Showing posts with label Art Blog. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Art Blog. Show all posts

15 Mar 2023

Art News: Wilderness Escapades by Krish Iyer

Reconnecting with the past


Bangalore based artist Krish Iyer presents his recent suite of paintings that reimagine sculptures of Khajuraho temples, which decades ago, had set him on a path of creative expression. Iyer revisited the site recently, which is located in a densely forested region, rich in natural flora and fauna. In the temple art and architecture with its iconographic symbolism and its philosophical and spiritual moorings, Iyer has found a way to reconnect with the past, and re-envision it in his art, in a contemporary context.

Abstract painting 1 by Krish Iyer, Art Scene India
Painting by Krish Iyer

The large format paintings in ‘Wilderness Escapades’ reference these sculptures and the underlying premises, to create a spatial interplay of light, colour and texture to suggest the form, postures and gestures of the stone statues in a quasi-representational style. The artist’s interpretations are moored around the historicity of the temples, their geography - located as it is amidst forested land and wilderness, with their beauty and splendor remaining undiscovered for centuries. And, their subsequent desecration by invaders, all of which weave an intriguing narrative of mystery and mystique, of magnificence and ruin, of worldwide fame and remoteness. The art and architecture of the Khajuraho temples combined with their religious, cultural and historical significance form an intrinsic part of their allure. Numerous stories, philosophies and other intangibles lie beneath the surface of the stones, creating sagas of seduction, lure and enigma.

Krish’s canvases explore these histories, the abstracted notions of human potential, philosophies of living, corporeality of the flesh and temporality of life. The visual semantics are anchored in formal aesthetics, with defined line drawings marking the canvas, while the abstract expressionist approach at later stages lends critical layers of texture, and simultaneously recontextualizes historical content.

Abstract painting 1 by Krish Iyer, Art Scene India
Painting by Krish Iyer

The tactile surface of the works emerges from heavy textures, layers of dripping paint, and several applications of thick acrylic paint using the impasto technique. The palette knife and other tools transform the canvas, to add depth and dimension, to strip off extraneity and to emphasize salient features of the physical form. Transcendence, man and nature (re)union, the cycle of life and rebirth, and joy of living are some of the key principles that are depicted at Khajuraho temples, and it is these that Krish seeks and attempts to portray in his works. The deliberate obliteration of details in the figures, and the structurally accurate forms that replicate their defiled state, are incandescent with the ironies of transience – both natural and as outcomes of anarchist interventions.

Despite the precision of line drawings that form the basis of the works, Iyer’s methodology is essentially non-mimetic. The gradual yet decidedly gestural transformation of the painting surface as a pictorial array of subconscious thoughts and patterns rescinds identifiable characteristics and accentuates the metaphorical import.

After a successful career in commercial art, Krish has returned to painting with this solo exhibition - to pursue subjects and themes that resonate with him. A chance encounter with the Khajuraho temples almost three decades ago, stayed with him through the years and a strange yearning drew him back to them recently. This series originated from the revisit, marked by an innate desire to reconnect with nature, and to allow subconscious thoughts and emotions to surface and transform on canvas. With this exhibition, Krish attempts to break the invisible shackles that have contained his creativity all these years and to realize his inner potential.

Nalini S Malaviya
Art Critic
March, 2023                                                                                                  
 
- Catalogue text

The exhibition 'Wilderness Escapades' continues from March 20-26 at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath, Bangalore. For further details contact 9900094466. Visit Wilderness Escapades (krishiyer.in)



1 Dec 2022

Art News: India Art Festival in Bangalore

India Art Festival attracts over 30 galleries and 400 artists for its second edition in the city



The 2nd Edition of India Art Festival (IAF) in the city starting from December 08 – 11 at the Palace Ground, Kings Court, Gate No. 5, Bellary Road, has grown in scale and size this year, bringing cutting-edge contemporary art to the city, presented by over 30 Art Galleries and 400 artists, coming from 40 different cities across India, Singapore and USA.

Opening on December 08, the 2nd Bengaluru edition of IAF will bring all forms of artistic expressions in the art fair including painting, sculptures, photography, ceramics, installations, offering insights into current art trends in India and Asian diaspora.

