By Nandita D
Art Galleries of Bangalore are famous all over India and even beyond due to their uniqueness and creativity. An eye-catchy model of art alleviates the happiness hidden in your subconscious mind. The collection displayed in these galleries also haunts one’s memory forever. It is a reflection of Indian customs and urges the tourists to sooth their souls by having a glimpse of this exquisite majesty.
There are 10 worth visiting and top-rated galleries in Bangalore that collaborate with each other to make a kingdom of paintings and sculptures.
· National Gallery of Modern Art
· Venkatappa art Gallery
· Tasveer Art Gallery
· Sublime Galleria
· Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat
· Cauvery Handicrafts
· The Oriental Haveli
· Mahua Art Gallery
· Swasti Contemporary Art Gallery
· Abstract Art Gallery
All these galleries are famous for their pottery, architecture, stone art, ivory craving and photography. This variety provides a lead to dynamic art scenes. There is also a category of cartoon art to flourish the mind of toddlers with inspiration. The beautifully crafted miniatures disposed there provide a sense of judgment, improves intellectual ability, promotes optimism and make people perceive the impact of this conduct on their social life. These galleries provide a source for national as well as international artists to bring their talent out.
National Gallery of Modern Art
A visual art piece created through an expression of imaginative skills elevates one’s observation. Such sculptures of art collectively represent the cultural values of a nation. The National Gallery of Modern Art located in Bangalore is one of the best demonstrations of Indian culture and traditions. It shows the historical progress of modern art and is under the administration of the Ministry of Culture, Government of India.
History
The place where this art gallery is situated is a beautiful 100 years old Manikyavelu Mansion once a home to Vilum Manickavelu Mudaliar who was a Yavuraja of Mysore. He was a successful business man and bought this building early in his career. He lived in this mansion with his family for a few years but due to some financial problems, it was put on auction and was acquired by City Improvement Trust which is now called BDA. After that, it was given to the Housing Board in 1960s. In 2000, the Ministry of Kannada and Culture gave this mansion under the control of the Ministry of Culture as a sub-lease. The Ministry chose this area for the southern center of NGMA. Restoration started in 2003 and it was renovated in 2006 as a third national art gallery. It was opened for general public on February 18, 2009 under the administration of Sobha Nambisan.
Building
This Art Gallery is an old-fashioned bungalow spotted at 49, GF, Manikyavelu Mansion, Palace Road, Vasanth Nagar, Bengaluru and is spread over an area of 3.5 acres. There is total four buildings in the premises- two picturesque modern art galleries, one having cafeteria and administration office in it, a spacious auditorium and the Manikyavelu endowed mansion. This mansion itself is a representation of traditional values and European architecture and is also neighbored by “Balaboorie Guest House” which tells us about its historical status. The whole area in adorned with lush greenery and the two fountains present there enhance its beauty.
Work of Famous Artists
NGMA, Bangalore covers all types of art like sculptures, paintings, graphic prints, photographs. It aims at presenting art from 1857 onwards. So, the 17,000 works within it pay a tribute to the splendid past as well as the marvelous present of art. It displays the work of many old and modern artists like:
· Raja Ravi Varma
· Abanindranath Tagore
· Amrita Sher-Gill
· Rabindranath Tagore
· Ram Kumar
· Anjolie Ela Menon
· Arpita Singh and others
Focusing on contemporary art is one of the major concerns of this gallery. So, NGMA purchased:
· M F Husain’s landmark 1955 work Zameen
This work is important due to the monumental description of the artists’ expertise in using specific icons and symbols.
· Husain’s Farmer’s Family
Where common people are inherited with prodigious dignity and famous qualities.
· Tyeb Mehta’s Santiniketan Triptych
It’s a landmark painting where brilliant colors held together an assemblage of impassioned terms. This painting is a prominent representation of 90s art style.1
Categories
NGMA divides its collection into different categories based on the name of artists, movements, events, schools etc. Here is a glimpse of two of them.
Art Movements in 1970s
In the early years of 70s, artists made use of their narrative skills to transform a dull situation into fantasy. They exaggerate the expression of personal fear and give it a dream-like intensity.
· KG Subramanyan’s Goddess at Goalpara
It is an image of a witty pastoral where four-armed goddess is chasing a buffalo demon. On the other hand, A Ramachandran inherits the mundane with timelessness. Similarly, a pretty tribal woman standing on a turtle, flamed by a rising flame of forest fire is a self-portrait.
