In the midst of the monsoon season we not only see bubbling activity in our art scene in terms of exhibitions, residencies and the ever changing use of media within art, but also reflect upon how the scene has grown and changed, and in which direction it is heading; not only in our corner of the globe, but how the Indian Art scene fits into the global art scenario. Perhaps one of the most profound things which we see in the changing face of the global art scene is the rate at which barriers between genres, mediums and artistic formats are being broken down, making way for unique amalgamations in contemporary practice. Our London correspondent Rajesh Punj interviews an artist who seems to embody this movement of deconstructing barriers, Jean-Michael Othoniel. Jean-Michael candidly discusses his interdisciplinary practice which seamlessly melds architecture sculpture, design and public art using the enchanting medium of glass. The artist has committed his current practice and career to creating transformative works that under his influence manifest as a series of bold and brilliant art works.
In our second International interview piece, our correspondent interviews Jennifer Sullivan, a young New York based artist whose work transcends across the barriers of painting, performance, sculpture and video. These two International segments are just a tiny cross section of the interdisciplinary practice occurring globally and not to mention in the Indian art scenario which we look forward to representing at length in upcoming issues.
In this issue we also have Amit Mukhopadhyay’s second segment in his series of essays exploring art within the global political scenario ‘Land: Origin of Shame and Sorrow’. Another International story within this issue is that of Japanese Porcelain artist Yuji Obata, and his continuation of the traditional art of ‘Arita’ the age old method of creating porcelain arts. Coming back to the rich and vibrant Folk and Tribal art of India, Mansi Dhiman Mandhwani reviews the recent exhibition of Indian Folk and Tribal Art at Art Konsult Gallery, featuring some of the most renowned Folk and Tribal Artists of our time. Dhiraj Singh writes on ‘Celebrating the Self Taught’ a recent group exhibition held at Dhoominal Gallery in Delhi and Franck Barthelemy gives us his insightful experience of Sudarshan Shetty’s video work ‘Shoonya Ghar’ at Art Basel.
This issue’s heart-touching photo story is from self-taught upcoming photographer Surya Kathir from Chennai. His series of photos depict the fascinating Koovagam Festival, a lesser known religious festival which occurs annually in the small village of Koovagam and brings thousands of transgender women together from all corners of India to celebrate their identity in joy and catharsis. And our final feature article is Rahul Bhattacharya’s ‘Rise of The Curatorial’ the first in a two part series commenting on the notion of curation.
As always feel free to write to us with your comments, feedback and suggestions.
Happy Reading Siddhartha Tagore.
