Delhi Art Gallery

Last updated

DAG (Delhi Art Gallery)
FormerlyDelhi Art Gallery
Company typeArt gallery
Founded1993 (1993)
FounderRama Anand
HeadquartersNew Delhi
Key people
Ashish Anand
(MD & CEO)
Website dagworld.com

DAG, previously known as Delhi Art Gallery, is an art house having galleries in India and New York. Started in 1993 in Hauz Khas by Rama Anand, DAG showcases modern Indian artists like Raja Ravi Verma, Jamini Roy, Amrita Sher-Gil, SH Raza among others. [1] [2]

Contents

History

DAG, started in Hauz Khas village in 1993 by Rama Anand, is currently managed by her son Ashish Anand. [3] The art-house owns and operates galleries and museums in New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, and New York. It also caters to archives, publications, and public outreach. [1]

The initiative, which was initially named Delhi Art Gallery, started when the Anand family moved from Amritsar to Delhi during Punjab's militancy phase in the 1980s. [3] Rama, an art enthusiast started it, but her son Ashish took over the initiative in 1996, after dropping out of high school. [4] Ashish, who was ready to join the garments business, organically developed an interest in art and spent the next decades working on making DAG accessible, building its presence in multiple cities in India and elsewhere, and also launching a museum called Drishyakala in Red Fort. [5] [6]

In 2015, DAG opened gallery in Fuller Building gallery in New York, retrospecting on artist Madhvi Parekh. [2]

In 2019, DAG, in collaboration with Archeological Survey of India (ASI), established Drishyakala Art Museum in Red Fort Delhi. [7] Designed by Adrien Gardère, the museum displays 400 artworks through 4 exhibitions: Thomas and William Daniells’ colonial landscapes and aquatints; Popular prints; Portraits; and India’s National Treasure Artists. [8]

In 2019, DAG, in collaboration with Ministry of Textiles, organized multi-artist exhibition titled Eternal Banaras in Varanasi. [9] [10] [11]

In 2020, DAG, in collaboration with the National Gallery of Modern Art and the Ministry of Culture, presented an exhibition featuring 200 years of Bengal's art history via 700 artworks spread across twelve galleries. [12] This exhibition, known as Ghare-Baire, inspired by Tagore's novel of the same name (which translates as 'the home and the world'), was hosted at the colonial-era Currency Building in Kolkata, from January 2020 to November 2021. Although the museum exhibition was shut down temporarily in between owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, [13] it successfully popularised and promoted the development of art in Bengal during the colonial period to the emergence of artists and unique art forms in the late and post-colonial era. From showcasing travelling European artists in Bengal to featuring the evolution of native artists, DAG was able to exhibit diverse schools of art found in the erstwhile Bengal presidency. Company paintings, Early Bengal paintings, and Kalighat patachitra are some of the styles which were presented as part of the exhibition. [12] This was the "largest collection of Bengal art on public display anywhere in the world." [13]

In August 2022, DAG, in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, housed an exhibition in the Indian Museum, Kolkata, and later in Delhi to showcase India's anti-colonial struggle and independence movement. [14] [15] This exhibition titled March to Freedom: Reflections on India's Independence was also in light of India's 75 years of independence . [16]

In April 2023, DAG announced "about acquiring the 75-year-old Jamini Roy house in Kolkata and its plans to open India’s first private single-artist museum" in April 2024. [17] [18] [19] Inspired by the Frida Kahlo Museum in Mexico, this initiative aims to document the works of artist Jamini Roy in his house, which was also his studio, located in Kolkata's Ballygunge Place. [20] The upcoming Jamini Roy Museum, in this "three-storeyed spread over 7,000 sqft house, would also include a resource centre, library, museum shop, and a cafe." [21] The ground floor of the house will illustrate DAG's wide-ranging collections of Roy's paintings, whereas the courtyards and terrace would be used as spaces to host workshops and a place for visitors to eat. [22]

In June 2023, DAG organised an exhibition in Delhi titled The Babu and The Bazaar. [23] This presentation promoted artworks "of exquisite oil paintings, pat watercolours, prints and reverse paintings from the 19th and early 20th Century that drew inspiration from everywhere while remaining local in technique." [24]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Gallery of Modern Art</span> Modern art museum in Rajpath, New Delhi

The National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) is the premier art gallery under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. The main museum at Jaipur House in New Delhi was established on 29 March 1954 by the Government of India, with subsequent branches at Mumbai and Bangalore. Its collection of more than 17,000 works by 2000 plus artists includes artists such as Thomas Daniell, Raja Ravi Verma, Abanindranath Tagore, Rabindranath Tagore, Gaganendranath Tagore, Nandalal Bose, Jamini Roy, Amrita Sher-Gil as well as foreign artists. Some of the oldest works preserved here date back to 1857. With 12,000 square meters of exhibition space, the Delhi branch is one of the world's largest modern art museums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamini Roy</span> Indian artist (1887–1972)

