The 13th India Art fair held at NSCI was a wonderful celebration for enthusiast art lovers who flocked to the venue regardless of sultry weather and a revival of a few Covid cases. This much waited fair returned after two years and the visitors embraced it. It contained a plurality of spirit that reflected the resilience of the Indian art world in these uncertain & challenging times. Artists, galleries, and art patrons came together to behold a new version of the art fair that included traditional art juxtaposed with contemporary art! Ganesh Pyne, Sakti Burman, Manjit Bawa, Souza, Madhvi Parekh, Brojeshwar Mandal, Anjoli Ela Menon, Raza, Anjan Modak, Vipeksha Gupta, Sangita Maity, Purvai Rai, Cyrus Penuganti, Krishen Khanna were put together with traditional art practices like Gond painting by Jangarh Singh Shyam, a Madhubani painting by Anmana Devi, rare bhuta bronze masks, a mesmerising vision of Kalight Krishna!
The fair addressed issues of identity, gender, health, race, and social structure through its numerous vehicles. The installation made by university students on the power of art therapy by Ashoka University Centre for Well Being, as well as the 50-feet long Aravani Art Project titled The Future is Femme created by the transgender community were two such thought-provoking projects.
Amongst the contemporary, there was an eclectic range that covered all genres of art from digital, oils, watercolors, print, photographs, and installations. It was wonderful to observe how artist Atul Dodiya’s work had evolved from his Gandhi series, and shutter series to his recent delicate watercolors that featured faceless soul or souls in a minimal mode. His characters drift through a gamut of emotions as he and she were surrounded by nature. There was a timeless quality and a slice of deeply felt humanity, a moment of spiritual revelation in his new works.
Anju Dodiya’s protagonist radiated a mysterious and sensuous quality. She highlighted the inner emotions of the woman, displaying a clear mix of the magical and surreal elements.
Mithu Sen’s hard-hitting images instantly seizes the viewer’s attention as her intuitive drawings documented events of violence that have deeply affected us in our global dangerous climate. Paresh Maity’s abstract vision of Benaras executed
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