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For Shanti Dave, creativity is a consistent and persistent exploration of the word or akshara—a term defined in the Natyashastra as a stroke in musical notes—which he perceives as the source of all creation. Dave’s abstract iconography, beginning in the early 1950s, adapted to modernism, aesthetic continuity and transcultural exchange. He altered, rejected and improvised the archaic image into a resonant form resembling an ancient script.

‘Iconic Masterpieces of Indian Modern Art, Edition 02’, the second iteration of DAG’s annual exhibition that redefines the concept of modernism in the Indian context, will be on view in New Delhi this month. Timed to coincide with the launch of its new gallery in the capital, ‘Iconic Masterpieces’ brings together the finest instances of art created in the country by Western and Asian travelling artists and Indian masters spread a little over two centuries. Selected for their rarity, historicity, and excellence, each work of art in this exhibition marks the zenith in terms of the quality of art created in different periods and styles in the subcontinent.

DAG invited leading historians of Delhi, Swapna Liddle and Rana Safvi, to explore our archives collection. The items they found there include numerous photographs of the three durbars, taken by prominent photographers of the day. They also include many other objects relating to the durbars, from portraits and medals, to maps and official guidebooks, and to tickets and programmes. Historians in the past have analysed the ideology of the Delhi durbars, but never before has such a collection of the material culture of these events been brought together for display.

India’s Rockefeller Artists showcases iconic works of the Indian painters and sculptors who travelled to the US on philanthropic grants from the JDR 3rd Fund (1963–1979) and later through the Asian Cultural Council. These artists were exposed to American art and shared their own learnings and experiences through these enriching cultural exchanges. The show examines how and why these artists were selected; their relationships with each other and the American art milieu; the impact of the experience on their work; and the creation of a community of Rockefeller artists.

Much of Indian modernism is enriched by the work that some of its best known artists produced after they had left the country, choosing as home another land. F. N. Souza was among the first to leave, in 1949, to head for London, where a successful practice catapulted him to the top of Britain’s artists. He was followed, in 1950, by S. H. Raza, who settled in Paris, winning the coveted critics’ award (Prix de la critique) in 1956, while others such as Krishna Reddy (Paris and New York), S. K. Bakre (London), Sakti Burman (Paris), Avinash Chandra (London and New York), Mohan Samant (New York), Natvar Bhavsar (New York), V. Viswanadhan (Paris), Sohan Qadri (Copenhagen), Rajendra Dhawan (Paris), Eric Bowen (Oslo), Ambadas (Oslo), and Zarina Hashmi (New York), followed in the 1950s-70s. These fourteen artists, with their diverse styles and concerns in art making, are masters lauded for the sheer range of responses to their environment that their work has registered. However, the question this exhibition forefronts, as its curator Kishore Singh asks, is: ‘Does the artist’s ethnic identity mean art too has an ethnic identity?’ Ambadas Avinash Chandra Eric Bowen F. N. Souza Krishna Reddy Mohan Samant Natvar Bhavsar Rajendra Dhawan S. H. Raza S. K. Bakre Sakti Burman Sohan Qadri V. Viswanadhan Zarina Hashmi

William Hodges (1744-97) was a pioneer in more ways than one. He was the first British landscape painter to visit India, and to portray scenery across the whole breadth of the Gangetic plain. As a writer, he gave the first detailed descriptions of numerous historic Indian buildings, and he theorised about the origins and evolution of Indian architectural design. His art illustrates his exploration into terrain which—in its breadth and scope—was at the time almost as unfamiliar to Indian as to Western eyes.

Photographer Nemai Ghosh has been the quintessential Satyajit Ray biographer through his decades-long close association with the master filmmaker. Over a lifetime of work, he has built up a vast and valuable photographic archive, now housed at DAG.

A great number of short-lived but nonetheless significant art movements arose in India over the twentieth century as Indian artists struggled with evolving or arriving at their identity as modern artists and an appropriate visual language of Indian modernism. One of the most significant amongst these is the artist collective, Group 1890, formed in 1962 with twelve young artists, led by the artist and art critic J. Swaminathan. The group consisted of J. Swaminathan, Gulammohammed Sheikh, Himmat Shah, Jeram Patel, Ambadas, Jyoti Bhatt, Raghav Kaneria, M. Reddeppa Naidu, Rajesh Mehra, Eric Bowen, S. G. Nikam and Balkrishna Patel. Ambadas Balkrishna Patel Eric Bowen Gulammohammed Sheikh Himmat Shah J. swaminathan Jeram Patel Jyoti Bhatt Raghav Kaneria Rajesh Mehra Reddappa Naidu S. G. Nikam

The pinwheel of emotions is the genesis of our current exhibition, 'Navrasa: The Nine Emotions of Art'. This unique treatise of emotions and moods has formed the foundation for the performing and visual arts in India. As we researched deeper to explore the dynamics it shares with Indian modern art, we found that all emotions are intrinsically linked with each other, that they trigger actions and reactions and are catalysts for change. 'Navrasa' explores Indian modernism and looks at the works of masters through the nine primary emotions, and breaks new ground in the visualisation of Indian art. Raiba A. H. Muller A. Ramachandran Altaf Amal Nath Chakladar Amit Ambalal Anonymous Anonymous (Bengal ‘School’) Anonymous (Early Bengal School) Anonymous (Early Bengal, Kalighat Style) Anonymous (Kalighat Pat Anupam Sud Arpana Caur Arun Bose Arup Das Asit Haldar B. N. Arya B. Prabha Badri Narayan Bijan Choudhury Bikash Bhattacharjee Bireswar Sen C. Douglas Chintamoni Kar Chittaprosad D. P. Roy Chowdhury Dattatraya Apte Dharamanarayan Dasgupta F. N. Souza G. Reghu Gogi Saroj Pal Gopal Ghose Gopal Sanyal Haren Das Indu Rakshit J. Sultan Ali Jagadish Dey Jai Zharotia Jamini Roy Jaya Ganguly Jogen Chowdhury Jyoti Bhatt K. C. S. Paniker K. G. Subramanyan K. H. Ara K. K. Hebbar K. S. Kulkarni Kanchan Chander Kartick Chandra Pyne Krishen Khanna Kshitindranath Mazumdar Laxman Pai M. F. Husain Madhvi Parekh Mukul Dey Navjot Nemai Ghosh Nikhil Biswas P. S. Chander Shekar P. T. Reddy Paritosh Sen Prodosh Das Gupta Prokash Karmakar Rabin Mondal Radhacharan Bagchi Raja Ravi Varma Rameshwar Broota Ranbir Singh Kaleka S. Dhanapal Sakti Burman Sanat Chatterjee Sanat Kar Satish Gujral Satish Sinha Shyamal Dutta Ray Somnath Hore Stefan Norblin Subba Ghosh Sudhir Khastgir Sukhvinder Singh Sunil Das Sunil Madhav Sen Thota Vaikuntam Tyeb Mehta V. Nageshkar

This exhibition is significant as it marks one of the largest-ever shows of the Progressives and their associate members. It also celebrates the genesis of the Progressive Artists’ Group in Bombay in 1947 and its continued link with the city. Akbar Padamsee Bal Chhabda F. N. Souza H. A. Gade K.H. Ara Krishen Khanna M. F. Husain Mohan Samant Ram Kumar S. H. Raza S. K. Bakre Tyeb Mehta V. S. Gaitonde