Gond art meets Swedish design

A fish in the form of an aeroplane, a drunk man regressing into a boaru00a0-- as Gond art evolves, it finds a unique exhibiting space

Bhopal-resident Bhajju Shyam worked as a night watchmanu00a0 at the age of 16. His cousin, Raman Singh Shyam had to quit school to become a daily wager. That was till their uncle Jangarh Singh Shyam, a famous Gond artist, honed their painting skills.



In a fortunate turnabout, the Shyams have become very popular and their works have been exhibited and bought in countries like France, Australia and England. Now, works by the duo, and cousin Venkat Raman Singh Shyam, are being exhibited in Mumbai. It is, however, not being showcased in a traditional art gallery, but in Svenska Design Hotels, a hotel that claims, with its clean lines and minimalist interiors, to be inspired by Swedish design philosophies.

As art consultant of Svenska Design Hotels, Tara Kaushal says, "Many would not even have heard of Gond art, had it not been for a fortuitous meeting of the 21 year-old Jangarh and renowned curator J Swaminathan, the director of Bharat Bhavan, Bhopal, in 1981." Under the director's patronage, Jangarh became an internationally renowned artist, taking Gond art to the world.

Since then, Jangarh, helped other practitioners of the art while experimenting with this ritualised rural art, imbibing a more modern idiom by using a variety of media, including ceramic, glass, aluminum and iron.
While, traditionally, women of the tribe used multi-hued natural dyes to depict Hindu icons and mythological worlds, nature, incidents of their daily life, festivals, religious events, the new works, depict for instance, an aeroplane as a fish, inspired by the artist's first aircraft journey.

Jangarh died in Japan in 2001, but not before taking the art to the world and preparing the next generation of artists to take the mantle forward. Despite Gond art having received much acclaim abroad, very little of it is exhibited in urban centers like Mumbai. Kaushal says, "Hopefully, many more Gond works will be showcased in India, and people will get to know of the evolving art."
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At: July 1 to 31, F 73/74, Oberoi Complex, Off Link Road, Andheri (W)
Call: 44310000