Delhi Art Gallery’s latest exhibition comprising 300 works explores religion and mythology over the last three centuries. By K Bhardwaj
Gods and goddesses have been given a primal space in the Indian art since time immemorial. Krishna from Mahabharata or Durga in her chandi avatar have caught the fascination of several modern artists. The ongoing exhibition Indian Divine: Gods & Goddesses in 20th Century Modern Art at Delhi Art Gallery (Hauz Khas village) shows a systematic development of this genre of art in last three centuries. The works are dated from the 19th century to the present-day, with the earliest work dating to 1849 on saint Chaitanya in the early Bengal style. There are oil paintings in the Western style of deities by well-known artists of the academic realist styles like Raja Ravi Varma and MV Dhurandhar, and mythological/religious episodes and figures featured in the hybrid style, a mix of Western realistic painting and traditional Indian art. A few Kalighat paintings are on the religious and mythological themes from the late 19th and early 20th centuries that were very popular, as well as popular bazaar prints on these themes that flooded the market with the advent of paper, lithography and mechanical printing.
“Any other organisation would have taken years to pull off a show like this. Since we have our own vast archives, we took six months to compile the show. We selected these 300 pieces out of 32,000 artworks,” informs Kishore Singh, project editor and head of exhibition and publication at the Delhi Art Gallery. “These works show the development of particular forms of gods and goddesses in two centuries. It’s quite interesting how the same images shaped up with times and artists,” he says.
The exhibition also features works on Christian themes and imagery, led by the first Indian artist to explore the theme, Jamini Roy, and some pieces on Buddhism. He is followed by Krishen Khanna, FN Souza, Madhvi Parekh, Kanwal Krishna, S Dhanapal and V Nageshkar. Over time, many Indian artists have responded to the theme in languages of minimalism and abstraction. “Classically, we have painted gods in particular styles like Krishna would be blue and Durga would be loud. Raja Ravi Verma created a pan-India consensus with his portraits. They became so iconic that we accepted the typified manner. But now it’s coming full circle. It began with abstracts and symbolism which is again surfacing,” says Singh adding that the artists’ presentations of divinity have had several interpretations. “In one work, lakshmi goddess would appear in red sari, while in other, she would have white attire, which reflects transparency. So I wonder which image is an object of veneration or artistic admirationIJ How do you make distinction between two kinds of images,” he says.