India Art Festival, Bangalore, Image for Art Scene India
Aditiraje Bhonsle

Founded in 2011 by the publishers of Indian Contemporary Art Journal, IAF is the only art fair held annually in three metro cities and which has mounted 22 editions so far at Mumbai, New Delhi and Bengaluru.

Whether, it is a seasoned art collector, or a new art buyer who want to acquire the first piece of art, the India Art Festival with 4000 pieces of art across 100 booths, on display at the Palace Ground is a perfect place to fall in love with art. At IAF, the art collectors are spoilt for choices to choose from many mediums and styles - oil paintings, acrylics, water colour, original prints, installations, drawings in myriad styles dealing with varied subjects including landscapes, figurative, abstracts, cityscapes, seascapes, urban and rural scenarios, portraits, nudes, semi-nudes, religious art, traditional paintings, murals, warli art and many more.


The master artists displayed by the galleries include Sakti Burman, Yusuf Arakkal, Lalu Prasad Shaw, S G Vasudev, Laxman Aelay, Gurudas Shenoy, Laxma Goud, Jatin Das, Jogen Chowdhury, Manu Parekh, N S Harsha, P Gnana, Seema Kohli and many others.

India Art Festival, Bangalore, Image for Art Scene India
Yusuf Arakkal

The Artists’ Pavilion with individual booths by independent artists is so designed as to create a dialogue between the viewers and the art maker, and the artist. It also encourages dialogue between the art market and the artists directly. Here the sale and purchase of the artwork is on an open platform and the buyer or collector can approach an artist and the choices are numerous.

India Art Festival, Bangalore, Image for Art Scene India
Vinita Dasgupta
This kind of freedom is rarely possible as both the artist and the buyers benefit from this arrangement. India Art Festival Director Rajendra says, "the process of democratizing ‘art viewing and buying’ initiated twelve years ago in Mumbai sort of became a movement; the growing interest in Indian contemporary art slowly made this movement spread to New Delhi and Bengaluru covering significant length and breaths of our country."

Apart from 200 established artists exhibited by art galleries, more than 200 independent artists are displaying in the ‘Artists’ pavilion’ at the art festival. The subjects broached by the artists vary from personal experiences to intense narratives.

India Art Festival, Bangalore, Image for Art Scene India
Dhyana Das
 'Tripurasundari’, a feminine mystique of the goddess by artist Dhyana Das and Kalyani Ravishankar’s ‘Radha-Krishna’, both blend the nuances of classical paintings and contextualize them within Indian religious sensibilities. 

In another instance, artist Karthik Kamath, Sonali Surana and Tejaswi depicts embodiment of renunciation, Buddha, the enlightened one in his splendid aura with wavy hair curls & the monastic robe covering both shoulders and arranged in heavy classical folds. 

Sunitha Krishna, Smita BP, Kalyani Sinha and Tripti Pandey indulge in an artistic imagery using religious images, cultural symbols and motifs that touches the spiritual chord of the viewers.

Artists Gaurav Dagar, Jyothi Prakash and Prakash Bal Joshi beguile the viewers with their abstract composition using pure forms & colours, whereas artist Muthukrishnan Ramalingam and Rajitha Bonthala chose the middle path of semi-abstract idiom to present their visual stories.

Wildlife, animal and bird paintings is one of the oldest art forms found since ancient times in the cave art. Animal and bird art have come a long way since then in technique and imagination and occupies major part of the contemporary art space in India. Artist Isha Valentine’s symbolic deer with antlers, Priyanka Sehgal’s Sunbird, big cats and elephant by artist Apurba Das, Shakila Ananth and Sudha Anandampillai displayed in the art festival is a fusion of art elements found in Bundi style of traditional art with contemporary times.

India Art Festival, Bangalore, Image for Art Scene India
Akshata Shetty

The black and white paintings displayed in the art festival by Akshata Shetty, Beena Surana, Om Thadkar, Preeti Baliga, and Priyanka Maurya prove that the paintings need not have to be always done in striking colours to create visual splendour! Viewers are bound to be mesmerize by the unfolding visual drama of muted blacks, ash greys, dark flashes, starry whites with harsh shadows employed in the work of Om Tadkar in his galloping white stallion, whereas Priyanka Mauraya’s dreamy flowery land and symbolic portraits of all sorts by Akshata Shetty and Preeti Baliga creates powerful viewing; these paintings can go with entire range of minimalist modern décor & interior to create aesthetic ambience around living spaces. 


