Lounge
35 years of Gallery Espace: The parallel journeys of artists and their gallery
Summary
Three shows to mark 35 years of Delhi’s Gallery Espace reflect on the development of new languages and formats in contemporary Indian artBridging the past and the present—this seems to be the thread uniting the three exhibitions that celebrate 35 years of Gallery Espace. The first, Ancestral Futures, put together by Swiss curator Damian Christinger at the space in New Friends Colony, Delhi, allows artists to reflect on their heritage while imagining all sorts of creative possibilities. Take, for instance, the striking digital prints on archival paper by Delhi-based artist, Ashish Sahoo, who looks at a collaborative retelling of mythological narratives from a contemporary perspective. On view as part of the exhibition till 12 December, his works feature theatre actors and Chhau dancers. The idea is to offer a new look at age-old oral traditions, and the unique role that performers play in “transforming the identity of a familiar character".
In another part of the gallery, bookshelves have been transformed into art displays. In the first edition of a new programme, Off the Shelf, exploring materiality and scale to be held regularly on the bookcases, artist Shirley Bhatnagar transforms everyday objects into ceramic artworks. The showcase, Not, Still Life, on view till 19 November, highlights the artist’s exploration of anthropomorphism through objet d’art.
And then there is a third show, Memory Fields, curated by Gayatri Sinha, all set to open at the Bikaner House on 29 November. It features artists such as Amit Ambalal, Chitra Ganesh, G.R. Iranna, Jeram Patel, Madan Lal, Manjunath Kamath, Zarina and Nilima Sheikh, who have been integral to the gallery’s journey. Each of these exhibitions looks at Gallery Espace’s role in developing new languages in art and the evolution of the contemporary art ecosystem in India. “Along with the artists, the gallery has adapted and re-adapted itself. We have changed according to the times, and that is a very satisfying feeling," says Renu Modi, founder of the space.
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Memory Fields features drawings by M.F. Husain, an artist who played a significant role in the setting up of the gallery in 1989. A friend of the Modi family since the early 1980s, he ended up as the architect of their house in 1985. In fact, Modi has often remarked how she dwells within a living artwork. She recalls long conversations with him in London in the mid1980s, while he was working on the British Raj series for a commission by Tata Steel. These discussions expanded the way she thought about the scope, medium and format of art-making. When the gallery was all set for launch, Husain designed the galloping horse logo for it. It was with an exhibition of his watercolours that Espace opened to the public. “Damian, who has curated Ancestral Future, also got some of the younger artists to respond to one of Husain saab’s self-portraits. It has been heartwarming to see the many ways in which this generation perceives him and his struggles," says Modi.
This is also a time when the gallery is looking back at its many milestones— some of them firsts for the art ecosystem such as curating exhibitions highlighting drawing (1994) and sculpture (1995), mediums that were not taken seriously by collectors and art enthusiasts at the time. Then there was The Self and the World in 1997, curated by Gayatri Sinha—incidentally, her first show as a curator—which not only showed works by 16 women artists from Amrita Sher-Gil to Anjolie Ela Menon, but also sought to address the gender inequality in representation within the art ecosystem.
Experimental art practices were highlighted in shows such as Kitsch Kitsch Hota Hai (2001), centred on pop art, and two editions of Video Wednesday (2008-09, and 2011-12), which were held at a time when the conversation around video art was at a nascent stage in India. From the 1990s, Gallery Espace became one of the first art spaces to invite curators to present shows, such as poet-art critic Prayag Shukla for Drawing ’94, sculptor Madan Lal for Sculpture ’95, and more. “I did not learn art through books but by interacting with masters such as Husain, J. Swaminathan, Manjit Bawa and K.K. Nair. My journey through art has been experiential," reminisces Modi. “I never opened the gallery for money or with a strategy, but just went with my gut instinct and what inspired me."
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She would spend hours at artists’ studios, watching them work and listening to them talk about art aesthetics. “Masters like K. Laxma Goud would talk about the importance of the line and drawing. That always fascinated me, but the buyers for drawings were limited. At that time, the trend was to buy large canvases," adds Modi. She wondered if drawings could be shown on a large scale as well. So, Modi enlisted the help of Prayag Shukla, who ended up curating the 1994 show. Sculptor Madan Lal came to Delhi from Varanasi to support the exhibition design. He suggested doing a sculpture show next. That too was a medium that was not widely shown in the country. He travelled all over India, selecting sculptural works, especially by artists aged 45 and younger, to be showcased at Gallery Espace’s exhibition at the Lalit Kala Akademi.
Similarly, printmaking was a neglected medium by galleries and institutions. Dattatraya Apte, the founding member of the Indian Printmakers Guild, assisted artist Anupam Sud in curating a travelling Mini Print exhibition in 1996. “Every show was accompanied by a publication and informal conversations, as part of which artists would be seated on gaddas on the floor, immersed in deep discussions," she says.
Instead of hosting art camps, Gallery Espace played host to interactive residencies held at the Modi family guesthouse in Haridwar. For the first one, Bhupen Khakhar, Atul and Anju Dodiya, and Amit Ambalal spent a week by the river, without any canvas or art material. The idea was just to have meaningful conversations, and then see what emerged from that. A year later, they created works based on the residency, which were shown as part of Leela (2003). “For a gallerist, it is not just the commerce that ought to matter, but the presentation, design and selection of works. And that comes about only with constant conversation," says Modi. “Earlier this was not labelled as mentorship. For instance, we did five shows of Zarina, and before each exhibition, I would fly to New York to see and discuss every work."
In fact, long after the artist’s demise, the gallery’s engagement with Zarina continues. She will be the focus of a special lecture in a bid to highlight her legacy and make it accessible to a newer generation of artists and art enthusiasts. “Meanwhile, I continue visiting artists’ studios. It is about getting into their minds to understand why they are doing what they are doing. This involvement will never change," says Modi.
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