Aalankritha Art Gallery in Madhapur, Hyderabad, sports a new look, renovated to accommodate works of art on three floors. The renovation was a reason why the gallery had been rather subdued in its last few months.
On the ground floor, the gallery now displays sculptures by 20 well-known artists. The ongoing exhibition ‘Cutting Edge’ focuses on new age sculptures by artists from Hyderabad, and coincides with the gallery’s 15th anniversary celebrations.
The sculptures on view reflect signature styles of some of the artists, like the vibrant fibreglass faces sculpted by Manohar Chiluveru, the dancing women in brass by Ramakrishna and the wood and bronze figures by Shivaramachary. Chippa Sudhakar, Vasu Nadiminti, Srinivas Reddy, Udaya Lakshmi and Narsimlu Kandi are some of the artists focusing on sculptures of faces. Moving away, Rajeshwar Rao draws attention to the ‘beti bachao’ campaign through a braided sculpture of a young girl.
Prashanti Goel who established the gallery in 2003 is looking forward to hosting workshops and interactive sessions with artists, apart from exhibitions at Aalankritha. Several exhibitions are in the pipeline, she informs, including a show on ceramics.
Prashanti Goel
A self-taught artist who learnt painting, sculptures and mural making, Prashanti then pursued a course in MBA. “Back then, people around me had their doubts on art as a career,” she reasons.
Completing her MBA, Prashanti realised that she still wanted to do something related to art. Setting up a gallery seemed like the way forward, combining her interest in art and business management. Though she doesn’t have a formal degree in art, learning its basics helped her identify and connect with artists whose works she has displayed over the years. “Some of the buyers have stayed by us in all these years,” she notes with pride.
Curated shows, she observes, have consistently drawn the attention of discerning art enthusiasts. She feels Hyderabad buyers are skewed towards figurative and semi-figurative works than abstracts. “In Mumbai and Delhi, abstracts also find several buyers,” she notes.
However, she feels art awareness is on the rise in Hyderabad, with a lot more people knowing the nuances of contemporary art. Prashanti has noticed how buyers patronise both established and emerging artists and sometimes, select the painting first and then plan the colour scheme and decor of their new home or office spaces.”
Cutting Edge - a show of new age sculptures, is on at Aalankritha Art Gallery, Madhapur, till September 29.
