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ART: Bullish on activity, bearish on sales
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Art galleries are mushrooming in the city. But serious art buyers are still scarce, finds out KANCHAN RATHNA.
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Pic. by Vipinchandran
COME 2000 and the city witnessed a spurt in the growth of art galleries, both in Fort Kochi/Mattancherry area as well as in Ernakulam. Now, does this translate into a good market for art? And has art awareness gone up considerably, what with the regular media updates on the art exhibitions, art camps and other related activities in the city?
Not exactly, as one finds out. It's the tourists who buy art mainly, not local people. The lives of artists here, haven't changed much at all, despite these galleries springing up. There still seems to be a definite lacuna in the lives of the local artists in terms of financial satisfaction. Most of these artists lead extraordinarily humble lives, some even pitiably so, contrary to their counterparts in Mumbai and Delhi. "There is no consistency in the art market and there is a definite absence of serious art collectors in Kochi" complains K Ramachandran Nair of Chitram Art Gallery in Ernakulam.
Contemporary artists
Recently, the Rotary club of Downtown Cochin organised a camp in which artists like T. Kaladharan, C.N. Karunakaran, Sathyapal, K.K. Rajappan, Ajaya Kumar, Venu V.B., Asanthan, to name a few, came together to create contemporary art forms, the proceeds of which would help the rehabilitation of tsunami survivors. Similarly the `Periyar Promise' was another such programme organised by Kashi Art Gallery, wherein eminent artists from Bangalore and Hyderabad got together to paint a wall and create the `Periyar Promise Mural'.
Eminent artists from Kerala, like Birju Parthan, Bose Krishnamachari, Justin Ponmany, Jyothi Basu, Alex Mathew, Rimzon, T.V. Santhosh and Babu Xavier, who earlier shifted to greener pastures like Mumbai, now choose to exhibit their work in local galleries. Most of them are artists of national as well as international repute and they have helped carve a niche for contemporary art in Kerala.
Don Fels, an artist from Seattle on a Fulbright scholarship, chose Mattancherry to set up his studio. These random examples reflect on a certain upswing in the local art scenario.
Bright future
Art galleries are mushrooming in this area that is filled with a sense of history as well as the more affluent businessmen and traders. Tourists who flock to these localities are the main art buyers, apart from random sales to corporate houses, architects and interior designers. Is the art market solely dependent on the odd art aficionado, the rich tourist and some interior designers?
"There is more awareness in terms of aesthetics and more people are willing to look at art as an investment," say Anup Skaria and Dorrie Younger of Kashi Art Café. "The future is bright and optimistic provided there is aggressive marketing and there are serious art lovers/collectors," resounded artists Sunil Vallarapadam, Asanthan and P.V. Nandan at Durbar Hall. "The art market might pick up gradually once economic policies change" added Mr. Nair.
The scene has changed for the better as regards to awareness and enthusiasm, which is evident by the number of `commoners' queuing up at the galleries, which is half the battle won. But, to coax them to buy the originals is still a long way ahead.
"An artist is not Page 3 material here yet!" as aptly put by artist Rajan. But the only way ahead is to remain optimistic and upbeat like Kaladharan. "There will be a bright sun shining in clear skies, I dream of that day," he says.
The home art scene
KERALA HAS been home to a variety of culturally rich traditional art forms. Visual art comprising mainly murals, sculptures and inscriptions attached to temples and other prominent architectural spaces have a significant status in the art scenario here. The art of floor pictures, face and body painting, mask and costume making, date far back. Yet 20th century Kerala did not experience a `gallery culture' till very recent times.
It was the emergence of Raja Ravi Varma that restructured the contemporary art situation in Kerala. There was a considerable shift from the conventional temple walls and village floors to the portable space of a canvas. The new art education system gave birth to a number of artists who followed Ravi Varma till gradually art was given a new dimension and definition by progressive artists like K Madhava Menon and K.C.S Panicker. It was at this time that a strong Shanti Niketan influence too could be felt. But it was perhaps the influence of KCS that made the Kerala art scenario really `modern' in the 60's .
Promoting art
It was in 1962 that Kerala Lalitha Kala Akademi, now Durbar Hall Art Centre was established with its headquarters in Thrissur, with the purpose of promoting visual art in the state. Artists' camps, art exhibitions, seminars, fellowships and awards, lectures and demonstrations by eminent artists and other related activities took the state by storm. The serious need of the artists for venues to display their creations gave impetus to the growth of art galleries in Kochi.
The `Kerala Kalapeetom' was established by a group of eminent artists like M.V Devan, C.N Karunakaran, T. Kaladharan, to name a few. Soon other private galleries like Chitram, Palette, Kashi followed. People have started visiting art galleries and imbibing their feel. Art awareness is on. Art is now here to stay.
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