Jamini Roy was an Indian painter. He was honoured by the Government of India the award of Padma Bhushan in 1954. He remains one of the most famous pupils of Abanindranath Tagore, another praised Indian artist and instructor. Roy's highly simplified, flattened-out style, and reminiscent of European modern art was influenced by the “bazaar” paintings sold at Indian temples as talismans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Culture of Kolkata</span> Overview of the culture of Kolkata

The culture of Kolkata concerns the music, art, museums, festivals, and lifestyle within Kolkata. It is the former capital of India and, as of 2021, the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Geir Heierstad writes that Bengalis tend to have a special appreciation for art and literature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nandalal Bose</span> Indian artist and a pioneer of modern Indian art (1882-1966)

Nandalal Bose was one of the pioneers of modern Indian art and a key figure of Contextual Modernism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata</span> Building in Cathedral Road, Kolkata

The Academy of Fine Arts, in Kolkata is one of the oldest fine arts societies in India. The galleries of the Academy provide a whopping 6,300 square feet of space and has an auditorium, a conference centre, and several important and priceless collections of paintings, textiles, etc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jayasri Burman</span> Indian Contemporary Artist

Jayasri Burman is a contemporary painter and sculptor from India. She is based in New Delhi, India. She studied at the Kala Bhavan in Shantiniketan from 1977 to 1979, and at the Government College of Art and Craft, Kolkata, where she completed a Master of Arts in Painting. She took a Graphic Art Workshop conducted by Paul Lingren and a formal course on Print making in Paris from Monsieur Ceizerzi.

Paresh Maity is an Indian painter. He is a prolific painter in a short career span.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ganesh Pyne</span> Indian painter (1937–2013)

Ganesh Pyne was an Indian painter and draughtsman, born in Kolkata, West Bengal. Pyne is one of the most notable contemporary artists of the Bengal School of Art, who had also developed his own style of "poetic surrealism", fantasy and dark imagery, around the themes of Bengali folklore and mythology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lalita Lajmi</span> Indian painter (1932–2023)

Lalita Lajmi was an Indian painter. She was a self-taught artist born into a family involved in the arts, and was very fond of classical dance even as a child. She was the sister of Hindi film director, producer, and actor Guru Dutt. In 1994, she was invited to the Guru Dutt Film Festival, organised by Gopalkrishna Gandhi, the Indian High Commissioner at Nehru Centre, London. Her work was also influenced by Indian films such as those made by her brother, Satyajit Ray and Raj Kapoor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arpita Singh</span> Indian artist

Arpita Singh is an Indian artist. Known to be a figurative artist and a modernist, her canvases have both a story line and a carnival of images arranged in a curiously subversive manner. Her artistic approach can be described as an expedition without destination. Her work reflects her background. She brings her inner vision of emotions to the art inspired by her own background and what she sees around the society that mainly affects women. Her works also include traditional Indian art forms and aesthetics, like miniaturist painting and different forms of folk art, employing them in her work regularly.

Jatin Das is an Indian painter, sculptor and muralist. He is counted amongst the leading contemporary artists of India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alpana</span> South Asian folk art style

Alpana or alpona is a South Asian folk art style, traditionally practiced by women, and consisting of colored motifs, patterns, and symbols that are painted on floors and walls with paints made from rice flour, on religious occasions. It is common to the Bengal region in India, and in Bangladesh. Amongst Hindu families, alpanas may contain religious motifs with symbolic designs that relate to religious austerity, festivals, and specific deities. Amongst Santal tribal communities, alpanas often contain geometric or symbolic patterns drawn from nature. Although traditionally the domain of rural women, Alpana motifs have been very influential in modern Indian art, and are incorporated into the works of artists such as Jamini Roy, Abanindranath Tagore, Devi Prasad, and in the early illustrations of film-maker Satyajit Ray. In contemporary Bengal, alpanas are created as part of religious festivals such as the Durga puja, in public and private spaces.

Haku Vajubhai Shah was an Indian painter, Gandhian, cultural anthropologist and author on folk and tribal art and culture. His art belonged to the Baroda Group and his works are considered in the line of artists who brought themes of folk or tribal art to Indian art.

Latika Katt is an Indian sculptor who specializes in stone carving, metal casting and bronze sculpting. She is notable for winning the Beijing Art Biennale Award for her bronze work titled "Makar Sankranti at Dashawmeth Ghat, Varanasi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R. Siva Kumar</span> Contemporary Indian art historian art-critic and curator (born 1956)

Raman Siva Kumar, known as R. Siva Kumar, is an Indian contemporary art historian, art critic, and curator. His major research has been in the area of early Indian modernism with special focus on the Santiniketan School. He has written several important books, lectured widely on modern Indian art and contributed articles to prestigious international projects such as the Art Journal, Grove Art Online or The Dictionary of Art, Oxford University Press.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Gallery of Modern Art, Bangalore</span> Art gallery in Bangalore, Karnataka, India

