The “inefficient and ill equipped” Union Ministry of Culture has not only stalled the progress of art but also threatens to destroy the art scene in the country, said Balan Nambiar, artist and research scholar, here on Sunday.
He was speaking on the sidelines of the seventh R.M. Hadapad Memorial Lecture Series and said that the Union Ministry of Culture was not discharging its duties effectively.
Some of the landmark museums in the country were run by people who lacked formal training in art, he said.
Earlier, Mr. Nambiar, who delivered a lecture on “Art scene in Bangalore in the last four decades”, recollected the state of art infrastructure in Bangalore.
“There were no art galleries in Bangalore in the 1970s. To highlight this situation and draw the attention of the government to create art galleries in the city, G.S. Shenoy, an artist of the 1970s, had conducted a painting exhibition on the footpath. This drew the attention of the public as well as various artists and the government,” he said.
Mr. Nambiar said that the role of artists such as Shenoy and others had led to considerable progress in the art scene in Bangalore. He said that the city was now home to various professional art galleries of international reputation.
Mr. Nambiar also pointed out that no art form can exist in isolation and spoke about the need to create spaces where various forms of art, including dance, theatre, music and literature, could exist simultaneously.
Talking about institutes that played a crucial role in the development of art in the city, he lauded the good work done by Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath.
However, he expressed disappointment over the fact that the space had now become “too commercial” as it was being used not just for art and craft exhibitions but also for events such as sari exhibitions.
Mr. Nambiar spoke about five crucial elements that would help in assessing a work of art. He pointed out that there was a need for a work of art to convey an information or a message. Apart from that, there was a need to understand if the work was handled properly by the medium, he said. Moreover, there was a need to identify the novelty in the art work. “There is also a need for some mystery in the work and most importantly, there is a need for the work of art to give you some resonance,” he added.
Rajashekhar Bilvapatri, one of the founders of Hadapad Nenapina Kuta, said that R.M. Hadapad, who was the founder and the architect of the Ken School of Art, was responsible for bringing modernism in the art of Karnataka.
He also added that Hadapad played an instrumental role in spreading awareness about art appreciation in the State.
