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Review
Celebration, discussion and interrogation
Pranamita Borgohain gives an overview of the 10th anniversary celebrations of the art journal, Art&Deal that began in New Delhi in November with a seminar that focussed attention on the role of art writing and critical text in contemporary art practices.
Art & Deal, the quarterly art magazine from New Delhi, that has successfully completed ten years of publishing is celebrating it with an array of events held in the city. The events started in November with a day-long seminar on ‘Role of Critical Text in Contemporary Art Practice,’ at the Kaustubh Auditorium, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi. Ashok Vajpeyi, Chairman of the Lalit Kala Akademi lit the traditional lamp, marking the beginning of the seminar and the launch of Art & Deal’s 30th Issue, focussing on Women Art.
Speaking about art writing and art criticism in his inaugural address, Vajpeyi said the early 70’s -80’s controversy brought some liveliness which has disappeared at present. Showing his concern for the need of an institutional frame work in it and how curation is replacing criticism, he said that curation is also a critical activity. At times it pierces the domain of criticism. Vajpeyi pointed out that critics are somewhere moving away from the politics of Art. “I don’t know whether I am correct or not but they need to come up and stand to say a work of art as work of art,” Vajpeyi said citing the example of M.F.Hussain’s work.
Senior art historian and writer Amit Mukhopadhayay, who chaired the first session presented a paper on ‘Expectations From, And Role of an Art Magazine.’ He focussed upon the art writings in other regional languages that lack proper documentation. Writer and scholar Keshav Malik gave a historical perspective on art criticism in India in the first session. The next speaker was Shivaji Panikar who had changed his topic to ‘Success and Failure of Critical Art History/ New Art History: MSU and Gujarat Experiences,’ from the original one, ‘The Journey of a New Art History.’ Paniker spoke about the gloom that stretched over M.S.University on May 9, 2007 when the controversy over the Chandramohan paintings broke out. Sunil Gupta, the Indian-born Canadian artist and photographer spoke about ‘Looking at Photographs, Looking for a History?’ Nanak Ganguly gave a provocative paper on the ‘Pedagogic Canonization of Our Art Spaces,’ where we divide Indian art into Hindu art, Jain art, Buddhist art and Islam art. He asked, “If for a Hindu ruler we say Hindu art, a Muslim ruler say Islamic art then why we don’t call modern art history as Christian art history ?”
The second session was chaired by H.A Anil Kumar and started with the paper of Rajashree Biswal, an M.Phil. student of Arts & Aesthetics, Jawaharlal Nehru University on the show curated by her “Towards a new Viewership/participation of Public” and its experience. The show happened at Bhubaneshwar, Orissa in January, 2009 which was presented by Bakul Foundation, an NGO in Bhubaneshwar and supported by Art & Deal, New Delhi. The main idea of her show was to generate an awareness and reorganisation of contemporary art among the general public of Orissa. She showed a small video clip of the programme which was an interactive session with the audience participation. The participants and viewers included school children and a non elite crowd unlike metros.
The final session was chaired by Shukla Sawant and the speakers were Gopal Mirchandani and Aditya Srinivas. Gopal gave a long descriptive paper on art market, tracing its history and background in India along with market segments, types, Auction Houses, art consumption and valuation. He also talked about the art boom and blast period of 2005-07 and new discoveries of market like antiquity and folk art. Adiyta spoke on ‘New Media Art as Rethinking the History of New Media art practices in India,’ mapping visualities. Finally H.A Anil Kumar gave his paper on ‘Art History and Visual Culture.’ The session concluded with questions and discussions on the papers presented.
The next day was held the screening of documentary films including ‘Katha Kuha,’ (on Saura Tribal Art), ‘Birth of Modernism,’ (on Kalighat Paintings) and the documentary film ‘Arpana Caur,’ at the International Centre (IIC) Auditorium, New Delhi. Keshav Malik was felicitated on the occasion, for his contribution to contemporary art as a writer and theorist with Jawhar Sircar, Secretary, Ministry of Culture, making the felicitatory address.
The next session held on the third day, focussed on ‘The role of the Market in Art Consumption and Production.’ A rapid one to one session with questions, discussions and interrogation, this session had often deviated from the proposed topic to move more towards curation and criticism. The session started with the presentation by Amit Mukhopadhyay on the nexus between artist- critic & curator, where it leads and where can lead us. He said that today’s exhibition itself was an art work and spoke about the new image of ‘curator’ in today’s art scenario. Rahul Bhattacharya, the new managing editor of Art & Deal said that while going through the previous issues of the magazine he had found several substantial writings and reports before 2003-04, which was absent when the market became high.
Sandhya Bordewekar spoke about the new art patronage developed in Baroda over the past few decades effecting the art quality and price. Some corporates or industrialists are ready to give their vacant flats or unused industrial spaces to the struggling artists either to stay or to practice art, asking them for their works in return. The barter may be in other forms also, may be as a tour package.
The discussion went livelier when it came to critical art writing which is missing today. The general opinion seemed to be that the art writing of today have become decorative and mostly all are just appreciating, with hardly any one to critique, whether in magazines, newspapers or catalogues. Gallerist Sharan Apparao pointed out that they should exclude the galleries and exhibition catalogues from the critical writings and leave it to magazines and newspapers.
While sitting and listening there I was trying to figure out myself where do I place myself when all were talking about the curator or critic, art historian or art critic. While writing this, I am thinking how to write about it as good or bad, to criticise or to appreciate. Whereas, I would preclude myself from all of them and just present a report of the event. I take it as a celebration, a get-together and a discussion which is much needed to rethink about our roles and ideals. However I would appreciate the effort of Art & Deal to make its presence for ten long years and its journey from a mere tabloid to an absolute form and also for making this event which gave an opportunity to the artists, writers and galleries to meet and know each other.
A musical evening of Rock and Folk Band was held on November 28, 2009 at the Amphi Theatre, India Habiat Centre, New Delhi to mark the celebrations. A preview of ‘We Are Here Now -Take One,’ the show organised to mark the anniversary celebrations, will be held at Art Konsult Gallery, New Delhi on December 18, 2009.
(Pranamita Borgohain, an art historian and freelance writer based in Delhi who is pursuing her M.Phil. in Visual Studies from Arts & Aesthetics, JNU, New Delhi.email id- pranamitab@gmail.com.)
