Art for All

(Nalini S Malaviya)

Last week’s column on reproductions of paintings as an affordable form of art appears to have touched a chord with many readers. Some of them wrote in to say that even though such paintings were not original their beauty and aesthetic appeal was unmatched. Very true. And, especially when one considers the prices. Today, despite the recession and the slowdown in the art market, prices of paintings are beyond the reach of many people. That’s also explains the popularity of an event such as the Chitra Santhe, the annual art bazaar that is held in and around Chitrakala Parishath for the last few years. Incidentally, this year’s Santhe will be held in late January, 2009 and not the last Sunday of the year as was the tradition up till now. The USP of the Santhe lies in the fact that is an open air informal art mart that is easily accessible to all. There is a wide variety and all kinds of art – from fairly good to downright appalling. There have been numerous discussions about having some kind of quality control, but apparently with that many participants and the Santhe atmosphere that is aimed at, it is not a practical option.
In any case, let’s face it, how many people are willing to walk into an art gallery just to look at art? Most people are intimidated by the gallery environs and sometimes the attitude of the staff also doesn’t help. Well, the Santhe does offer an excellent opportunity to get familiar with art over the day and then decide what one wants to buy. It might also be a good idea to have art appreciation lectures or seminars in conjunction with the Santhe, but most probably the logistics of it might prove to be daunting. Still, as an idea it has it merits, it will help prospective buyers gain some basic knowledge about art before making an informed decision.


The group show by artists from Delhi and Rajasthan that previewed last week had some interesting paintings. The large panels by Bhagat Singh were quite popular with the guests, beautifully rendered and pleasing. Immensely symmetrical and intricately patterned - the overall effect was very agreeable and soothing. Madan Meena’s abstracts with matrices of golden and silver circles also created a harmonious impact. Titled Lotus ponds the works were minimal in their approach. Manoj Kachangal abstracts were colourful and appeared to be inspired by some of Raza’s works.
Both Ritu and Anoop Kamath’s paintings were figurative but very different from one another. Where Ritu’s paintings have a greater visual appeal, Anoop’s works seemed to portray sardonic humour and a satirical touch.

(The exhibition is on till January 7 at Crimson Art Resource, The Hatworks Boulevard, Bangalore)

Chitra Santhe - Art Fair (Bangalore) Dec 30, 2007

Most of the 'artists' this year too were hobby painters et al. However, there was a sprinkling of fine arts students from other districts of Karnataka. According to official figures there were 1,700 art stalls and at least a 100,000 people attended. I also heard that more than Rs 1 crore changed hands!

There were very few works that I liked, amongst them were pen and ink drawings by an artist from Chikmaglur and a couple of paintings by an artist from Hassan. Unfortunatley, there were many reproductions right from SL Haldenkar's 'Glow of Hope' painting (please visit Jaganmohan Palace, Mysore to see the original), to John Fernandes to even SH Raza! The different versions of Glow of Hope, which incidentally is on sale at every Santhe, was truly pathetic this year. At least all the copies I saw had no resemblance to the original except for the fact that they featured a woman holding a lamp. The magic created by Haldenkar was completely missing!


Prices were as high as Rs 5 lakhs (the painting of an elephant was priced at Rs 5 lakhs - see below). Here are a few images from the Santhe.








If you visited the Santhe, what did you think about it? Did you like the paintings on display? Did you buy anything? Were the prices reasonable? What is the best part of an event like this? Mail your comments to me.

Annual Art Event : Chitra Santhe - 2006

The annual art event held yesterday (Dec 31, 2006) inside the premises of Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath and on the road outside, was a bit disappointing. There seemed to be more hobby painters than artists exhibiting their works. Most of the paintings were reproductions or bad copies of works by other artists such as the late Raja Ravi Verma and other old masters. I saw at least five equally pitiful versions of the ‘Glow of Hope’ - a famous painting by Haldenkar. Incidentally the original can be viewed at the Jayachamarajendra Art Gallery in the Jagan Mohan Palace, Mysore. Watercolors on paper seemed to be very popular and were seen to be lying around everywhere. Mehndi and on-the-spot portraits also seemed to be much in demand. There were a few reasonably decent paintings in oils and acrylics - a couple of Ganeshas that I liked, a few abstracts and portraits. Overall, it was good fun seeing people enjoy the carnival-like atmoshphere, but sadly not much can be said about the art!

Art Buzz - 'Chitra Santhe'

The highly popular annual art event 'Chitra Santhe' will be held on Dec 31 at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath, Kumara Krupa Road, Bangalore. The day-long carnival will have artists displaying paintings, sculptures and drawings along the roadside and within the premises of the Parishath.