· Madhiv Parekh’s mythic world
It flares up the tribal imagery of Gujarat and also tells us about the hurdles in the life of a woman in masculinist society.
· Fantasies of Jogen Chawdhury
In the early 70s, he introduced a public domain in which he gave fantasies of sexual excitement that increases in the solitary appearance.
Bengal School
In the early 20th century, there was a renewed upthrust of patriotism. It gave a rise to the resurrection of Indian values and spiritualism, a national one that could not be presented by the pictorial words of foreign rulers but by encouraging native methods.
The nationalist project of art was run by Abanindranath Tagore and some eligible Europeans like EB Havell and Sister Nivedita. Neglecting oil painting and subjects popular with both British and Indian intelligence, Abanindranath looked to ancient walls and antique sculptures as a subject matter. He developed Pan-Indian art that was followed by many enthusiasts and later became Bengal School. His philosophy spread throughout the borders of Bengal. So, a modern style free of western influence was developed to present Indian themes in response to the call of ‘swadeshi”. After rejecting the British colonial asthetic, Abanindranath went to Japan to introduce a Pan-Asian asthetic free of western style. The work of Okakura Kakuzo has deep roots in the establishment of Bengal School as students learnt washing techniques from them and modify those techniques according to their needs. Indian themes mostly present foggy vision of Indian land, the historical background as well as the events from daily life of Indians.
Famous artists of Bengal school are Asit Halder, M.A.R Chughtai and Sunayani Devi.
Exhibitions
NMGA presents Indian as well as other cultures of the world. So, a lot of national and international exhibitions held there. Some of them are
· Contemporary Artworks of French artist Gerard Garouste
· Photography exhibition of Nemai Ghosh on Satyajit Ray
· Shashwat Maharathi-The eternal Seeker
· One Shiny Day
Brasilia 60+, Hastantaran, Kshetragya and in the seeds of time are the current exhibitions there while Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav is the upcoming project.2
Art helps a person to accept the reality and act consciously. National Gallery of Modern Art, Bangalore targets a heavy audience and makes people understand the authenticity of their culture and find their own passion and creativity. The excessive progress of an artist is when other people perceive his ideas. NGMA is offering a great opportunity for artists to bring their talent out and let the public rank their essence. In short, the whole is a culture in itself that demands the people to adopt its trend.
Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat
This Gallery is situated in the heart of Bangalore and is surrounded by spirited localities. It is considered as a grandmaster of all galleries and is a visual art multiplex of traditional folk displays with the theme having pictures of Gods and Goddesses.
History
It’s a 2.5 acres land leased by Karnatak Government initially sponsored by an industrialist, H.K. Kejriwal.
· Svetoslav Roerich displayed some of his as well as his father’s Nicholas Roerich paintings to this gallery.
· In 1964, Nanjunda Rao’s Chilrakala was added to its collection.
· In 1966, it became an art center
· Mysore’s paintings are one of the famous treasures of this place.
· In 1998-99, an open-air theatre was also included in it for the performance of artists
· In 2003, two large galleries for foreign group art were added to it
Chitrakala Vidyayala
In the locality of Basavanagudi, Ms Nanjanda Rao started an art school. Artist gathered there to discuss the topics of their paintings. This school was merged with Parishat in 1964 and became a College of Fine Arts affiliated with Bangalore University.
· Applied Art
· Graphic Art
· Art History
· Ivory craving techniques
· Stone art
These are the courses taught here to make a better future of modern art development.
INTACH
It is Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage. The Bangalore center of INTACH was made in 1963 and its works are as follows
· Collection of Mysore Palace paintings.
· Restoration of famous paints by Degas and Rousseau
· Creation of pencil sketches plant modules in Horticultural Library
· Gathered the old oil painting and portraits at one spot
Parishat comprises of a web of galleries, museums and archives. It is a place for art lovers and international arts. It displays the glamorous revolution of art history and is a space for students craving for knowledge of art and craft.
While reading this article It was like I went through a virtual tour into the gallery.The writing is really
Great description and want our students to visit on
Yes I have visited once. Really good
I know there is an Art gallery in Bangalore. But after going through this article, want to visit for
Beautiful portrayal of the place. Compels us to visit