‘Spiritualism in art GLORIFIES LIFE’
The exhibition, ‘Spiritual Abstraction’ offers the artists’ quality to communicate a chosen divinity in terms of his ability to conceive realistic as well as abstract images
It is said that true art – which is a spiritual, immaterial respite from the hardships of life – takes note not merely of form but also of what lies behind. And a good artist is one who transforms experience, and the way we experience it. But it takes a real connoisseur to recognise the true potential of an artist.
Sanchit Art Gallery is hosting an exhibition by Dipak Banerjee which has been curated by Arun Ghose.
‘Spiritual Abstraction’ will be inaugurated by Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, in the presence of renowned artist Krishen Khanna, on March 24 in the Sanchit Gallery at DLF South Court Mall, Saket, New Delhi.
Dipak, who lives and works in Kolkata, says his work is a “Realistic depiction of spiritual aspiration, instead of automated reflex translated in line and paint on canvas or papers.”
His art is uniquely different from the other artists of ‘Neo-tantra’ and this difference is visible in his ability to transcend its ‘Shaivite’ origin and acquire an artistic freedom to paint imagery from other religions with equal artistry.
This exhibition offers Dipak Banerjee’s artistic quality to communicate a chosen divinity both in terms of his ability to conceive realistic as well as abstract images. It also offers adequate proof of his painting skills in portraying a modern idiom that is rich with his traditional roots intact.
Sanchit Art Gallery represents the best of contemporary Indian art and it specialises in showcasing quality artworks by senior and master artists. It also aims to bridge the gap between artists working in India and abroad by establishing a platform for them with curated shows of Indian art abroad.
The gallery is spacious enough with fittings necessary for display of art to its discerning and international clientele. It had also partnered with a Spanish gallery to show Picasso and Braque, among others, at the India Art Fair.
Banerjee’s art betrays the logical construction that is almost pre-meditated and yet is organic in essence. He became equally adept at exploring the non-figurative qualities of Yantras and often explored its abstract images with the same intensity of visual charm that usually characterised his art.
His main pictorial attraction however remains hidden in his intimate application of line and colour that firmly echoes the age-old brilliance of ‘miniature’ painting tradition.
A Bengal artist, born in 1936 and a graduate of the Government College of Arts and Crafts in Kolkata, came to the limelight in the sixties and is a member of a Kolkata based artists group, ‘Society of Contemporary Artists’. Dipak has always been fascinated with tantric images. He went to France on a French Government Scholarship where he mastered the technique of representing these traditional images in abstract forms in graphic art and later in the medium of water colours. He has made important contribution in the field of graphic art and abstraction out of traditional ‘tantric’ imageries.
Today, Banerjee is undoubtedly one of the undisputed leaders and ‘creator’ of what was earlier known as the ‘Neotantric’ school of painting in India, and the present series, which will be open to the public from March 25 to May 14, has the ability to draw the geometric accuracy of ‘tantric’ symbols with an unmistakable devotion of a Master in the tradition of Indian miniature painting and the one who knew the degree of exactitude needed to convey the thematic import adequately.
Sanchit Art’s series of major shows at important global destinations under the title ‘KALA SUTRA’ with the works of senior and master artists has been described by the mainstream media of South East Asia and Middle East in superlative terms. Sanchit Art is now firming up its initiative in Singapore with major art programmes in the coming months.
Some of the artists whose works have been displayed by Sanchit Art include Ganesh Pyne, Jayasri Burman, Jogen Chowdhury, K Laxma Goud, Lalu Prasad Shaw, Maite Delteil, Manoj Dutta, MF Husain, Neeraj Goswami, Paresh Maity, Ram Kumar, Sakti Burman, Senaka Senanayake, Satish Gujral, Sujata Bajaj, Thota Vaikuntam and Vasundhra Tewari Broota.