ajanta fin expo
TRANSCRIPT
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
1/24
A
Reawakening
Bhaskar HandePIMAA
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
2/24
Paintingscreated on the spot
ByBhaskar Hande
Copyright April 2001
PIMAAThe Hague Holland and Pune India
Jejuri
AjantaVerulSinmhgad
Karla
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
3/24
A ReawakeningI graduated from high school in 1974, with arthistory as one of my subjects in the final gradeAlong with several other students I had chosen arthistory instead of mathematics Before that time, arthistory was probably not part of the curriculumThis suggestion by my art teachers turned out tobe the most important one in my lifeMy primary schooling and my vocational training in
art were in India I then did my degree course in artin Holland Ive been a student of art history fornearly thirty years, and a practising artist fortwenty-five And occasionally, Ive put things intowords
I recall this today because I saw on television howthe Taliban in Afghanistan had destroyed a statueof the Buddha, sculpted in the Gandhara styleGenerally speaking, the cultural assets of manycountries are in the embrace of just such adestructive mindset Instead of preserving these
valuable artifacts for posterity, these reactionaryrulers and religious fanatics carry out insensitiveacts of destruction Do these people commit suchacts because they dont fully understand whattheyre doing?
When you walk through museums in countriesaround the world, you realize at once how
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
4/24
important this cultural legacy is for the cominggenerations These dated places and artifacts keepshedding light on the details that make up the lifeof those periods A single mans life amounts toseveral decades at most That life, caught up in itsown development, seems so limited whencompared to a cultural legacyWhen thinking has a limited horizon, it can betransformed into a cruel and destructive force the
Buddha statue incident makes that clear A culturaland intellectual vacuum forms in the wake ofevents like these. The impetus for further suchactions and reactions remains alive.What creative human energy must have gone into
making this statue. That effort has been giving joyto enthusiasts for centuries. Doesnt this unfeelingact against an ancient culture prove how degradedin the name of religion-man has become?The Ajanta, Ellora, Karla and Elephanta caves inwestern India were carved - with the Gandhara
style as a background - under the influence ofBuddhist, Hindu and Jain religious traditions. In thelast two months Ive come to realize how inspiringthese ancient sculptures can be.I was depressed after seeing that barbaric act in
Afghanistan this year. Id never seen the caves andsculptures near my birthplace. It has been a long
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
5/24
journey since I left India some twenty years ago togain recognition in the art world. But, as I set out totake an overview, I fell witness to the wantondestruction of centuries old works of art; I wassaddened. And so the thoughts that were crowdingmy mind during the past four months moved me togo and see the Ajanta-Ellora caves with my nowmature eyes.Large sculptures of the Buddha, Siva-Parvati,
Vishnu-Laxmi, and huge statues of elephants andlions, tales of the chatak (a bird), colorful paintingsof courtesans-all these gave lustre to my ideasabout the ancient. A saddened mind washeartened, strengthened once again.
My inspirations are many. But it seems as thoughmy work today is slowly emerging from a fog andtaking shape, fashioned from an inchoate mindand inspired by these artifacts. I became moreaware of this while seeing the Ajanta-Ellora caves.Its hard to fathom what is hidden at the root of
consciousness, which makes one draw, paint andcreate sculpture. As one makes ones way throughthe reaches of time, one keeps looking for outlineshidden from our view for centuries. One sees thebanks of rivers, exposing what countless floods
have left behind. In a poem one can give voice tothe clamor of emotions. A painting is made with
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
6/24
lifes experiences. A sculpture can bringtranscendence into being.Ellora and Karla caves are highly expressive. Themind of an artist was the same in ancient times. Itwas the same throughout mans history. And it isthe same even in modern times. Only his methodis different. The flow of knowledge and experiencethrough works of art awakens an artists impulse,and gives rise to new creations. The flow starts
once again. This process keeps recurring. Onebecomes a vehicle for culture, mans nature, histhoughts and ideas.IBhaskar Hande
(Trans-creation from the Marathi by Jayant Deshpande)
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
7/24
Karla
size 76x56cm
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
8/24
Karla
size 76x56cm
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
9/24
Karla
size 76x56cm
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
10/24
Karla
size 76x56cm
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
11/24
Karla
size 76x56cm
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
12/24
size 76x56cm
Jejuri
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
13/24
size 76x56cm
Jejuri
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
14/24
size 76x56cm
Jejuri
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
15/24
size 76x56cm
Jejuri
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
16/24
size 76x56cm
Jejuri
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
17/24
Jejuri
size 76x56cm
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
18/24
Verul_Sinmhgad
size 76x56cm
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
19/24
Ajanta
size 76x56cm
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
20/24
Karla
size 76x56cm
Karla
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
21/24
Ajanta
Verul
size 76x56cm
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
22/24
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
23/24
Verul_Sinmhgad
size 76x56cm
-
8/9/2019 Ajanta Fin Expo
24/24
The exhibition of these works was held on 28th June
till 3rd july 2001in Balgandharva Rangmandir Kaladalan
Pune India
Copyright April 2001
PIMAA
The Hague Holland and Pune India