Since ancient times to modern times, from fertility goddess to modern-day multitasker, artists have always enjoyed exploring the subject matter of women folk in art. But when the subject is explored by female artists herself, it assumes different significance like artist Geeta Yerra, Parul Sharma and Swati Burde who are exhibiting in the art festival. 

India Art Festival, Bangalore, Image for Art Scene India
P Gnana
The figurative works by Ravi Verma and Vanita Gupta along with Atul Todi and Jayaram Krishna’s figures emerging through geometric patterns on closer look is an added in attraction for viewers. 

The notion of beautiful and sublime with sharp contrasts of light and shadow is exemplified in the landscapes by Poornima Deepak and Reema Ravindran whereas Deepshikha Bishoyi, Mridul Garg, Pooja Muthuraj, Shankari Kundu, T V Sairam and Vidhu Pillai prefers suggestive style of abstract landscape which focuses more on expressing emotion while still capturing the essence of a landscape. Seena Mani’s cityscape, Aditiraje Bhonsle, and Kasturi Dutta’s flowerscape are different genre in landscape painting in the art festival that would leave a lasting impression on the viewers. 

Among several others noticeable works by master artists, the artists pavilion present a fresh face of India Art Festival at the Garden city. India Art Festival, with mammoth art collection of all sorts of art under one roof is a one stop mega art jamboree for art enthusiasts in this week to enjoy art without getting tired in hopping around art paces in city!

The participating art galleries include Akanksha Art Gallery, Charvi Art Gallery, Green Footprint
India Art Festival, Bangalore, Image for Art Scene India
Laxman Aelay
Art Gallery, H Art Gallery, Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath, Sara Arakkal Gallerie (all Bengaluru), ArtDesh Foundation, Artvista, House of Emerge, Nitya Artists Center, Studio Pankaj Bawdekar, Studio Rustgrey, Studio3 Art Gallery, The Bombay Art Society, thecurators.art (Mumbai) , ArteHut, Eminent Art Gallery, Gallery Pioneer, Nifa Art Gallery, Gallery Vision Art (New Delhi), Pastel Tale & Uchaan (Gurgaon), Gnani Arts (Singapore), Kalabhawan (Agartala), M Narayan Studio (Pune), Pichwai by Beyond Square (Udaipur) and Subodh Fine Art Studio (California, USA) among others.


India Art Festival will be on from 08 to 11 Dec 2022 at Kings Court, Palace Ground, Gate No.5, Bellary Road, Near Mekhri Circle, Bengaluru from 11 am- 8.30pm on all days.


For further details contact: 9820737692



Excerpted from the press release


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22 Nov 2022

Reminiscences by Bharathi S

Recollections: Traveling Through Time

Bangalore based artist Bharathi S. revisits her childhood through paintings that wistfully capture joie de vivre, of carefree days, gone by. The paintings in the new series, ‘Reminiscences’ evoke flashes of vivid memory, of youthful days and simpler times. The kaleidoscopic images depict a fervent memoire tinged with nostalgia and innocence, and of those past moments that were uncluttered and unencumbered from the urgency and stresses of urban life. The works are suggestive of the rich fragrance of imagination and the joy of untroubled days, where time was slower, and perhaps it even stood still, more so, in small towns and villages, where Bharathi grew up.

Her works are akin to photographic film negatives, albeit in color, where masses and forms coalesce and blur, in effortless motion. The colors, as patches of pigments, take shape from a distance, and dissolve once again on approaching closer. Most of the larger paintings have figures of children either playing or watching adults complete household chores – there is an inherent exuberance and dynamism with a heightened sense of motion that is evident. A safe, secluded world is quietly tangible.

An avid traveler, she has been fascinated by clouds – their patterns and how they shift form, disperse, and re-form at times to acquire newer shapes and outlines. Their temporal nature and their transitions, have impacted her perception, in her observations of life and events and their fleeting characteristics. This in turn has inspired the small format paintings, which rely on abstraction as a tool to convey the thematic subjects as they shift forms amidst the colors, and which reemphasize the subtleties of movement and transitions.

