Monday, October 7, 2024

Eroticism in Art: Exploring Sensuality and the Human Form Through Kapil Alaskar's Vision

 Kapil Alaskar's exploration of the erotic in art directly correlates sensual experience with artistic expression. His perspective underlines, in a very serious engagement by the theme, sexuality and sensuality, human form, as well as in ancient Indian sculptures, those like can be seen at temples in Khajuraho. Erotic here speaks beyond mere nudity to profound extent of the body itself as it relates to the vessel for emotional as well as sensual expression.



In essence, he says, in particular with the words "Nudity is in the mind of the beholder," something that sounds more universal and philosophical, as the sense of eroticism of a given subject more often reflects on the viewer's head rather than the object of observation. His process as an artist leads him into an internal inquiry in pursuit of the use of women's sensuality, through sketches, drawings, paintings, and so on. The culmination of his artistic work under the concept of "STIMULATION" reveals that he considers the body to not be only an object but rather a subject of deep inquiry and artistic inspiration.

From the comparison he makes of Khajuraho's ancient sculptures, which have carved sensuality into every piece, it can be understood that his artwork challenges societal taboos and trivial perceptions of erotic art. His own world shows his concern with interdisciplinary approaches to the human body because the presence of elements such as rhythm, smell, and desire in his work is a kind of testimony to his not so normal or traditional thought. His view that the body "is not merely a useful tool for sex" but rather a far more complex and profound aspect is part of his creative ethos.

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NIGHT SHOOW - 10 th / 10 / 2024
Time: 5pm to 8pm at NIPPON - Art Night Thursday
OOPEN
World famous art gallery Nippon

Thursday, September 26, 2024

"The Happiness of the Others" BY Artist Elsa Martini


 WAS BEAUTIFUL NOTHING HURT 

Drawn by the art of writing, I chose this beautiful saying to install it in a pond in an Indian village, during the B.Biennale. The basin was misused, polluted and the villages still use it for fishing, laundry, bathing. 
This saying in the past intrigued me to relate it to the damage we are doing through our endless appetite to be better, richer, using the resources of nature without limits. 
Writing is such an ancient as well as contemporary element, but in 
this case, it can only be read mirrored.This symbolic reflection aims to give the viewer a different perspective, time and chance to reflect on the awareness about nature and take responsibility for our actions. 
Water and text are two seemingly unrelated elements, but water with its ability to reflect gives us the opportunity to read in this cace, enlightens us. 

Site specific Bang. Biennale 2019, Kolkata, India 



FAMILY BUNKER


Growing up in a communist country has influenced my work in unforeseen manners. My work reflects the collapse of a utopian social and political context in 1991, resulting in a sense of emptiness, confusion, and constraints.

Family Bunker depicts a phantasmagoric element of the past, the bunker, which appears in the lives of the new generation, often in their own property, causing confusion. I aim to address the unspoken trauma that is passed on to future generations.




Mix media on canvas, 110 x 180 cm, Tirana 2007



 "My brother is the biggest man in the world"

For an independent artist, it doesn't make much difference whether he is alone in his studio or alone in quarantine. It was a pleasant feeling not to be ashamed of not running to a certain job every morning. It was a feeling of unity with the world, even in the worst times. I liked when the air became cleaner during quarantine and I felt a slight nostalgia for the radiant air of this landscape in Albania. This painting, made during quarantine, depicts the summer days on the silent and wild beaches of Albania.The moments and landscapes we took for granted.This beach is not longer the same. The beaches have been stolen from the stupidity of people greedy for reach. It is a phenomenon that accompanies Albania as it opens up to the world and shapes a new identity, at a cost that we do not yet know how high it will be for us.


Acrylic, pencil, spray on canvas; 50 x 70, 2020


HAPPINESS OF THE OTHER


 is an ongoing series, divided into three parts.


       HAPPINESS OF THE OTHER italiian series 2018 


HAPPINESS OF THE OTHER albanian series 2019


The first and second one relate to the Second World War in Austria and Italy, where the focus is on women and children who did not actively participate in this war. However, they were family members of men who served as soldiers in the SS or in other positions. These two series are being shown at the Nippon Gallery Mumbai  2022.





