Chandigarh College of Art- A quiet surprise

The college is a modest red brick building, with its entrance mounted by a gigantic stone sculpture of a butterfly on the right. The butterfly sculpture was unhindered by any embellishments or ornamental designs. It invited the viewer to travel along its long broad edges and planes. Its looming appearance was softened by thebushes and the trees that hovered over it. Further ahead, lay a neat broad pathway with a sprinkling of sculptures on either side. The artworks were unnamed and undated. Presumably, the students had created them during their formative years in training. Some works were abstract while figurative sculpture dominated most of the spots. A great deal of attention, passion and love had gone into these sculptures. For the nth time, I wished I knew the names of those anonymous masters and little details like the year of graduation or their main major. It was a sunny and quiet day. An ideal day to spend time admiring the intricacies of these beautifully crafted works and the layout of the grounds as well. Like everything else in the city, the grounds had been meticulously planned and well laid out. Spaces were utilized and no jarring elements stuck out like sore thumbs. I left the place, with deep respect and admiration for the college and its unknown artists. Yet I wondered about them and whether they still continued to pursue their passions. Perhaps they did. Perhaps they did not. I will never know….

                                   

Satish Gupta and his new Ganesha sculpture, Ashrafi at DLF Emporio, New Delhi

26^th September marked the launch of artist Satish Gupta’s new Ganesha Sculpture at the DLF Emporio Mall, Vasant Kunj. After a span of a good three years, comes his latest work. Stepping inside the beautiful and stylish mall which boasts of names like labels like Dior, Armani, a large coin-like sculpture of Ganesha greets you with His plate of golden laddoos and His companion, the Mouse at the entrance. It is mounted on a wooden plank with a small commentary about his work and the driving force behind it for interested onlookers. On the other side of the sculpture, adorns another figure, the Goddess Lakshmi.

            As we sit at Cha Shi restaurant, tucking in delicious eats, we talk about his work and his inspirations. I ask him what makes him drawn to creating large-scale sculptures, which are sometimes as tall as twenty three feet, Gupta explains that he wants the viewer to have the experiential feel of the work and feel awed by it. It draws from his trips to the Ellora caves in Aurangabad. Since then, he has always wanted to create art larger than life. For this sole reason, he prefers outdoor spaces to place his work rather than in the museum.

             I ask him about how long he works on these massive sculptures and whether he does them by himself. Gupta, with a twinkle in his eyes, smiles and replies, “ I will be spending an entire lifetime doing just one scultpture!” The artist has five to twenty assistants helping him in creating these projects, especially the welding part of it as he works largely in copper. Most of them take four to five months to complete while the current work was complete in two months on a tight schedule.

            The inspiration behind his new work dates back to his childhood days when his mother used to hand out gold and silver coins and narrate mythological stories to the children. The coins were part of an heirloom set and had been passed down from generation to generation. The artist has a few of them with him and treasures them deeply.

            The Ganesha sculpture is infused with nostalgia and symbolism. The artist rues the loss of cultural values and the break up of the family system in the metropolis. The artwork is also a comment on the materialistic values of our times. For Gupta, it is about the play of opposites- rich vs poor et al. Yet he is optimistic about the day when everything and everybody has an important role as equals to play in the game that is called Life.

            Satish Gupta’s upcoming March show in 2015 at the DLF Emporio will showcase his work in every medium-be it ceramics, prints, paintings and sculptures. When I try to elicit his favourite medium, he laughs and replies with twinkling eyes, “ They are all equal!”

#SatishGupta #Ashrafi #Sculpture #DLFEmporio 

Mad Paule’ and Photography Today

Mad Paule’ and Photography Today

The question whether photography is art has oft been heavily debated and for a good one hundred and eighty two years now. John Berger(1972), an art critic and artist, pointed out that “by their nature, photographs have little or no property value because they have no rarity value. The very principle of photography is that the resulting image is not unique, but on the contrary infinitely reproducible.” Yet why has the photograph persisted and continued into the 21^st century? What makes it special and most enduring of all mediums? Importantly, can it considered to be an art form? 

        Today, with the digital innovations, anyone can take a photo with their smartphone or Iphone and become an “artist”. New software programs like Photoshop CS (2003) have transformed the way we look at photographs. Artists like Jeff Wall, Mathew Brandt have given photography a new name and edge. As Patrick Coyne, editor, cautions, “it's about the master using the tools, not just the tools available.”

            Keeping these observations and pointers in mind, coming across a young rising and talented photographer, Mad Paule’ and his beautiful photographs is truly a delight. He makes no compromises in his work and focuses on the spontaneity of the moment. Inspired by the Japanese aesthetics, wabi-sabi or “things rotting away gracefully with time”, he believes in keeping the subject spontaneous and fresh. He evades clichés in his work “especially when I am documenting something, I absolutely detest the blank “made up” expression” and “ like my pictures to be as close to the character.”

            Black and white is his forte. He works in colour too but feels that they are trickier to manipulate. Depending on the theme, he decides his colour choices in advance, as “thanks to the RAW format, I can bring back the colors into my photographs even if I click them in black and white.”

