From Mill to Gallery
‘Some books are to be tasted. Some are to be swallowed and some others are to be chewed and digested.’ Sixteenth Century philosopher Francis Bacon is absolutely right especially when you see a lot of art books published by the galleries in India. The book, ‘Amit Ambalal’ written by Gayatri Sinha, accompanying his solo show at Gallery Espace, New Delhi, you would be reminded of Bacon’s saying. The question, whether it to be swallowed, tasted or chewed and digested, comes to you immediately. I would say, this book could be tasted, swallowed or chewed and digested at the same time. Reason: it is a lucidly written account of the artist Amit Ambalal’s life. You can taste it like a taster tastes tea. You can swallow it through a cursory reading. Or you can take your time and read through and in between lines. I am sure it is going to give you a good experience.
Amit Ambalal belongs to a generation of modern artists who looks at life through/at autobiographical lens and mirror. Socio-political, cultural commentary in their works takes place in a narrative fashion and the artist remains to be a present/absent witness to all what happens around. Amit Ambalal, like many of his contemporaries namely Gulam Mohammed Sheikh, Bhupen Khakkar and so on moves from belief to skepticism and from there to satire. It is a philosophical journey, a kind of finding one’s own existence within the life in general. Amit Ambalal, born in a rich mill owning family sacrificed his business career for pursuing an artistic career, and his life has got a lot of interesting twists and turns.
Gayatri Sinha delineates the story of three generations of Ambalal family, their tribulations and success. The author also narrates how the artistic milieu of Gujarat influenced the family and also how the Nathdwara devotional paintings became a point of departure for many of the family members to become patrons of art. What I liked especially was her small narrative on Gandhiji’s entry into the Indian political scene against a backdrop of the Gujarati business men’s success in textile industry. Interestingly, whenever the Indian National Congress needed money, the leaders often fell back on the coffers of these business men. I asked myself aloud in this context, ‘Was Gandhiji’s clarion call for doing away with the mill clothes from the foreign countries a strategy to support the Gujarati textile industry?’ ‘Was Gandhiji covertly playing into the hands of the Gujarati business men?’
Anyway, our focus is not that though the point raised is interesting and thought provoking. Gayatri Sinha contextualizes Amit Ambalal’s artistic journey within the tradition of Rasiklal Rawal and Chaganlal. Also, without much theoretical burdening, she tells us directly how Amit developed his artistic interest and also how he evolved from a ‘sketcher’ to a professional painter. One incident narrated in the book is etched in my mind. It is about young Amit going to school. As his grandfather believed that he would not be alive to see his grandson’s wedding, he made arrangements to send the young Amit to school as if he were a bridegroom going to his bride’s home. So Amit went to school in horse drawn carriage with brass band and other paraphernalia accompanying the carriage. Amit recounts, ‘Even today I shudder at the memory of that event.’
The author gives some clues to have further researches on the artistic developments in Gujarat. She talks about a custom within the rich families; during the marriages the couples were given illustrated portfolios as gifts. These portfolios, if they are still preserved by families, would provide a good material for research. Gayatri Sinha’s journey through the works of Amit Ambalal is quite refreshing and this monograph definitely has long shelf life. |
