The mercury rises as summer settles in comfortably, scorching, proud and unapologetic. We succumb haplessly praying for cool showers and breeze. Art takes recluse in the exotic locales of the city of water & lights as the 56th Venice Biennale opens, early in May, one of the oldest and most prestigious international art exhibitions in the world. Meanwhile, we nalyze the ancient tradition of tantra and how it has translated into the expression of modern and contemporary art.

The existence of Tantric symbols dates back to the Indus Valley civilisation, as discovered in seals related to the period. Tantra is an ancient tradition which includes extensive use of mantras or symbolic diagrams (Bindus for the point of creation, Chakras, energy points, spirals and arrows for energy, an inverted triangle for Shakti etc.) with chants and rituals to attain enlightenment.

This ancient tradition has influenced artistic minds over the ages, and we can decipher these influences within some of the greatest of artists’ works. G R Santosh studied Tantric art and Kashmir Shaivism and adopted this style to create some of the best examples of modern paintings with Tantric influence. His paintings are known for their spiritual energy. Tanveer Ajsi takes a closer look. The use of symbols in their imagery gives to theirs works an indigenous quality, no matter how modern the work; a spiritual aura that maybe felt at the conscious or subconscious level depending on how direct the depiction. Some names that come to mind are S H Raza with the Bindu, Chakra and concentric circles and triangles that
grasped the attention of art aficionados the world over. Dr Ashrafi Bhagat analyses the influences of Tantric art on Velu Viswanathan and Balasubramanian.

Tantric paintings are worshipped as they are considered symbolic representations of a deity or power with a spiritual aura surrounding them. The imagery maybe a juxtaposition of geometric forms with abstract forms or/with those of deities, Dr Seema Bawa explores.

Aastha Duggal revaluates the formulation of iconography in the paintings of Raja Ravi Varma. Gerard Houghton speaks to Govinda Sah Azad tracing his journey from being a small town boy to the international artist he is today. Lina Vincent Sunish is in conversation with Martine Le Coz about how tantric art inspires her life and work. Rajesh Ram talks to Pranamita Borgohain about his skillful sculptures that are tremendously sensitive to the subject.

Sumati Gangopadhyay is in dialogue with Shanta Samant as they discuss the latter’s beautiful elongated figures in bronze, her interests and inspirations. Followed by reports and reviews. Hope you enjoy the read. Do write to us at artanddeal@gmail.com.

Siddhartha Tagore