Nalini S Malaviya

Art Critic

- Excerpt from the catalogue essay


'Reminiscences' by Bharathi S. continues till Nov 27, at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath, Bangalore

 

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6 Oct 2022

Technology In Museums


Technology can effectively bridge the gap between museums and younger audiences to create seamless experiences that imitate ordinary interactions by adapting and enhancing the same tools that the younger generation uses on a regular basis



In the past two years, it has become increasingly evident that technology plays a very important role in the museum experience. It allows enthusiasts and admirers to stay connected with the world of history and art, whether physically or virtually.

Technology can help bridge the gap between museums and the younger generation since their lives are constantly influenced by the digital world. Museums can create seamless experiences that imitate ordinary interactions by adapting and enhancing the same tools that the younger generation uses on a regular basis. Along the same lines, technology allows museums to boost audience participation by using gadgets that are already in use.

Holographic table at MAP , Image provided by MAP for Art Scene India
Holographic table at MAP 

Technology also helps museums bring to life their ideas and the creative ways in which they wish to engage the audience. For example, the Museum of Art & Photography (MAP), one of the first private art and photography museums in Bengaluru, collaborated with BrandMusiq to give the brand a distinct sonic identity through its MOGO or ‘musical logo’. MAP’s sonic identity is inspired by the aim to bridge the gap between the past and the present, the classical and the modern, and the conventional and the contemporary.

These tools make art and history more accessible while making the museum more accessible to people with disabilities such as hearing loss, vision impairment, Alzheimer's disease, and Autism Spectrum Disorder.

MAP’s involvement in the confluence of art and technology makes for a refreshing change. MAP and Accenture Labs collaborated to create India’s first conversational digital persona in M.F. Husain. The viewers can interact with the artists with questions on his early life, career and family. The usage of speech synthesis software and extensive research on the artist makes for an engaging interaction. 

Husain’s holographic avatar, as part of MAP’s collaboration with Accenture India, Image provided by MAP for Art Scene India
Husain’s holographic avatar, as part of MAP’s collaboration with Accenture India

The virality of different kinds of technology and their reception by the masses help museums understand the kind of devices to use and how they can be made increasingly accessible to the audience. Haptic interfaces, iPads, touch screens, and live screenings are a few such tools that engage the audience and help museums reach out to them virtually without losing their interest.

Kalamkari Prayer Mat, 1850s, Cotton, natural dyes, Machilipatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India, TXT.0021, Image provided by MAP for Art Scene India
Kalamkari Prayer Mat, 1850s, Cotton, natural dyes,
Machilipatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India, TXT.0021

In another instance of a technology-focused initiative, MAP Academy, the educational vertical of MAP Bengaluru, collaborated with Microsoft to develop the platform INTERWOVEN as a part of Microsoft’s AI for Cultural Heritage initiative. This project is rooted in developing the digital recreation of the histories of South Asia through textiles, making it more accessible and inclusive for a global audience. Viewers sitting anywhere in the world can find connections between artworks and textiles, cultures and histories through this platform. And that really is the magic of integrating the use of technology in the arts and museums. It allows for a wider and more inclusive reach, as well as a greater participation by young audiences; it allows the museum to become an institution of the future. 

Technology can be a great tool for expanding audiences and driving engagement, however it must be used strategically. It’s more about determining what service(s) they are providing, who it will serve, and how the audience will benefit from the experience rather than adopting technology for the sake of incorporating technology.





Guest Post

8 Sept 2022

Art News: Art from Heart 2.0

Avijit Dutta

“Art from Heart 2.0”, a charity group art exhibition



More than 30 artists from all over the country are joining hands for the second series of the charity group art exhibition, “Art from Heart 2.0”, is being organized by Mamta Nath, Founder & Director, The Lexicon Art and Artist Swati Pasari from Kolkata at The Lexicon Art, Connaught Place from Sep 3rd till Oct 7th, 2022.

“The exhibition aims at representing the diverse and rich cultural heritage of India while raising funds to support the multiple community service activities being carried across India by Round Table India. This is the second in series, the first being held online in April 2020 to raise funds for covid victims and their families. Its heartening to witness the art community coming together for such noble initiatives, we are looking forward to continuing with this annual event to be able to touch more lives”, says Mamta Nath.

