2010

(Monday, December 13 to Friday, December 31)

In this work the senses of the body provides a communicative function, and we may then as well state that the body is the physical counter point of the total process of perception, as of emotions and sensations: e.g. the vibratory motion in this work. The postural status, the constant positions of the muscles, are acted out so as to maintain the self that the body carries. In this way in a single minded work reality is indirectly viewed as dependent upon interrelationships. Thus, Jagdish introduces us to many moods, many gestures, voluntary or involuntary. Of course the Shanta Rasa is missing, for in it the intelligence of the highest order keeps in check the lower order of expression. Thus came the composure of the Buddha, of Christ even in his agony. The painter is treating only the ‘normal’ types, which most of us are. What he has done has been done in the performing arts of ancient India, in its aesthetics of facial expressions as also via the hand Mudras. The artist, however, has chosen quite another avenue of expression; of human emotions that Darwin studied, or as indeed Lomboroso did.

But this is art, and not science. So that, whatever I say above, even when not strictly connected with art craft, should be read as in aid of enjoyment of art on many levels. If great novels have expressed aspects of the human personality tellingly, so can art, for here too are revelations of ourselves. In dealing with art as a total reflective device for the viewer we also see how it allows us to stand where another has stood. We ignore the emotional at our peril. The significance of these body images in a time of almost absolute abstraction is all important. Ignoring the self is in the end, ignoring art.

Keshav Malik

(Wednesday, November 10 - Saturday, November 27)

Vijay Shinde’s work is somewhere in between formlessness and definition - one sees snatches of images or constructs that are familiar but mired in a haze of colours that ensure that complete and immediate elucidation is impossible. In some ways, Shinde reflects reality in the fact that his work hovers between abstraction and definition - its inspiration in his native culture and religion is obvious, but its expression through obfuscated techniques rips open the work to the imagination and to interpretation. From a visual perspective, his work has boundless energy - there is a veritable implosion of energy as the artist pummels the handmade paper and this energy is obvious in the colours and the formation of the strokes. The energy is represented in such ways that the one word that springs to mind is mystery. Sitting in a room surrounded by his works, I would surely feel a slight shudder down my spine as the greys, reds and blacks stare out at me in mysterious and, for all their impenetrability, frightfully surprising shapes, symbols and metaphors. All in all, Shinde has created a suite of works that enthralls, energises and mystifies - that is, the works are sufficiently powerful to emote and to cause emotion.

Sarjan Shah

 (Monday, October 11 to Saturday, October 30)

The journey which started in 2008 with the painting ‘Splash’ has now reached its culmination and achieved a wider expanse in this exhibition- D”TOX. A span of two years is neither too short nor too long a time for a creative journey. This sojourn has brought a transformation and transition in the artist’s creative outlook. He is bolder in his approach and experimentation with thought, form, content and medium which has made D”TOX possible. The paintings in D’TOX are unquestionably contemporary, relevant and unique; Nanda’s visuals are expressed and presented in a vividly sharp, intricately detailed and uniquely delicate photorealist style. The very term D”TOX carries a metaphorical sense and meaning. The Detoxification in real life and its necessity have much to do with the painted subject matter of D”TOX. The real and the painted have a very close and overwhelming relationship between them. Among the five basic elements; water undoubtedly occupies a very distinct and predominant position in human life. It constitutes more then seventy percent of the human body. So the artist has made an excellent and discreet use of it as a theme of his present works with an aim to detoxify and cleanse our body and soul. Water is painted here as a purging and purifying agent of our external bodily mechanism as well as of the internal mindset and soul, of the thought process and consciousness, of emotions and passions and of many more abstract and finer aspects symbolizing the basic characteristics of human identity. Perhaps water is presented by the artist as an external detoxifying and cleansing agent, but at the same time has tried to create a parallel image, a sublime understanding and a magical expressiveness to it by immersing in it as delineated through his hyper real painting –“Zoom in Paradigm”. The goat’s unquenched thirst for water and the innocent child’s playful merriment are not only visually pleasing but soulfully fascinating. D”TOX will no doubt pacify and calm your mind.

You will suddenly feel lifted to another realm losing your ties with the real world. Your retinal movements will lose their desired track and will get frozen in an exotic charm and mesmerizing enchantment. You will succumb before the exceeding brilliancy of rendering and assimilation of colors and thought- but of course with a positive and pleasing consequence of sensory feeling and pleasure which thereby paves the way for the purging of passions and emotions. It is D”TOX in the true sense and artist Nanda’s paintings successfully do that. The slender margin between the two-dimensional spatial surface of the canvas and that of the world of Nanda’s extra reality gradually gets blurred and ultimately vanishes; for a moment the two mingle, till you realize that it’s a painting after all.