                                                                                                                                                                                    
Elsa Martini graduated from the Academy of Arts in Tirana in 1996 in monumental painting class, then certified by the University of Applied Arts in Vienna in 2011 and Institut für Kulturkonzepte in 2012.  
Martini is a conceptual artist who has developed a complex artistic practice over the decades. She sought the approach to broaden the horizons of the works, which move between painting and multimedia, site-specific and performance. The artist deals with tensions between the individual, society and environment; examines and reflects on personal behavior and social trauma, questioning boundaries, space, environment, and gender issues. Elsa Martini is also passionate about exploring other cultures. At different times, we witness vernacular influences in her works.




www.elsamartini.com

Elsa Martini – www.instagram.com/elsamartinistudio/






New Delhi’s India Art Fair will expand to Mumbai in 2025


India Art Fair event, with a focus on contemporary art and design., will coincide with the existing fair Art Mumbai in November 2025


South Asia’s largest commercial art event, the India Art Fair (IAF) in New Delhi, will launch an offshoot next year in Mumbai. Named the India Art Fair Contemporary (IAFC), the expo will gather between 50 and 70 galleries, mostly from India, in Mumbai’s Jio World Garden between 13-16 November 2025.

India Art Fair is the biggest fair of modern and contemporary Indian art in the world. Its first three editions attracted over 146,000 visitors and its fourth edition held in 2012 canvassed 91 exhibitors from 20 countries. Over the years the fair has mainly showcased Indian modernists (including Bombay Progressive Artists' Group), Indian diaspora artists such as Anish Kapoor, contemporary Indian artists, international artists and art from the subcontinent.

Installations at India Art Fair 2018

Following in the tradition of international art fairs and other global platforms for art exhibition and sale, then Founder and Director of India Art Summit Sunil Gautam realised the need for a similar platform in India to respond to the global interest in Indian art. This led him to conceptualize the first ever India Art Summit (IAS) in 2008. It was patronised by prominent Indian artists like Anjolie Ela Menon, S H RazaKrishen Khanna and Keshav Malik. Since then it has taken place every year with the exception of 2010. Sunil Gautam, the owner of the India Art Summit fully divested his 100% stake in early 2011 to three stakeholders, Neha Kirpal (51%), Sandy Angus(35%) and Will Ramsay (14%), co-founders of the Hong Kong Art Fair. In 2009 the highlight of the fair was a display of Pablo Picasso's works, exhibited by Beck & Eggeling, a German gallery. The same year Lisson Gallery brought diaspora artist Anish Kapoor's sculptures to India for the first time.The New owners renamed India Art Summit as India Art Fair before 2012 edition.

In Sept 2016, just before 2017 edition of India Art Fair, Neha Kirpal divested her majority stake in the India Art Fair to MCH Group, the owner of Art Basel Franchise, retaining just 10% stake to play minor role in the art fair. At the same time Will Ramsay too divested his stake in the India Art Fair to new owners MCH Group(60.3%), Sandy Angus (29.7%) and Neha Kirpal(10%). Later MCH Group, Swiss giant in the art fair circuit, sold its entire stake in India Art Fair (IAF) to Angus Montgomery Arts in 2019, making Sandy Angus the sole-owner of the India Art Fair, New Delhi. The current portfolio of Chairman Sandy Angus led Angus Montgomery Arts includes Taipei Dangdai, India Art Fair, Sydney Contemporary, PHOTOFAIRS Shanghai, Art Central Hong Kong, Art Düsseldorf, Photo London and the forthcoming Art SG, Tokyo Gendai  and PHOTOFAIRS New York.


References

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  12.  Shoba Narayan, “Indian art market a rosy picture”, The National, 23 Jan 2012
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  16.  Kunal Doley, “Shades of Money”, The Financial Express, 08 Feb 2015
  17.  Nasdaq, “Media Release | MCH Group | Co-ownership stake in India Art Fair” GlobeNewswire, 12 September 2016
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