Some of the most renowned names in the art world are part of this exhibition, viz., Avijit Dutta, Gurudas Shenoy, Madhuri Bhaduri, Niren Sengupta, Seema Kohli, Swati Pasari, Venkat Bothsa and Vinita Karim.

Vinita Karim
“We are delighted to associate with The Lexican Art once again for raising funds for our various social causes. While in 2020 funds were diverted to help Covid victims, this year, we plan to divert them to our long-term Project, “Freedom through Education”. Through this project, we have educated approximately 9 million underprivileged children throughout India and have built one classroom a day, every day, during the last decade”, says Manish Lakhotia, National President, Round Table India.


Till Oct 7th, 2022, 11 am – 7 pm at The Lexicon Art, M 12, Block M, Connaught Place, New Delhi








Excerpt from the Press Release



8 Dec 2021

Tattvamasi by Artist Mohan Shingne

Spurts of Enigma: Nikhil Purohit writes on the art practice of Mohan Shingne 


An artist with formalist fervor operates both as an agent and a vessel for creation. Contemporary Indian art today is a mix-bag of several ideas from world art merged with indigenous aesthetic blends. It liberates an artist like Mohan Shingne to cross the roads with ideas of modernist abstraction and impulsive sculptural responses to a medley of found objects imparting meanings to resulting objects.

Untitled painting by Mohan Shingne, Art Scene India

A nuanced rendition through self-experienced perspective is the notion one ought to look for the works of Shingne rather than novelty. The artist has a dedicated hybrid practice. Firstly, of making sculptures with a conscious thematic of collaging shapes and found objects. Secondly, of paintings worked out as a process of self-exploration like an ardent devotee revealing the inner workings of a contemplative mind. He holds an intimate attachment to his role as an art educator besides following sculpting and painting as primary modes of expression.

With a humble upbringing in a family of goldsmiths, Mohan’s small and life size sculptures carry the craftsmanship and flair for detailing with a remarkable finesse. Poetry for him becomes a source for insinuating his feelings towards the inanimate world around that catches his attention. Words seem to be a storeroom to accumulate his notes for later visual conversions as idioms. It allows to gain a sense of Zen like feeling to learn how objects- mostly rustic, aged, and redundant become one with his psyche and finally at an immersive moment the object is released into a sculpture or flat surface. With a share of hardships in his early life the phase gifted him with a connect toward wordless conversations with things around. A link that has lent subtlety to his paintings and harmony to his 3D objects.

All this process hints at romance with formalism, yet Shingne finds gaps to escape rigidity in practice and breakthrough from monotony by experimenting with the found objects, clubbing them together. He happens to follow a formula of an uncanny juxtaposition where “Form + Form = Form, Form - Form=Form”. Perhaps the equation is an inert one where the principal element always stays. A philosophical take where the utilitarian thought in the object is discounted to abate a metaphor with mysticism.
 
Sculpture by Mohan Shingne, Art Scene India

The set of new achromatic works made during the nationwide COVID-19 pandemic lockdown period instills mixed feelings of emptiness, seclusion, loneliness, remorsefulness, silence, hope, and perseverance. The general theme of the series in dark shades with subtle textural notes has rectangular divisions annotated with few rhythmic curves breaking the grid formation. This releases the built-in tension formed after continuously watching the work. These works almost remind the ravishing paintings of veteran artist Jeram Patel, though the method of covering the space takes a different visual course. The underlying organic forms are nothing but triggers to melody.

One sculptural collage arouses satire and amuses us. The cylinder works were made by him before the onset of second wave where one could barely imagine how the situation could turn to be grave medically. Hailing from the goldsmith’s family these cans are part of his families’ occupational supplies. Mohan made use of these empty cans to revise their identity by introducing commonplace objects. The juxtaposition can only be admired by the viewer for the ease of mix-match where the two unrelated objects of a can and those of a buttermilk churner, a bowl, and an oil lamp respectively are bonded together. The experimenter within the artist allows spurts of delight and ecstasy.

Faithfully abiding by the tenets of formalism Mohan’s works continue to entice enigma.