            Mad Paule’ enjoys manipulating his images and superimposing two different pictures in the same frame. They evoke various emotions such as nostalgia, sadness, mystery or deep turbulences that are like ripples across still waters. As the artist explains, he draws from his personal experiences and the world around him. He is troubled by the indifference and callousness he encounters in the surroundings. In his earlier years, he was deeply influenced by novelist Charles Dickens and especially identifies with his book, “Hard Times”. He also follows the works of photographers Gottfried Helnwein and Nobuyoshi Araki closely.

 Paule’’s interests lie in the human figure and its intricacies. He is presently working on the figure as an abstraction. Street photography engages him equally for it is “challenging, time consuming and tests your patience and you may come back frustrated after a full day walk or sometimes even after a month.” His photo blog is full of nature, moments and people who are important to him. He treats it like a sketchbook from where he can draw his sources for a new shoot or idea.

            Yet Mad Paule’, as he likes to be known by, is in a tearing hurry. He wants to experiment in various media (illustration, installations) and get people to “wear” his art. He signs off by cautioning that photographing in public places can be difficult and offers gems of advice- “Nobody can predict anything….. The key is to give it some time and wait the way you wait for a crocodile to hunt. Go out a lot, talk to more and more people, have an approachable attitude, learn to take NO politely. If you act suspicious and self-conscious, it will not only show in the picture but also in the attitude of people toward you.”

          At present, Paule’ plans to do a photo exhibition tentatively titled Mad Paule’ .It will be largely a series of collaborations between him and his circle of artist friends. Till then, if you want to see more of his work, especially his ongoing series, visit his website www.madpaule.co

References and quotes

1)    http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2012/oct/19/photography-is-it-art- Photography: is it art?- Art and Design

2)    http://www.macobo.com/essays/epdf/berger_understanding_a_photograph.pdf- Understanding a photograph essay by John Berger

3)    John Berger/Ways of Seeing, Episode 1(1972) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pDE4VX_9Kk-

4)    http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/local/new-jersey/63336-ilene-dube- When is photography art?

5)    http://edition.cnn.com/2012/08/10/living/fine-art-photography-manipulation/- Art photography: When 'reality isn't good enough'

When the invisible becomes visible...

As you enter  the India Habitat Centre grounds, you are greeted with a gentle breeze, vast spaces and the soft tingling music of Naresh Kapuria's musical totem pole. The chimes are fairy-like and joyous. They invite you to travel with them on their journey, to a world of nostalgia and reminiscences. You remain rooted to the ground, lost in the music of the ages. The sculpture itself is rusted and rustic, nearly deplete of any vibrant colours. But one push to the pole, the magical sounds emerge and you are left wanting for more. A curious transformation takes place within you. You become the child once more, playing with your old Bobo doll or the eternal rocking house. The music stops and you awake as though from a dream.

       
        More gems, often unobtrusive and shying away from the glances, emerge from fountains and the corners of the institution. Their locations and the designed spaces work hand in hand, much to the delight of any urban planner or architect. The sculptures range from bronze to marble and ceramics. They tell stories about issues that are about aesthetics, life or social constructs. "Hegemony" by Ravi V(the name plate was worn so deeply that the last name could not be identified) and "Adam and Eve" by Robin David are some of the pieces worth looking at over again and again.On a day when you need to take a stroll and an urge to see good public art , go to the India Habitat Centre.

Venue:  India Habitat Centre
              Lodhi Road
              New Delhi-110003
              India

Open : Throughout the year

#Publicart #IndiaHabitatCentre #Sculpture

Experimenting with found objects...

Its an exhilarating feeling- when you feel free of all the conventions and restraints that come with doing a certain piece. No longer are you concerned about whether it looks pretty or neat but more about how you work with the material and whether it liberates you in the process. Generally I have often stayed away from cardboard or other "found" material as I often wonder about the aesthetics of the artwork and the possible diluting of the artwork's potential in the meantime. But I remember a valuable piece of advice my own teachers told me in college- try every material and try everything-big or small. Never be afraid of making mistakes or even risking the destruction of the work. These words have remained etched in my mind and I have searched for ways as how to use the materials and today I am doing just that. Enjoying the experiments...

"My friends. my friends ..whither do you go?"

What do you do when your characters get restless? Well, draw them, put them on a smooth surface and they will be dancing , scurrying and playing forever. Who says that there is no forever? I love to imagine like the little boy, Paul Irving in " Anne of Avonlea" who often talks about the "Tomorrow" and "riding into the golden sunset".  So here they come, my friends. They have their little jobs to do. Excuse them while they display their antics. Cheers!

German, French, Spanish...well never mind!

What do you do when you see beautiful illustrations in a comic book but the speech bubbles contain a unfamiliar script? Simple. Just ignore the wretched bubbles and enjoy the artwork at great length  

It sorely tries your patience and enthusiasm when you see these books. I know one feels disadvantaged when the language is essentially Martian. But the artwork itself is enough for me to forget all sorrows. Surely language has no barriers and so does comics. I firmly abide by it!