Scrutinising A Past, For The Present Interview With Avinash Karn, Contemporary Artist
– Lina Vincent

Abroad survey of art practices today presents the idea that the only way folk art is legitimised is through a relative positioning with urban fine art, particularly within the structure of the art market. There is an accepted hierarchy, even within urban fine art, that privileges some forms and mediums of art more than others. From the 80s, there have been attempts to publicise and theorise work of artists from vernacular traditions practicing in contemporary spaces, and several collaborative projects that brought urban and rural art together. The time is right for a more sustained and continuous effort towards the exchange and dialogue that was sporadic earlier. K G Subramanyan, professor and doyen of Indian art history, articulates in his paper on ‘The Concept of Tradition’, (1985, Benares Hindu University)

“…our notions of tradition today cannot be the same as they used to be; in the new circumstances, our sense of individuality is more pronounced and the residual forms of old traditions as survive are just those related to fostering group identities, often out of contact with today’s circumstances. So if we think of building something like tradition today, it should be such that it will keep our individualities alive and relate with existing circumstances. Tradition conceived not as a steamroller but as a support to individual growth. Tradition that is not so much concerned with survival of the past as the enrichment of the present. It goes without saying that whatever of the past will enrich the present will find a place in it.”

It is important to understand the opinions of young artists growing in this complex space in order to address the many grey areas that appear in the understanding and patronage of contemporary indigenous arts.

LV: In what ways have you been introducing variations and new developments within the traditional themes of Madhubani painting? How have these been accepted?


AK: Traditional artists have been interested in painting stories and once they are exposed with outer world through travelling or via social media and internet, they are able to observe the life and stories beyond their own community and traditions. I have been developing my ideas in the same way. As I am also flexible enough to understand politics as well as social structures, I have tried to see the world at wider aspects and beyond our own tradition. In my young age, I used to write notes and poetry in my diaries and always asked myself questions. I also used to write my answers as well as thoughts by being rational and examining the orthodox establishments. This is how an artist from a village can learn about life on his own -by questioning the social structure and traditional beliefs, even if they have limited access to the outer world.


There are lots of ironies we find in our society and when these strike to my mind and heart, I start to think about them deeply. I try to compose these subjects and characters with proper alignment and find the co-relations between all of them. Especially in a city, life at every level is interconnected and this is how the stories are being weaved. I experiment with not only the subject but also the style of Madhubani painting. The new color palette, refined figures, facial expression, rhythm and clear lines gives a fresh appearance to the paintings done earlier. This contemporary practice has been a new experience for the art enthusiasts of Madhubani, hence, for many of them to accept the change is difficult. My work has been criticized too. But I have learnt, that limitations in art tend to bind artists in the expression of their emotions, and every artist has their own style and way of expression. So this kind of criticism doesn’t affect me