Bold & beautiful

Enough has been celebrated and remembered about Amrita Sher-Gil. Enough has been said and speculated too. Given the large body of work she left at the age of 28, what if she lived to see her first major solo show scheduled just a few days ahead of her death in Lahore? Would the ‘Frida-Kahlo of India’ be having a far more sweeping moment in art and much sooner?

On her 78th death anniversary, remembering the great artist that was and also the artist that would have been. “I’d say modernism in Indian art started after her works only,” Bheem Malhotra, Chairman, Chandigarh Lalit Kala Akademi, sums up her contribution to art, especially Indian art, in a few words.

As much as the famous works that highlighted Indian narratives, it’s the life that she led beyond the canvas, which continues to interest aspiring artists, art historians and amateurs alike. The Hungarian-Indian painter, was exposed to modern art movement in France, studied art in Paris, but chose to travel to India, stay put in the country and paint. With medium oil, canvas and subjects often bold. Pretty much like the life she led. Lately, and also rightly, Sher-Gil’s legacy has grown in stature, with UNESCO, declaring back in 2013, the 100th birth anniversary of the artist as the international year of Amrita Sher-Gil.
Wide canvas

The daily lives and quite often the struggle of Indian women dominated her bold artworks; women in pensive mood, women going to the bazaar, women at a wedding or together with other women. But among the several legendary canvases by the artist, it’s the one that depicts village life that sits firmly entrenched in artist Sidharth’s memory. Titled Ancient Storyteller, the canvas depicts a village scene in rural Punjab, wherein a priest is narrating a story to two children, with gurdwara and buffalo in the background. “That’s a beautiful composition and that is just the kind of work missing from modern Indian art, and the kind of work artists should be doing more and more.” He adds, “She was truly an artist who chose to stay back in India, chose art to depict Indian narratives as they were.”

Even though her techniques were as modern as they came in the era, with her being inspired by modern art movement in western France. His perspective of her works is not the only thing that doesn’t overlap with the mainstream projection of the artist. “We of course remember her as this huge figure in the world of art, which she indeed was. But we don’t remember her as this little girl too, who was passionate about art and who died at the tender age of 28. To me she was just a promising child who died far too young, but not before letting the world catch a glimpse of potential and greatness,” he says.

Great conviction

Liberal in the true sense of the word is how Tirthankar Bhattacharya, Chairperson, Department of Art History and Visual Arts, would like to classify her persona as. “And that completely reflected in her works. She was one of the few women who broke the cultural and social norms, and were truly ahead of her times.” Be it the nudity in art, her alliances or pursuing art at a commercial level, she introduced it all. “I have gone through several accounts of her as a person and as an artist, and she never regretted what she did, which speaks volumes of her conviction,” he adds.

Supreme confidence

Eccentric, iconic, and way ahead of her times, like we said, Amrita, the person, continues to inspire, interest and even divide the art world. Like her statement that till date is subject to myriad interpretations, “Europe belongs to Picasso, Matisse, Braque and many others. India belongs only to me.” Opines renowned artist Prem Singh, “If you look at the age at which she made the statement, one can only think she was confident and which is a very positive thing. And you see she did prove that right too,” he says, adding how under the Art Treasures and Antiquities Act her works are classified as National Art Treasures. So, her works can’t be taken out of the country. “You see she did prove herself right!”

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