Tattvamasi by Mohan Shingne, a Solo Show of Paintings and Sculpture continues till 10th December 2021 at Shridharani Art Gallery, New Delhi

19 Oct 2021

'Ghan Phut' by Shraddha Rathi at Kalakriti Art Gallery

Nostalgia in Wood


'Ghan Phut' by Shraddha Rathi at Kalakriti Art Gallery, Art Scene India
Pieces of ancient carved wood have been transformed into art installations at the solo exhibition ‘Ghan Phut’ by Bangalore based artist Shraddha Rathi. These strike a nostalgic note at Kalakriti Art Gallery in Hyderabad. Celebrating revitalization and renewal, the art works are as much symbols and remnants of melancholy and heritage as an ode to the centuries old craft of exquisite wood carving.

Shraddha describes the artworks as ‘the contrasting confluence of modern day concrete blocks and a century old piece of carved wood which reveal the impermanence of life today and the strength of yester times’.

Born in 1974, Rathi studied performing arts and architecture. A practicing artist for more than fifteen years now, her initial paintings drew inspiration from her architecture and classical dance background. From hyperrealistic paintings of exquisite carvings and sculptures of ancient India she gravitated towards abstraction and installation art. She experimented with installations in wood and metal that combined paint and text to create a play with the display space as well. A series of functional wood pieces formed interactive art that could engage the viewer at another level. The gratitude bench with text related to gratitude engraved on it was the highlight of this show held a few years ago.

'Ghan Phut' by Shraddha Rathi at Kalakriti Art Gallery, Art Scene India 'Ghan Phut' by Shraddha Rathi at Kalakriti Art Gallery, Art Scene India'Ghan Phut' by Shraddha Rathi at Kalakriti Art Gallery, Art Scene India

Recently, when Shraddha came across carved reclaimed wooden pieces that were more than a century old, her formal background in architecture and her desire to draw attention to the magnificence of these pieces, which are often discarded as architectural waste, inspired her to transform them into art installations. She worked with carved pieces that were originally parts of structural elements of havelis and wadas, to uncover and reveal the beauty of each cubic foot of wood. 

Through an elaborate process of reclamation and renewal, Shraddha has attempted to locate these visual markers of culture and history in a contemporary context. She feels each piece is unique and has a story to narrate from its rich and eloquent past.

As she says, “Ghan phut celebrates the unusual convergence of the past and the present, through stories that come alive with reconstruction and revitalization.”

The exhibition is online here at Kalakriti Art Gallery

23 Jul 2020

Art Scene India presents Convergence

Convergence, a collection of drawings, mixed media works & sculptures by Shanthamani Muddaiah, Shivani Aggarwal and Minal Damani, curated by Nalini S Malaviya starts July 24, 2020


Convergence a collection of drawings, mixed media works & sculptures  curated by Nalini S Malaviya   Shanthamani Muddaiah | Shivani Aggarwal | Minal Damani
The pandemic has disrupted the ‘regularity’ of our existence, where the new normal is a paradox, unrelated and at variance with memories of the past, disconnected from the present and a distant future. This interruption has necessitated a reconstruct and rethink of strategies, modes of functioning and a revaluation of what constitutes essential. The existing paranoia and other associated anxieties have brought to the fore several pertinent questions regarding factors responsible for calamities, unwarranted human interventions and indiscriminate actions that disregard ecological considerations. 

The hiatus, therefore, compounded by disquiet and turmoil, has compelled a deeper introspection of the human-nature coexistence and equilibrium, and of environmental, socio-economic and psychological sustainability issues, under transient and perpetual stress.

Amidst this, artists and art projects have pivoted to realign core practices to adopt meaningful human and community centric approaches. Modalities of engagement with the audience have also undergone perceptible repositioning with near total shift to digital platforms, and a predominance of artists collectives and community based projects. 

This curatorial endeavor embraces a collaborative model, an art and media collective, centered on the three artists’ core practices to relocate social and ecological realities on a democratic forum. The artworks and the online digital site, act as a resource, to articulate and respond to shifts in contemporary socio-cultural conditions. Art Scene India, a 14 year old blog, a digital publishing site for art information, in response to collective concerns and in view of the pandemic situation, now accommodates a conceptual and aesthetic shift to incorporate curatorial expression as part of its vision.

