Moods of a metropolis
The younger artists today are contending with post-globalised urbanism and all the socio-economic and political agendas embedded in this. There is a discourse of convergence on the Metropolis rather than a discourse of alterity in their works, as is clear from the recent show ‘Subliminal Metropolis’ at Laltitude 28 that displays the works of artists Shanthamani M and Preksha Tater from India and Julien Segard from France.
Contemporary jewellers
Lalique, Faberge and Tiffany reinvented the idea of decorative, taking it beyond sheer wealth and luxury to the realm of the artistic. Each piece of enamelled art they created had value that lay not in the material but its treatment.
Nature’s drama
The Israeli artist Iddo Markus has created installations of small uneven sized paintings, of landscapes set in grids resembling constellations such as Taurus; small vignettes of light and colour, for the show ‘For Want of a Nail’ at Threshold Gallery.
An age of innocence
Devadatta Padekar whose latest work is presented in an exhibition by Gallerie Ganesha concentrates on creating a beautiful composition through the play of colours, strokes and movement, and are not essentially profound or cerebral in their intent and treatment.
Beyond dhyana
A Ramachandran’s art is based on saundarya, Indian aesthetic tradition, set in the discourse of beauty. The accent remains on the beauty of form and colour derived from the interaction of the natural world with the human.
Inheriting legacy
With the death of Rajendra Dhawan in Paris recently, contemporary Indian Art lost one of its leading expat abstract artists.
Inside outside
A series of head studies by leading artists, including those of the erstwhile Progressive Artist Group such as Padamsee and Souza, constitute the Talking Heads show at Art Alive in New Delhi.
Discovery route
There is a transition from miniature painting to minimalism in the latest works by Manisha Gera Baswani in her show Hope is a Thing with Feathers that is being showcased at Gallery Espace in New Delhi. The selection on display follows a chain of thought associations starting with feathers and going through various images relating to actions such as flight moving to the colour red and ending with life.
Tribute to cities
Like many other shows Urbane Reflections — The Pleasures and the Strife at Gallery Ragini in Delhi sets out to explore the city, the lived environment inhabited by vast populations that includes artists who portray it as an emblematic city, embodying the characteristics of all cities that are changing fast.
Tactile thoughts
In its recent show entitled Tactile at Latitude 28, there is an attempt to go beyond the visual, through non conventional mediums so that other senses are also invoked while experiencing the art product. However, this is something that many other artists and shows have been exploring.