Walking towards 'high' art

AHMEDABAD: Emulating a sanctified enclosure, a space has been constructed within the gallery. 52 circular plates made with coarse ply and jute rope fill the space within. On each of them are images of various tools - there is a carpenter's saw and hammer, a mechanic's spanner - each tool personifying those our day-to-day's depend on. Part of the exhibition 'We Walk...' at the Catharsis Art Gallery, the installation by Muktinath Mondal, literally offers a space to reflect on the 'divine arms' of our lives.
"We walk... emerged from my concerns about the art culture prevalent in the city," says the curator and gallery owner, Tejas Shah. "The artists along with connoisseurs, critics, collectors need to walk together towards exploring art - both intellectually and critically. Through the exhibition, I have managed to get to the city for the first time five young artists, appraised by the art canon."
Other than the Kolkatta-based Mondal, the gallery hosts Baroda-based artists - Dilip Chobisa's architectural frames, that plays with layers exploring "a space between presence and absence"; Nityananda Ojha's evocative work - a distorted crucifix, which with great simplicity offers multiple commentaries on religion, power and so on and Mumbai-based Sanjay Yamgar's sculpture in fibre glass, a formal exploration of meaning. Also on display is the city-based artist Karl Antao's wooden sculpture 'Common man's crown'.
"Many artists in the country are exploring mediums, techniques, and concepts at a contemporary level, which I feel our city is not exposed and connected to. Not faraway, Baroda itself is a prolific artists' hub," says Shah candidly. "The physical connectivity, an expressway - which connects Baroda and Ahmedabad, should also transcend into an exchange of artistic cultures between the two cities. However, that happens very little. Through the exhibition, my attempt is to prepare a platform in the city for art of critical value."
The exhibition will be open till April 20.