National Gallery of Modern Art is an art gallery in Bangalore. It was inaugurated in the year 2009. It showcases modern Indian art and houses paintings by Raja Ravi Verma, Jamini Roy, Amrita Sher-Gil, Rabindranath Tagore and a large number of modern and contemporary artists. Equipped with an auditorium, a public art reference library, a cafeteria, and a museum shop cum facilitation block, the NGMA Bengaluru looks ahead to becoming a hub of art activities and a major cultural centre at Bengaluru. The gallery organizes and hosts talks on art and culture by speakers, seminars, film screenings as well as workshops and guided walks throughout the year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">D. P. Roy Choudhury</span> Indian sculptor and painter (1899–1975)

Devi Prasad Roy Choudhury was an Indian sculptor, painter and educator. He is well known for his monumental bronze sculptures, especially the Triumph of Labour and the Martyrs' Memorial, and is rated by many as one among the major artists of Indian modern art. He worked in a broad spectrum of mediums including watercolors, expressionist landscapes and commissioned portraits. Large scale sculptures were his particular strength and he made social realism the cornerstone of his art. In addition to painting and sculpting, he also wrestled, played the flute, engaged in hunting and wrote short stories in his spare time.

The Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA) is a private modern and contemporary art museum with locations in New Delhi and Noida. Established in 2010, it is India's first private museum dedicated to modern and contemporary art.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Currency Building</span> 19th-century building in Kolkata, India

The Currency Building is an early 19th-century building in the B. B. D. Bagh central business district of Kolkata in West Bengal, India. The building was originally built in 1833 to house the Calcutta branch of the Agra Bank. In 1868, it was converted for use by the Office of the Issue and Exchange of Government Currency, an office of the Controller of the Currency under the British Raj. From 1935 until 1937, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) used the building as its first central office. The building remained in use, and was used at one time by the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) as a storehouse. Authorities decided to demolish it in 1994.

The Jamini Roy Museum is a planned museum coming up in the former residence of artist Jamini Roy. In early 2023, DAG acquired Roy's residence – a 75 year old structure located in Ballygunge, Kolkata. The house would be turned into a modern museum opening the doors to the creative world of Jamini Roy.

References

  1. 1 2 "DAG across the globe". Apollo Magazine. 12 December 2019. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  2. 1 2 "More People Looked At Art Online In 2020 Than Physically In 28 Years: Ashish Anand". Forbes India. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  3. 1 2 "How DAG's Ashish Anand is making modern art accessible to all". Mintlounge. 10 June 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  4. "The art empire that DAG's Ashish Anand built". GQ India. 14 February 2018. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  5. "Ashish Anand brings DAG to the Taj, and can finally take a vacation". The Hindu. 22 March 2022. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  6. "DRISHYAKALA". dagworld.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  7. Mathew, Sunalini (30 March 2019). "A barrack at Red Fort has become an art museum". The Hindu. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  8. "Drishyakala Art Museum, New Delhi - Studio Adrien Gardère - Museography, scenography, exhibition design and design agency - Museographer, scenographer, exhibition designer". www.studiogardere.com. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  9. "ETERNAL BANARAS". dagworld.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  10. IANS (4 September 2019). "Varanasi exhibition showcases art inspired by the holy city". www.millenniumpost.in. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  11. Desk, Sentinel Digital (5 September 2019). "Varanasi Exhibition Showcases Art Inspired by Holy City - Sentinelassam". www.sentinelassam.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  12. 1 2 "Ghare Baire: The World, the Home and Beyond 18th – 20th Century Art in Bengal". dagworld.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  13. 1 2 "Show that celebrated 200 years of Bengal art to shut down". The Hindu. 26 November 2021. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  14. "MARCH TO FREEDOM: REFLECTIONS ON INDIA'S INDEPENDENCE". dagworld.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  15. "India@75: DAG's art exhibition zooms into the missing links of the freedom movement". Moneycontrol. 9 October 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  16. "'March to Freedom': Exhibition re-interprets India's freedom movement 'beyond politics, politicians and battles'". The Indian Express. 2 September 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  17. "Inside the DAG x Jamini Roy house". The Hindu. 28 April 2023. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  18. "In his Kolkata house-turned-art museum, finding traces of Jamini Roy's elements of design". The Indian Express. 9 May 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  19. Dey, Sreyashi (2023). "Jamini Roy family says 'prayers answered'. His house-museum a window to modern Bengali art". The Print.
  20. "Artist Jamini Roy's home is Kolkata's newest museum in making". Condé Nast Traveller India. 7 May 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  21. "Home and the world of Jamini Roy, India's first private single-artist museum". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  22. "Jamini Roy's Kolkata home to become country's first private artist-museum". The Times of India. 2 April 2023. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  23. "'The Babu and The Bazaar' at DAG celebrates art of 19th-Century Bengal". The Indian Express. 9 June 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  24. "DAG exhibition on art from early 20th Century Bengal". The Hindu. 30 June 2023. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 11 July 2023.