Art Attack – What’s wrong with it?

By Nalini S Malaviya

Artists in Bangalore feel strongly about the arrest of art student Chandramohan in Vadodara. An incident, which is making headlines across the country, it is being criticized by the entire art community for its highhandedness and fundamentalist approach. Chandramohan, a final year student of Fine Arts at the MS University, Baroda was arrested on charges of obscenity, during the annual student evaluation where students present their projects. Coming close on the heels of the Husain controversy, most artists feel art is being targeted increasingly. Eminent Bangalore artist SG Vasudeva finds no justification for such an incident, "what is happening in Baroda is unimaginable. How could the Police enter the institution and arrest a student who was putting up his artwork for the sake of examination? It is unheard of! The action of the Vice Chancellor is equally shocking. Instead of protecting his student and the institution from the Police and from the ‘Moral policing persons’, he asks the student to apologize and sacks the Dean of Fine Arts Faculty for supporting the cause of student/s. The ‘Fundamentalists’ are taking the law into their own hands and or politicizing the Police and bring fear amongst the right thinking people.”

Artist Jasu Rawal from Vadodara now settled in Bangalore also feels police action against students is not healthy. He believes, “there should be an assessment of the intention behind such activities. Often jealousy or political motivation can be the moving factor behind such incidents. I have not seen the works, but if there is something, which needs to be criticized it should be discussed and debated in the right fora.”

Having studied at MS University, Ravikumar Kashi clarifies that all students’ present their artworks for internal assessment before a jury. Often, there are visitors who come in out of curiosity, but the intention is not to present this before outsiders. I have not seen the specific images but from what I have heard, it is along the lines of Tantric art, which has a long history in our country. Sculptures from Ajanta, Khajuraho and most temples are erotic in nature and this is not a concept new to us. In my opinion, we need to make them (fundamentalist) see things in the right context and at the same time we condemn this kind of policing. The silent protest planned to be held later in the day (6 pm MG Road) hopes to bring justice to Chandramohan. A letter addressed to the Governor of Gujarat is also being prepared.

Babu Eeshwar Prasad also feels that art is being targeted much more now than in the past. He says, “fundamentalists are using it to get mileage for themselves.” In fact, art has often been considered to be gimmicky and publicity oriented in the past, but now it seems to have become a ready prop for those looking for their two minutes of glory. Of late, many artists have drawn flak over their paintings and installations (remember last year’s show in Mumbai!), which has given rise to a lot of debate on the need for censorship. Vasudeva elaborates, “As a creative person I know my boundaries. No one needs to ‘censor’ my work. It is actually a fundamental freedom of expression that is being questioned. We should not allow ‘Talibanisation’ in our Country."
Although, the artist community is strongly against it, many people feel there is a need for moderation and sensitivity from the artists as well. I remember meeting a very senior artist from Mumbai who said that artists are not operating in a vacuum, they also have a social responsibility and they should be sensitive to the feelings of the viewers. The debate continues, but surely in a democracy, we can do without extremism

Watch this space for more…

Art Attack - Vadodara Controversy

I've provided some more links about the arrest of Chandramohan, an art student of MS University, Vadodara.

Hindustan Times

Yahoo News

Mumbai Mirror

South Asian Media

NDTV

DNA India

Times of India

Online art galleries for investors

By Nalini S Malaviya

With an increase in demand for art as investment, there has been a corresponding growth in the number of online art galleries. An online gallery offers the prospective buyer the anonymity of browsing through its paintings, without the hassle of an attending salesperson. First time buyers especially find it comforting to look at artworks at their convenience in the comforts of their homes. Usually, gallery websites also offer a lot of information on art history, artists, catalogues, market trends along with the ease of searching for artworks based on price bands and genre of painting. A virtual tour combines convenience with information to make it a winning combination.

On the downside, buyers who are inclined to physically check out the artwork, find it difficult to deal with a virtual source. Transaction is another issue where buyers feel more comfortable dealing with a local person or contact. And, therefore, when it comes to sales, despite the convenience, many buyers prefer to deal with local art galleries and dealers. According to Art Consultant Umesh UV of affordindianart.com, “Communication has to be prompt, if not, the client will buy from somewhere else who offers a faster turnaround time. Usually artworks are sent after the payment is through but delay in payment from offshore sources causes further delay in sending the artwork.” Delays in receiving the artworks may also cause panic attacks in buyers. Security of transaction details is another sensitive area, which often discourages buyers from trying out newer websites. Online galleries have to depend a lot on building their reputation and gaining trust from their clients.

Despite all this, online art galleries are making their mark. According to Umesh, operating costs of a virtual gallery is low when compared to a brick and mortar gallery. Manpower, previews, cocktails, printed material, catalogues are all eliminated thereby reducing the budget. Often online galleries also showcase artists’ works without actually buying them and thereby reduce their investment costs. Sometimes, this maybe passed on to the customer. However, the most important criterion when buying from the Internet should be the credibility of that site.

(Published in Financial Times, Bangalore)

Writing for Matters of Art

You can now read some more of my write-ups on the Bangalore art scene on the e-zine Matters of Art

Clink on the links below to see the latest articles
http://www.mattersofart.com/Artistofm.html
http://www.mattersofart.com/may_5/exhibh_pages/2.html

As always your comments and suggestions are welcome...

- Nalini

Restoration of art

(By Nalini S Malaviya)

Once you have invested in a work of art, it is important to take good care of it, since artworks that get damaged or show signs of age need to be restored, which can be an expensive process and will also substantially impact its investment potential.
Restoration is a complicated process and should be undertaken only by experts. One should never attempt to ‘clean’ paintings or other artworks with chemicals – it can cause irreparable damage and reduce its resale price. The materials and techniques used in restoration are decided based on their ageing patterns, their effect on the paintings and should be reversible in nature.

Venkat Singh, Director of Dharohar Art Conservation elaborates on the process involved – “first the painting is careful examined to evaluate the problem and to decide on the methodology of treatment. Documentation is then followed by a mechanical and chemical cleaning of dirt and surface grime. If necessary, the painting is de-varnished to reveal its original colors. Paint layers are consolidated and any tears or holes in the canvas are mended. In case, the damage in the canvas is a major one, a new canvas lining is added to provide strength to the old one. Next, comes the important step of infilling, and then retouching the area, were original paint is lost. Finally, the work is re-varnished, followed by a documentation of the results.”
The cost of restoration depends on the volume and area of damage. The location of damage also affects the cost, for instance, any damage on the face can escalate the cost. As an approximation, restoring a small sized painting (2'x3') can cost upwards of Rs 30-40,000 .

It is important to know that the process is not foolproof and can cause loss of important clues that can effect the authentication of the painting. “Also, no touch-up is ever done on the lost area of the artist’s signature,” points out Venkat.
Therefore, art conservation that focuses on preservation and preventive care becomes significant, as investing in art gathers momentum.

(Published in Financial Times)