - II. The show explores the nature of classical art to the contemporary art works which have been in private collections of various art collectors and art buyers. The works vary in range with reference to the time they were made in to the schools of adherence of the actual works.

The show is titled ‘End to End’, because it traces the chronological diversity of the works of Indian art masters and contemporary masters, and tries to bind them in a single thread of cultural and social evolution.

Some of the names, from the collections on display are, Agathe Patil, A Balasubramaniam, Dhasan, Dipti Pandey, Eleena Banik, P Gopinath, S Harsha Vardhana, John Tun Sein, P S Josh, Lalit Sharma, Laxman Shrestha, Manish Nai, Manu Parekh, Navjot, Paramjit Singh, Partho Dutta, Pradeep Nerurkar, Ram Gopal, Ram Kumar, Rathin Kanji,  Reddappa Naidu, Sakti Burman, Santanu Mitra, P R Satish, Satish Gupta, Seema Ghurayya, Senaka Senanayake,  F N Souza, Sultan Ali,  Tapan Sarkar, S G Vasudev.

The show is on view till the 20th of June 2013.

Partner a Master - Exhibition

(artwork from the Partner a Master exhibition)

The Mohile Parikh Center, Mumbai and Art1st Foundation, jointly present an exhibition of works produced by children from the year long Artist- Mentor program titled, Partner a Master. The exhibition previews on 14th June 2013 and will be on view till the 21st of June  2013 at the Coomaraswamy Hall, at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mumbai.

The program, Partner a Master was conceived as an annual project to inform, and educate children to the artists studios, and to trigger their imaginations. This project emphasizes on visual literacy, collective learning and the role of art in cognitive and creative processes. Contemporary artists and children work together on projects through workshops opening out the art making processes through innovative approaches.The program creates an interactive environment for learning and makes the children aware of art in the context of cultural identity, family, community and nationality.

Some of the artists who were mentors for the program were, Mumbai based Archana Hande, Tushar Joag, Shilpa Gupta, Justin Ponmany, Reena Kallat, Sharmila Samant, Prajakta Potnis and Delhi based, Arunkumar HG, Asim Waqif, Saba Hasan, Rohini Devasher, Vibha Galhotra, Jagannath Panda, Phaneendra Nath Chaturvedi.

This exhibition is the outcome of the workshops held between August 2012 and January 2013. On view are art works of 30 children from schools in Mumbai and Delhi .

Abundant ‘Harvest’ of Art

(a painting by Prafulla Dahanukar)

The Hirji Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai presents a group show of contemporary masters and some upcoming artists in a show titled ,‘Harvest’. 

The show displays a variety of art works by eminent artists in the art scene today in the form of paintings and sculptures. The works traverse a vast number of styles and visual languages in vibrant colours and variety of mediums.

Some of the participating artists are Prafulla Dahanukar, Vasant Sonavani, Yashwant Shirwadkar, Vasudev Kamath, Paul Koli, Ravindra Salve, Nirmala Luckienarian, Vivek Das, Prakash Bhise, Priti Bawa, Shashikant Gorkhe and several other artists.

The show is on view from the 10th of June to the 16th of June 2013.


(News Reports by Sushma Sabnis)

FEATURE

When Art and Architecture Unite 

( Bombay art Society new premises)

Howard Roark of The Fountainhead would probably not like it, but then he doesn’t live in Mumbai with its penchant for unique architecture and lack of space. The building in question of course, is the Bombay Art Society’s new three storey cubist office and gallery space. 

This unique cubist structure erected at Bandra Reclamation resembles nothing of the surrounding landscape and stands out striking and proud. Its innovative architect Sanjay Puri says ‘“Lot of people thought it [the design] was weird, but the Bombay Art Society loved it from the first sketch,”

The Bombay Art Society was founded in 1888, but never had a building of its own. It has been operating out of the Jehangir Art Gallery building at Kalaghoda. The annual art exhibitions of Bombay Art Society has seen works of great Indian masters like S H Raza, K H Ara, M F Hussain among many others.

Prafulla Dahanukar, artist and the president of the Bombay Art Society expressed eagerness to move to their new premises. She said the plans for moving have been delayed due to the monsoons and that the premises will be moved into only in September 2013, after a spectacular inaugural and opening.

The building has taken nine years to be constructed, and these delays have been due to the odd structures to be worked upon and municipal permissions required to build them.

Puri, the architect, stated that the building has been built on a small 1300 sq ft plot, and hence the challenge has been more about its unique needs and maintaining them than design considerations or style.The building has galleries, auditoriums and offices, and all of this has to be fitted into the three storey, non linear floating columned glass paneled structure. Hence the fluidity of the design so that it can look bigger in space.

The building’s walls are made of wire mesh and concrete, while the main entrance leads to three art gallery spaces, auditorium, cafeteria and open work space for artists. A separate entrance leads to the four level office block which is to be rented out. The building has a cantilevered plywood staircase that runs along the walls and unobtrusive air-conditioning micro-vents.

The Bombay Art Society building, by being artistic and functional, heralds a new age in art and architecture coming together to change the skyline of Mumbai.

(By Sushma Sabnis)