Quote of Paint

In another very lucid and entertaining conversation,Anjolie Ela Menon says,“Especially in JJ (School of Art),I found that there was this very conscious effort to be Indian and to find roots in Indian painting. I rejected that and I certainly rejected everything that was going on in Santiniketan. I hated the idea of all that very pretty stuff that they were doing there,you know maidens with pots on their heads.”

These quotes may lead the reader into thinking that the two volumes are full of spicy,gossipy nuggets about the art world. That is not quite true. Artists have talked very candidly about their art and their lives,like Menon who travelled to Paris and hitchhiked to Barcelona; Swaminathan who refused to go to Paris; and K.G. Subramanyan who became one of the pillars of the indigenous art movement in Santiniketan and Baroda. They dwell on their associations with various art movements and speak of their association with international figures like Kahlo,Diego Rivera and Octavio Paz (all three were intimate friends of Gujral during his sojourn in Mexico). You get to know that it was the Mexican painter Francisco Toledo who made an impact on Menon,as did the Romanesque churches of Barcelona. They reflect on early art critics Charles Fabri and Richard Bartholomew,and other figures who were crucial to the nascent art scene in India.

Their insights into and criticisms of art movements and fellow artists come through very strongly,as they engage with their own influences and expectations. This is true of most of the artists interviewed. Tyeb Mehta,Anita Dube and Riyas Komu talk more about the formal aspects of their art and the act of creating,leaving biographical details in the background. In many instances Dalmia has dug deep,pursuing difficult questions and trying to throw light on the dramatic spectrum of the art scene that developed in the Nehruvian era.

The first volume begins with the Progressives: Souza,M.F. Husain and S.H. Raza. They are entertaining and perceptive,especially when Husain acknowledges that he never liked Michelangelo and Souza does in fact admit that he was influenced by Picasso. However,there has been an abundance of material on the trio that at times this may seem like an overkill.

Pick up these volumes for the warm portraits of artists that emerge through the interviews — especially of Swaminathan,on whom much has not been strangely written,and the reticent Anju Dodiya. Even Nilima Shaikh and Arpita Singh,who aren’t as well-documented as their male counterparts. The second volume,which has interviews with Contemporaries such as Nalini Malini,Atul Dodiya,Subodh Gupta and Komu,acts as an indicator of things to come. The book ends abruptly with Komu’s interview and with no concluding note from the author.

The one irritant? In some instances,like the rambling interview with Biren De,Dalmia should have exercised her muscle as an editor and made things concise and less indulgent. Also,a few photographs of the artists would have worked nicely with their art works.