Cut Pieces by KP Reji at The Guild

The Guild presents “Cut Pieces”, a much awaited solo exhibition of recent works by Baroda based artist K. P. Reji at The Guild, Alibaug. 

The show is the first presentation in the silver jubilee year of the gallery. Reji’s works are known for their witty take on the state machinery and its multiple modes of ordering of lives of people. In this recent body of works he takes a new direction in exploring this. The meticulously constructed canvases offer a newer language, and furthermore, newer narratives in his repertoire. “K.P. Reji’s oeuvre, marked by its frontal narrative overtures and enigmatic subterranean, political sites, propels us to think about the need to define beauty in a new ontological setting. This drive is evident in his move, on the one hand, towards an allegorical mode of narratology, and a counter-move to suspend the narratorial through the ‘decoratively-real’ exteriors and interiors, on the other. In an intriguing manner, many of his works present themselves to us as allegories on practices, and works of art; as an artistic rumination on representational dilemmas of narrative idioms. 

These representational dilemmas stem from an artistic contemplation and reasoning regarding the nature of the political in the discursive universe of what can be broadly called aesthetical practices. Reji’s artistic propositions often remind us, in a Freudian analytical way, that the experience of beauty is bound up with, or is a form of mourning; it is a life-affirming act even though what one is dealing with is the most abominable. His works can be read perhaps as a pharmakon, which ex-poses the melancholies of our time; or better put, in-stances inertias that cloud our thinking and action. In a way, it presences the element of the violence of the sublime—at times, through the fracturing and fragmenting (and tearing) of form, materiality, proportion, and even composition, for the sake of the aesthetic encounter. The constant reinvention of unforeseen potentials of the affective fields of percepts and language Enables this body of work by Reji to enact the redistribution of the sensible, and thereby, open up newer possibilities of the political and the aesthetical. 

In the overall schema of this exhibition, both the phenomenology and politics of perception are evoked through the spectral presence of multiple acts of blinding. It seems that the coming together of these works proposes that only in blinding perception can the claims of colour and line be restituted, and with them, finally, the authority of the fragile and harassed human body.” – Excerpt from “Beauty as Pharmakon”, essay by Dr. Santhosh S

The exhibition continues till April 5, 2022

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Art Review: TEXT AS TEXT II

TEXT AS TEXT II 

By Nikhil J L Purohit

The compulsion of reading textual works is found to be influential for all kind of scripts, with the reader trained to read the text or not. A logical mind is aware that the texts, unlike the visuals, have a relatively higher probability of correct interpretation of the message. Yet the diverse modes of linguistic constructs succeed in maintaining the barrier for direct communication.

The artists grouped together in the exhibition curated by Shubhalakshmi Shukla have congregated from various cities, with their individual responses to the curatorial concept of Pure Text as a point of entry for the viewers. The separation of retinal pleasure (of visuals) is a crucial element followed by most artists succeeding in a rendition of the textual-imagery invoking subtle yet unpoetic assimilations and metaphoric, direct, intriguing array of words striking the visual-readers.

Through an irregular display of works, quick surprises are sought as some works are minimal with a strong punch of socio-political critique, satire, and anecdotes. Perhaps the larger perception relays an insight to the positions of each artist responding to the ideas of ego, presence, inaccessibility, societal disparities, personal associations to city, land, neighbourhood, body, and gender. Perhaps this show is an extension of how art today is blurring the boundaries of different disciplines of arts viz. performing and plastic arts. 

One observes Moutushi Chakravorty’s ‘Home Body Soil’ are the hand-written gestalt images comprised of existential dialogues explaining…immortality, vanity, building, breaking, urban-rural etc relevant to each encapsulating word of home, body, and soil. Mithu Joardar’s works titled ‘ID’ that reads Intra-dermal/ Inner Diameter are allegorical and bold in stating the sexual urge of the beings of pleasure principle and mutual exchanges. Nilesh Shilkars’comment on the violence within oneself has an exciting tactility provoking the viewer of the need to shun the violence within.

Work by Moutushi Chakravorty

The sentences ‘Art without Penance is Dead,’ ‘My grace is sufficient for you,’ by Jeetandar Ojha are subtle, yet intriguing, offering a sense of compatibility and equation. The idea of grace hints at the Gandhian peace movement provoking far-reaching action. Roul Hemanta’s simple handwritten lines on the wall are easy yet satirical pointing to the major banking frauds that have occurred in the recent past of our country. The lines interestingly state ‘Apply lime to the Bank walls, jump over the wall’ (बैंक के दीवार में चुना लगाएं । दीवार के ऊपर छलांग लगाएं।). They incite an amusement of a rural smart humour.

Less emphasized facts of city life where our neighbours are shadows, and we all stay under the same water tank formulates the works highlighting the unobserved by Yashwant Deshmukh. An interesting twist to the show is the inclusion of Marathi rappers’ troupe comprising Mayur and Yugal Waikar, Ankit Hachekar, Ashok Kadam, and Pranav Rajput with their rapping critiquing, a sympathizer of the downtrodden, underdogs and taking a stand against the governmental enactments.

We rely on the medium of textual review to stray into the actual works in anticipation of reducing the communication barrier for an afterlife to the dialogue of the ephemeral nature of words.
The exhibition was held at Gallery Art and Soul, Mumbai

Images provided by the curator

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About: Nikhil Purohit is an artist and a pedagogue working in arts management, writing, arts documentation and archiving. He is also the editor of India Art Journal.