 D. M. Parthasarathi

(Tuesday, September 14 to Thursday, September 30)

The pictorial world of Rini Dhumal is an amalgam of myth and realism, where nostalgia and sombre tones meet to create powerful protagonists that exude raw primal energy. We see representations of memory and recollection, distilled by her imagination which emerges from deep convictions and courage.

Incarnations of the quintessential Indian Woman--quiet, with aloof confidence and devoid of any fragility--dominate the earthy landscapes. Stories of displacement, chance encounters and tales of far-away lands, integrating with symbolism and perception, are all part of her oeuvre. One comes upon, at once, the universality and intimate familiarity in the fluid forms.

Trained as a painter, Rini Dhumal has experimented with every conceivable medium ranging from print-making, graphics, ceramics, with fantastic results, and created a cultural vocabulary uniquely her own. Her sketchbooks, with jottings of her initial responses before they take shape as paintings or other artworks, reveal the coming together of her hand and spirit. Drawing upon a storehouse of historical details, the splendours of her childhood and anecdotal references from various travels, she creates a vivid aesthetic in her art-making.

Ina Puri

(Wednesday, September 15 to Friday, October 1)

Evolution is a beautiful on going process. It is universal, never-ceasing, all life is based on resisting it and yet life is nothing without it. To evolve is to grow, develop, change incrementally or transform entirely. As many philosophers have already posited, the only constancy in life is change. Change can be physical, emotional, psychological or cerebral. Evolution is valuable because it prevents stagnation, rigidity and obsolescence - it allows individuals and organisations to move with time and to alter perceptions of self and other, to shift perspectives, to re-align goals and priorities and most importantly perhaps, to do this without affecting core values.

In modern human society at least, positive evolution would consist of surging forward amidst myriad transformations in technology, spirituality, politics and international relations while remaining true and honest to one's own roots and the values that the journey was begun with. In many ways, that is precisely what Tao has managed to do. There is no doubt that the gallery and its people have evolved over their decade-long journey. Yet, there is much at the very heart of the way they do things that has remained constant.

Tao has transformed utterly in physical terms. Having started out as a one-atrium gallery in Sarjan Plaza, it now occupies not only that grand first atrium, but also three entire floors of awe-inspiring viewing space in The View. Tao's growth in terms of space, and its development in terms of using that space intelligently, aesthetically and to the best benefit of artists and appreciators is truly impressive. In tangible terms, it has evolved from a show run largely by one determined individual, its director, to a multi-faceted organisation capable of curating and administering multiple exhibitions of significant quality and size. The growth of its team and their continued cohesion as a unit is another important evolutionary process worth noting.

 Tao has also grown (and this is perhaps the obvious one) from being a new start-up gallery into one of Mumbai's premiere private galleries. The journey has not been easy but has seen a close determination of its main protagonist, Kalpana Shah, to constantly evolve and better herself. In this process, she has allowed Tao to evolve through people. It has enjoyed the clientele of collectors, the trust of up-and- coming artists and the patronage of the most important Indian masters of the age. It is this contribution from and interaction with the outside that has catalysed Tao's inner evolution towards such a pedestal in the Mumbai art world. Events of stunning proportions have a habit of lurking around the corner for years to come, and 26/11 hardly has a peer in that regard. The loss of Pankaj Shah, not just to Tao's director but to the entire group of organisations that her family owns, was stupendous. He had been the original patron of the gallery and had lovingly encouraged its process and so his loss, in terms of its impact on the director herself, led for the first time to a short process of immediate and rapid transformation instead of the incremental steps of evolution. Kalpana Shah became, overnight, a bereaved wife, a single mother and the chairperson of a large business empire, her role at Tao would change forever. And still, in the grand scheme of things, evolution does not stop - it has allowed her to add sensitive emotionality to the themes of the exhibitions at the. gallery and most importantly, to give Tao a new artist - Kalpana's own exhibition of paintings received the most thunderous applause. Kalpana, whose story is indelibly intertwined with Tao's own, has finally, in the year 2010, evolved into an artist of significance and importance and there is no doubt that while the events of 26/11 were emotionally significant in morphing her into an artist, her journey stretches far back into her childhood.

In exactly the same manner, the ten-year anniversary of Tao should be celebrated as another milestone in a journey that has seen patient evolution and one earth shattering moment of utter transformation but will, it is hoped, continue with positivity and health, into the future. I hinted at it earlier, but will make the point explicitly now: Tao's greatest strength remains its ethos of quality, honesty and transparency in dealing with all its evolutionary companions - and that, in the true spirit of human evolution, where those few things worth clinging onto should very well be clung onto, has remained unchanged.

Sarjan P. Shah, February 12, 2010

(Monday, February 1 to Saturday, March 1)