Forgotten Files
For the 39th issue of Spotlight, we’re bringing you some vanished traditions, unsung artists, lost scripts and other surprising facets of Indian history and art
Modern and contemporary art
Art and Wonderment
On 27th August 2022, we collaborated with Art and Wonderment, an arts engagement organisation led by Alisha Sadikot and Nishita Zachariah. We opened out our collection to a group of arts enthusiasts for a session on the diverse art traditions and histories of the Subcontinent, seen through the lens of a curated selection of objects… Read more »
Harvest, A Land of Plenty
Rithika Merchant’s paintings are allegorical. They occupy the intersections of mythologies from across cultures to generate modern narratives that look into a re-imagined present. She paints the form of her characters with striking attention, using the medium of gouache to her advantage, as she layers washes of colours with opaque textures onto stained papers. With… Read more »
Paintings By NS Harsha
This painting, titled ‘Chain Snatcher’ was created in 2018 using acrylic on canvas. It measures 73 cm in height and 150 cm in width. Accession number: 2020.3.1 Titled ‘At the Opening Bell’ this acrylic on canvas painting measures 86 cm in height and 61.5 cm in width. It was created in 2019. Accession number:… Read more »
Nude with Still Life
In this painting, Badri Narayan has juxtaposed the figure of a seated female nude with a still-life composition. So much so that the woman itself appears to be another fixture in the still-life composition. There is a certain mystic dream-like quality to the painting that is a feature common to a lot of Badri Narayan’s… Read more »
Purushartha
The title of this series of charcoal drawings by the young painter and sculptor Dilesh Hazare is Purushartha, the Sanskrit word for ‘the goal of human endeavour’. The four purusharthas are dharma, artha, kama and moksha or righteousness, prosperity, pleasure and liberation. It’s clear which goal the subjects here are engaged in pursuing. Hazare’s nudes… Read more »
Creation of Other
A lot of Pradeepkumar’s work deals with the subject matter of figures and their role in a world that was created for them. His art invites the viewer to lurk into this world of shrubbery and nature to try to understand its significance. His focus on native and rural aspects directly alludes to his identity… Read more »