The democratic approach builds upon the artists’ practice that is deeply informed by environment and gender sensitivities, and social, political and geographical concerns – arenas that assume great criticality in the contemporary context. Shanthamani Muddaiah, Shivani Aggarwal and Minal Damani locate and realign their preoccupations, and present their recent works, much of which has been produced during the pandemic and is thus layered with current apprehensions, as a subtext to the primary narrative.

Convergence a collection of drawings, mixed media works & sculptures  curated by Nalini S Malaviya   Shanthamani Muddaiah | Shivani Aggarwal | Minal Damani

Shanthamani views the world around her through a prismatic lens, questioning issues that interplay between the individual and the society, the self and the planet. Her strong concerns about urbanization and its impact on ecology are reflected in her drawings and sculptural installations. Loss of agricultural land, and livelihoods, migration, commodification, and exploitation of human and natural resources, and capitalism as the dominant culture are some of the issues that she analyses and expresses through her large scale depictions. For this exhibition, in view of the online site for display, small format pre-existing sculptures are presented, which paraphrase fresh import in light of current contexts.

Shivani’s introspective stance negotiates the complex interrelationships between the external world and the self. She navigates the intricacies of linkages between the material and intangible elements, expressing the impact and the fragility of these associations. Her works map constructs around ethos, culture, gender and identity, deploying material as a gestural entity. Shivani’s visuals are embedded with symbolism, representing notions of self, while exploring emotional flux and confinements of space in response to the situational crises. Stitching and crochet allude to gender as a subtext, and aesthetics acts as a tool to construct the narrative. The sculptural nature of the works are markedly evident through use of multiple media primarily photography, painting and stitching/crochet.
 
Convergence a collection of drawings, mixed media works & sculptures  curated by Nalini S Malaviya   Shanthamani Muddaiah | Shivani Aggarwal | Minal Damani








Minal’s works emanate from a deep autobiographical space, reflecting upon the self, in conjunction with the external world, charting responses, which have an intense personal connect. Through a rigorous mapping device to trace diagrams and graphs of events in real-time and space, the intricate patterns that are generated, appear as macroscopic capsules of land, memories and episodes. Her current series acts as a witness to these times, documenting the volatility of the financial markets as an indication of the prevailing emotional turmoil. The fluctuations allude to hopes and dreams, fears and apprehensions, where the range of emotions reflect life during the pandemic experience. 

The exhibition functions as a convergence of material, site and situation to define the contemporaneous of witnessing, experiencing and living through the ongoing pandemic. 
 



Shanthamani Muddaiah

Hands  Year: 2019  Medium: Fiberglass on wooden pedestal, artist Shanthamani M, Convergence by Art Scene India   
Title: Hands
Year: 2019
Medium: Fiberglass on wooden pedestal Edition: Edition of 3
Note: Artist’s proof of is on display in Bangalore
Note: The artist has done “Hands” in different sizes and materials over several years.
Size:
Each Hand: 20 x 10.5 x 7.5 inches
Pedestal: 22 x 19 x 1 inches
Artist: Shanthamani Muddaiah

 Title: Flying Landscape  Year: 2016  Medium: Aluminium tubes with steel and Paint  Edition: Edition of two (larger in scale) with Artist’s Proof (pictured)  Size: 10.5 x 16.5 x 21 inches  Artist: Shanthamani Muddaiah     Title: Flying Landscape  Year: 2016  Medium: Aluminium tubes with steel and Paint  Edition: Edition of two (larger in scale) with Artist’s Proof (pictured)  Size: 10.5 x 16.5 x 21 inches  Artist: Shanthamani Muddaiah  


Title: Flying Landscape (detail) Year: 2016  Medium: Aluminium tubes with steel and Paint  Edition: Artist’s Proof (pictured)  Size: 10.5 x 16.5 x 21 inches  Artist: Shanthamani Muddaiah     Title: Flying Landscape (detail) Year: 2016  Medium: Aluminium tubes with steel and Paint  Artist’s Proof (pictured)  Size: 10.5 x 16.5 x 21 inches  Artist: Shanthamani Muddaiah