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Art Mumbai: Written on Water curated by Sanjeev Sonpimpare

Written on Water is a human experience, celebrating warmth of acceptance and belonging, writes Shubhalakshmi Shukla

Curated by the Mumbai based artist Sanjeev Sonpimpare, Written on Water at Gallery Beyond, Mumbai, brings together a miscellaneous collection of artworks by artists from Delhi, Ahmedabad, Kalabhavan Santiniketan, Baroda and Mumbai, with Alok Bal, Balaji Ponna, Binoy Varghese, Madhuri Kathe, Moutushi Chakraborty, Nilesh Shaharkar, Nitasha Jaini, Prasanta Sahu, Pratul Dash, Ritu Kamath, Ruchika W Singh, Sanjeev Sonpimpare, Sarika Mehta and Ushmita Sahu. 

Sanjeev Sonpimpare, Industrial oil on canvas, 11.5'' x 23.5''

The artworks explore artists’ individualistic search and concerns. Within these, the show interweaves with the current state of human consciousness, and issues related to gender, caste, class and race disturbance, violence and unrest.

“We all long for certain positivity to be there in our lives, and we constantly work on it just to set things in a pleasant state. It is in a constant flux, outside and inside. Let’s not deny that we all are living in times that are dark in hue. This instability and impermanence that we negotiate in everyday life become a way to remind ourselves that this may be the only instance let for us to greet each other, and move further with our lives," explains Sonpimpare in his curatorial note. 

Nitasha Jaini, Acrylic on canvas, 38'' x 48''

Some artists have chosen to view the inward turmoil, bringing to the surface the discreet narratives of the marginal, for instance, the Santiniketan based Prasanta Sahu. Others have chosen to detach the 'female body' from all the attributes of patriarchy, keeping the context of urban kitsch and beauty alive as in 'Aurat' by Kolakata based Moutushi Chkaraborty. While, Sanjeev Sonpimpare brings about an existential search for language, an unlayering of melancholy in the current times.

Madhuri Kathe, Mixed Media, 60'' x 36''

Dr. Madhuri Kathe’s concerns with the human body are subtly expressed, creating her visual idiom through layers of translucent fabric and colors to speak of human interiority undergoing social transformations and acquiring an unbelievable transparency. Nitasha Jaini creates a context for a new emerging identity of the city male in India, dissolving feudal and fundamentalist values of patriarchy. Ritu Kamath celebrates the new woman in the city, free of bondage and sufferings of the male dominated world. 

Ushmita Sahu, a participating artist found this to be an exceptional experience, “I feel when a fellow artist and friend curates a project, it gives participating artists a sense of freedom as well as ownership which was also evident in the regular sharing of thoughts and ideas by all artists in a dedicated WhatsApp group for several months leading up to the show. This camaraderie and commitment has translated into amazing works being created for the show."

Pratul Dash, Water colour on paper, 8'' x 5.5'',

Prasanta Sahu, Reverse acrylic painting on acrylic sheet, 24'' x 24''

“I have a feeling of accomplishment in bringing good works together, and see the show as a unified one, in terms of display and totality. Conceptually too, all artists have worked in sync to the concept note, but more importantly they were chosen accordingly,” expands Sonpimpare.

Written on Water is a human experience. It is symptomatic of high capitalism as well celebrates newness. Like urban affairs are often celebratory and momentary, the exhibition too celebrates with splashing warmth of acceptance and belongingness. What remains dark is the unsaid, the unspoken, the submerged and lost. The loss and erasure of personal history can be liberating and yet simultaneously scary, like a schizophrenic cacophony. How is human memory going to keep record of ‘celebration as celebration’ is the question!

The show continues till April 7th 2018.

About the Writer: Shubhalakshmi Shukla is an independent writer and curator based in Mumbai. Her first book on contemporary art practices Imagined Locales, is launched by The Studio X Mumbai.

 
All images are courtesy the writer

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Art Buzz: Finding Utopia, Mumbai

The Art Loft and Shoeb Mashadi present Finding Utopia (opening on 11th April 2014 at The Art Loft), a monochromatic noir journey into human emotions featuring supermodel Tamara Moss as the protagonist.

'A journal of everyday chaos and mundane chores - but you lift the veil, dig deeper and there are fragments of what lies inside each of us - the millions of questions about the uncertainty of life, a sense of loneliness and longing to belong to something or someone, or a longing to break free and wander to a road that draws us. To escape the neurosis of the mind and find comfort and security in dreams, dreaming on and on and never coming back - to escape from unrequited love.

This journal is a metaphor of the emotions, feelings and thoughts that are a part of personal experiences. In a candid, non linear narrative, the protagonist represents the morbid that lies in us all - deep within our subconscious. A realm of memories and a scar for life'.

Shoeb Mashadi, a fashion and portrait photographer based in Mumbai is noted for his strong individualistic style which is an eclectic mix of fine art and commercial portraiture and has photographed a number of celebrities and supermodels as well as shot for leading fashion designers, cult movie directors, prime television channels and internationally acclaimed restaurants. Last year, Shoeb Mashadi represented the country as one amongst ten photographers in the world who were selected to be a part of the TEDx photo chain, a part of the TEDx annual event held in Amsterdam, where his work was exhibited.

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