Plato’s* Badami

JMS Mani, the veteran artist and the retiring principal of Ken School of Art belongs to a tradition of Plato who gave a form and style to Aristotle, says the young art historian H.A.Anil Kumar. Analyzing the styles of the modern masters of Karnataka, Anil Kumar opines that JMS Mani is a master who is yet to be seen, archived and recognized.
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Bestiality of Market Place

Sanjeev Khandekar

Controversies follow Sanjeev Khandekar for his works do not conform with the norms of aesthetic hegemony. ‘Acquire, Merge or Collaborate’ at the Ashish Balram Nagpal Galleries and ‘Kegel Exercise- Ashwini Mudra’ at Pundole, Mumbai are his twin solos that open on 16th August 2007. Prior to his shows Sanjeev spoke to JohnyML about the concepts behind these twin shows. Excerpts »

The Intimate Drawings

Amitava Das

A large scale solo exhibition of Amitava Das opens at the Gallery Espace, New Delhi on 17th August 2007. The show includes selected works from 1970s to now. Amitava Das speaks to JohnyML about his life and works.

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A Journey with Art: Sara Abraham

Sara Abraham

Sara Abraham stands tall in the field of art promotion. When nobody could even imagine about setting up an art gallery in South India, Sara Abraham went a step ahead with ‘Kalayathra’, travelling exhibition of art. A true modernist with an eye for catching the mastery of Masters, she speaks to Kavitha Balakrishnan about her tryst with art promotion. Excerpts from the interview »

Restructuring an Individual Sensibility

Chemould Gallery, Mumbai wound up its activities at the Jehangir Art Gallery Complex recently and the occasion was celebrated with an exclusive show of the famous Warli painter Jivya Soma Mashe and his son Balu. Featuring their works Amrita Gupta Singh places them in a historical context and says that the tradition and modernity should be mutually inclusive in our times. more »

Right to Home: Field Notes from Ladakh

‘Right to Home’, a recent project conceived and executed by the young artist Koumudi Patil for the children of Tibetan Refugees at Ladakh provided the participating artists with a few eye openers. The project was an art and media workshop that aspired to give the children tools of visual grammar and media skills. Koumudi Patil reports from Ladakh. read on »

The Truth of Art Awards

Art Awards are meant for making certain benchmarks of aesthetics. However, Johny ML finds the recent art award declarations and award exhibitions disappointing. It is high time that the art establishments do away with the democratic transparency in deciding awards and find alternative methods. more »

Freedom of Interpretation

After a brief period of slumber, Delhi is once again abuzz with art activities. Some shows happen without giving any clue to the onlooker. Locating the subjectivity of the artist and the critic within the field of interpretation Aakansha Rastogi tries to save the art viewers from the limbo of cluelessness. more »

Experience and experiment

Sweta Chandra, a young artist from Hyderabad is obsessed with a motif; chair. She grand obsession takes several turns in her pictorial surface and verges on the field of abstraction. Art historian, Parvez Kabir analyses her works presented in the first solo exhibition of the artist at the Gallery Point of View, Mumbai. more »

The Fragrance of Earth

Mumbai based artist Pradeep Mishra recently presented an installation cum painting exhibition at the Guild Gallery, Mumbai. Amrita Gupta Singh says that the exhibition showcased an organic celebration of nature and its cyclical qualities of birth, growth, death, decay and regeneration. more »

Carelessness, thy name is Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata

Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata has become a stand in name for un-professionalism. With commendable verve and boldness young art critic Oindrilla Maity pin points the shallowness with which artifacts are displayed and exhibitions are mounted in the Academy of Fine Arts. more »

Relics Of Grey

Archana Hande’s latest exhibition project at Chemould Prescott, Mumbai captures the essence of a metro life in all its festivities and tragedies. In this review, Kanchi Mehta analyses Hande’s installations and feels that the works reveal the inner truths of human aspirations. more »

Aspiring flaneus’ in the city

Shubhalakshmi Shukla assumes the role of a wanderer in a city and with her innate passion to make observations- which could be sociological, psychological or even psycho-pathological, singles out four women artists from a group show at Project 88, Mumbai in order to see how these artists themselves function as wanderers in city mazes.
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Voices from the exurbias

Indian suburban life is going through a transition phase and these conditions are passing very fast. The new media, casual business, street market, bazaar culture and expanding transport system are diminishing the gap between different communities and societies, says Surya Singh while review the ‘(Sub)Urban Texts’, a group show of four artists at Gallery Espace, Delhi. more »

Ee Bhrantalayathinu Naavundayirunnegil - Sundar

Reviewed by JohnyML

A manicured madness takes hold

Michael Leunig - July 28, 2007 »

Delhi Sketchbook – JohnyML »

Mumbai Sketchbook - Abhijit Tamhane »

Kolkata Sketchbook - Oindrila Maity »

Version True - Uma Nair »

Indian Summer In London

Its been and Indian summer in London in terms of Indian Contemporary Art. Absolute Indian art exhibitions have been running through the months of May and June with ace abstractionist Ram Kumar's works at Grosvener Vadehras. more »