Harvest paisa this season

The Commonwealth Games, apart from grabbing eyeballs and headlines for the wrong reasons, has inspired artists in the Capital. The Games, coupled with price rise and other money related issues, has been depicted by curator Navasar in an exhibition titled Paisa paisa money money.

“Looking at the current scenario, the title is very appropriate. For the past two years, we all are talking about economic recession, inflation, CWG and the new currency sign,” says Ambika Jain of Navasar.

Whether it is the cheerleaders of the Indian Premier League or the currency garland controversy of Mayawati, artists have shown the greed, lust, power, strength of the money. Joydip Sengupta, in his painting, Standby which is divided into three parts, unfolds both the good and bad side of money. The first picture shows fire cylinders that are kept idle and an eclipse that is changing into coin of ` five. Another picture captures the launch of a rocket from NASA and below it there is renovation work going on of an idol of the Chinese leader Mao Tse Tung. The third shows the flags of China and the US and below it is Mayawati with her currency garland. “I am trying to portray the current financial situation. On one hand progress is happening whereas on the other, money is being misused. The fire cylinder shows how when we hear a big market has caught fire in the city, authorities rush to save it. But if the government would have taken proper measures and build infrastructure, this fire could be avoided. The eclipse changing into a coin shows that now that the recession is over, we can put our energy for the development of the nation. The middle picture shows the economy in progress where a rocket is launched,” explains Sengupta.

Artist Pratap Modi, through his work, Unheard voice, questions the ban on bar dances that took place at Maharasthra in 2006-07. The painting visualises the bar girls dancing on the stage with men gazing with lusty eyes. “Through this work, I want to make the point that when people are open to watching girls’ dance, why has the government banned it and made the girls unemployed? These girls are not working for pleasure but for their livelihood. But completely neglecting their problem, neither the government nor the public heard their voice. These are the double standards of our society,” complains Modi.

Using charcoal and cotton rag pulp, M Shanatamani, a Bengaluru-based artist, has prepared $100 note. “Charcoal is a material that depicts transition. With this work, I want to show that India is in a period of transition. We are neither developed nor a poor nation —just like charcoal, which is neither ash nor fire. We are in between this transition which is dangerous,” says Shanatamani. “Charcoal is a metaphor for burning. People, especially in the cities, are working for 16-18 hours for money. They are moving far from life,” adds she.

The second half of the exhibition, Harvest 2010, showcases 40 younger-generation painters from India France, England, Pakistan, Korea and China. This section includes digital art, photography, abstract and sculpture. The exhibition ends August 22.

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