The 3rd Print Biennale India restarted the discourse on the art of printmaking in India. An initiative by the central government, it activated the regional centers. In Calcutta, Lalit Kala Akademi had a stupendous show with a repertoire that underscored the genius of the art, the master printmakers of India and from across the globe, and brought to the fore the diverse forms that the genre offers.
Over 200 artists showcased their work in woodcut, etching, lithography, linocut, monoprints, serigraphy, planography and other works at the AJC Bose Road gallery. Workshops and discussions also aided in giving a push to the form that doesn’t enjoy the same status as mainstream art practices. Several city galleries also joined in and gave a collective voice to the art that requires discipline, patience and utmost precision.
The launch of the collateral exhibition at Galerie 88 was attened by professors of Rabindra Bharati University and others.
Galerie 88 at Shakespeare Sarani showcased 25 linocuts of Rani Chanda, a protégé of Abanindranath Tagore and Nandalal Bose, whose folio’s introduction features Rabindranath Tagore’s appreciation for her craft. “She has real artistic talent as is evident in these lino prints done by her showing genuine feeling for her subjects and natural skill in execution,” the note from Tagore read. Her works, inspired by nature and rural life, is simple yet profoundly affecting, and it served as a starting point for the students of the Department of Graphics-Printmaking, Rabindra Bharati University, to develop their body of work and respond to her creative process. In particular, her ‘Jenana Fatak’, which chronicles her time as a political prisoner, inspired many and found a place in the gallery on the first floor.
Artworks at Galerie 88
B-CAF hosted ‘In The Name of God’, an exhibition of 23 practising printmakers from across West Bengal. Curated by Parag Roy, it engaged them in exploring the idea of faith and belief. The result was a mirage of emotions, visual spectacle, memory, mood and more etched on the canvas with a lot of discipline, technique and thought.
Artworks at B-CAF
Emami Art presented a group exhibition, ‘Purvai: Printmaking in Eastern India — Pedagogy to Practice’, tracing the contemporary printmaking scene in the eastern part of the country. Curated by artist, academician, curator, researcher, and writer Paula Sengupta, the exhibition featured 43 artists from the Northeastern states, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh.
Artworks on display at Emami Art
