Special Report: India Art Summit |
| By Nandini Narayanan | |||||
 Jitish Kallat with his creation ‘Collidonthus’. The artwork is a mixed media work of 2007. Indian art has seen a massive jump in its fortunes in the last few years. It is currently estimated at US$ 400 million and is growing at nearly 35 per cent annually, and the art market has attracted the interest of the top international auction houses – something that has helped create the frenzy and also sustain it. British auction house Sotheby’s recently sold Raqib Shaw's The Garden of Earthly Delights 111 for nearly five and a half million US dollars. Its sale of Indian art – ancient, modern, contemporary – totaled to over 40 million last year, and has already collected nearly 21 million so far this year. All of this probably explains the massive financial support – as well as the (arguably insufficient) media attention – for the Summit in New Delhi last month. There were paintings, sculptures, photographs and installations galore, but uppermost on everyone’s mind were the sales figures. The Summit began with the ‘Collectors’ Preview’, attended by art collectors from several countries. The day-long art forum, a seminar session for the discussion of art, was also part of the agenda. Over 100,000 visitors flocked to the venue, but the forum was more select simply because the entry ticket was heavily priced, preventing most of those interested from participating. As Robert Storr, Dean of the Yale School of Art, and one of the Forum’s speakers, rightly put it, “This fair needs a wider audience. Artists do not make art just for the sake of dealers and buyers. It should be promoted to a wider section of the audience.” The art works themselves were impressive, although common grumbles focused on the inadequate representation of abstract art. Complaints also stressed on the excessive commercial importance being given to the Summit, while art seemed to lose out in the process. Any event is bound to face glitches in its first appearance, but the issues related to this were too many to just sweep under the carpet and expect people not to notice. Another glaring fact was that there was hardly any media attention. If not for the fact that the rebel showcasing of M.F. Hussain’s works was vandalised, would the majority of people even have known about the fair? Many of these issues will hopefully be tackled in the Summit next year. In hindsight, there is no doubt that art in India is getting increasingly corporatised. This might be good in some ways, and not so good in others. Among the positive aspects is that the time seems to have arrived for artists and galleries to exist without government funding, and for Indian art to hold its own on an international platform. But, in a scenario where money speaks the loudest, the voice of art, and the important things that art has always been associated with, stand to lose.
log in to write comments
Powered by !JoomlaComment 3.25
3.25 Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved." |
|||||
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
The art of Wah.