Title: Flying Landscape 
Year: 2016 
Medium: Aluminium tubes with steel and Paint 
Edition: Artist’s Proof
Note: Larger edition is on display in Paris
Size: 10.5 x 16.5 x 21 inches 
Artist: Shanthamani Muddaiah




Title: Temptation  Medium: Graphite with Charcoal on Paper  Year: 2020  Edition: Artist’s Proof  Note: One edition will be larger in size Size:  Big Apple: 2.5 x 2.5 X 2.5 inches  Small Apple: 0.75 x 1.72 x 1.5 inches  Pedestal: 8.5 x 4 x 1 inch  Artist: Shanthamani Muddaiah

Title: Temptation  Medium: Graphite with Charcoal on Paper  Year: 2020  Edition: Artist’s Proof  Note: One edition will be larger in size Size:  Big Apple: 2.5 x 2.5 X 2.5 inches  Small Apple: 0.75 x 1.72 x 1.5 inches  Pedestal: 8.5 x 4 x 1 inch  Artist: Shanthamani Muddaiah

Title: Temptation 
Medium: Graphite with Charcoal on Paper 
Year: 2020 
Edition: Artist’s Proof 
Note: One edition will be larger in size Size: 
Big Apple: 2.5 x 2.5 X 2.5 inches 
Small Apple: 0.75 x 1.72 x 1.5 inches 
Pedestal: 8.5 x 4 x 1 inch 
Artist: Shanthamani Muddaiah

Title: Temptation  Medium: Graphite with Charcoal on Paper  Year: 2020  Edition: Artist’s Proof  Note: One edition will be larger in size Size:  Big Apple: 2.5 x 2.5 X 2.5 inches  Small Apple: 0.75 x 1.72 x 1.5 inches  Pedestal: 8.5 x 4 x 1 inch  Artist: Shanthamani Muddaiah












Shivani Aggarwal

Title: Trap 2 
Medium: Acrylics and stitching thread on handmade paper 
Year: 2020 
Size: 7.5 x 11 inches each, set of 6 
Artist: Shivani Aggarwal


Title: Stitch Forms (Drawings) 
Medium: Thread stitching on paper 
Year: 2020 
Size: 4 x 6 inches each, set of 5 works 
Artist: Shivani Aggarwal


Title: Trap 
Medium: Acrylics and copper crocheted wire on paper 
Year: 2020 
Size: 12 x 8 inches each, set of 10 works 
Artist: Shivani Aggarwal


Title: Untitled 
Medium: Photography, acrylics and stitching on archival paper 
Year: 2020 
Size: 12 x 12 inches each, set of 4 works 
Artist: Shivani Aggarwal

Title: Dilemma 
Medium: Acrylics and copper wire on paper 
Year: 2020 
Size: 3 x 5 ft wall mounted 
Artist: Shivani Aggarwal


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Minal Damani

Title: Rise and Fall 1 Year: 2020 Medium: Archival pen on paper Size: 12” x 15.5” Artist: Minal Damani
Title: Rise and Fall 1 
Year: 2020 
Medium: Archival pen on paper 
Size: 12” x 15.5” 
Artist: Minal Damani


Title: Rise anRise and Fall 2 Year: 2020  Medium: Archival pen on paper  Size: 12” x 15.5”  Artist: Minal Damani
Title: Rise and Fall 2
Year: 2020 
Medium: Archival pen on paper 
Size: 12” x 15.5” 
Artist: Minal Damani


Title: Rise and Fall 3 Year: 2020  Medium: Archival pen on paper  Size: 12” x 15.5”  Artist: Minal Damani
Title: Rise and Fall 3
Year: 2020 
Medium: Archival pen on paper 
Size: 12” x 15.5” 
Artist: Minal Damani
    
Title: Rise and Fall 4 Year: 2020  Medium: Archival pen on paper  Size: 12” x 15.5”  Artist: Minal Damani
Title: Rise and Fall 4
Year: 2020 
Medium: Archival pen on paper 
Size: 12” x 15.5” 
Artist: Minal Damani
 
Title: Rise and Fall 5  Year: 2020  Medium: Archival pen on paper  Size: 12” x 15.5”  Artist: Minal Damani
Title: Rise and Fall 5 
Year: 2020 
Medium: Archival pen on paper 
Size: 12” x 15.5” 
Artist: Minal Damani


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