NATURE VERSUS PLASTIC
The human condition is an inspiration to many artists. Spanish artist Gayatri Gamuz expresses her observations about the human psyche in a unique visual language where elements from nature are as much part of her vocabulary as are humans. She says, “The modern world imposes on the individual the wonderful and attractive and, at the same time, the unmanageable and hard lifestyle of comfort, while the psyche/spirit is fighting for survival. We live in a symbolic devastated garden. The ‘land without trees’ is a daily challenge.”

Eroding nature, loss of innocence, replacement of the natural over the factory produced are the essence of her paintings. The imagery is surreal and at times symbolic. She makes sarcastic and sometimes comic visual statements. She paints birds resting on barbed wires instead of trees and a big bird is shown standing in a kitschy plastic bucket instead of a lake or river. Her paintings juxtapose the natural with the plastic, toy version of the same to comment on the present condition.
Gayatri Gamuz, recent works on canvas at Hacienda Gallery from October 18 to 25, 2007

ROOM FOR CHANGE
Gargi Raina’s work will be seen in Mumbai after a gap of seven years. While questions pertaining to memory and violence remain central to her artistic vision, in Constructing the Memory of a Room (her much-awaited comeback solo show), the site of memory is revisited. She begins with the motif of a remembered floor pattern and then deepens her explorations with the use of different media. At once linear and flexible in its narrative, her oeuvre is not only easy to examine and comprehend, but holds the potential for multiple layers of interpretation.
At Bodhi Art Gallery, Mumbai, from October 8 to 25.

WEAVING WONDER
Last year, Chandigarh-born and Santiniketan-educated Vibha Galhotra created a buzz with a beehive made from hundreds of tiny ghungroos attached beneath a staircase at Delhi’s Lalit Kala Akademi. This, despite being just one of 35 artists selected for a commemorative show titled Bronze, to celebrate the centenary year of India’s first modernist sculptor Ram Kinkar Baij (1906-1980). Though she did her post-graduation in printmaking at Kala Bhavan, the 29-year-old artist also paints, sculpts and is adept at creating site-specific installations and animation videos.
In February, Mumbai will be treated to a solo show by the young artist who, at 23, was privileged to be one of two Indian artists who (together with Ashish Ghosh) created an installation called Intimate Beauty at Europos Parkas, a sculpture park founded in Lithuania by sculptor Gintaras Karosas that displays over 90 works by artists from 27 countries. For a foretaste, head for Project 88’s group show titled Urban Similes: Transforming the Cities – where Galhotra will be displaying one sculpture, one large print and probably a public art project.
At Project 88, Mumbai, from October 24 to November 13.

UNITY IN DIVERSITY
From the diverse realms they inhabit, a group of contemporary artists like Baiju Parthan, C. Douglas, Dhruvi Acharya, Ganesh Gohain, Jayasri Burman, Sakti Burman, Santana Gohain, Kiyomi Talaulicar, Payal Khandwala, Poushali Das, Sheetal Gattani and Sunil Padwal have been drawn together under the spacious umbrella of Understanding Oneness in Diversity, conceived and curated by Durva Gandhi. This show of strength by over 20 artists is meant to be a considered response to what has been a devastating year for artistic freedom in India.
Gandhi’s curatorial message ends on a hopeful note that seeks to justify the title: “When the entire family of humanity understands that each of our thoughts, choices and actions affect us all, we will share an incredible level of consciousness – one that puts our oneness above all else and helps us evolve into higher expressions of our selves.” While the art itself does not seek to be didactic, it seems that the exhibition does!
At Kitab Mahal, Mumbai, from October 25 to 31.

RIDING HIGH
Satish Gujral is a consummate artist who has also been a successful sculptor, muralist, graphic designer and architect. What is most remarkable about the hearing-impaired legend is the effortless manner in which he has surmounted the obstacles life has placed before him, using them as stepping stones to scale unimaginable heights. The Belgian Embassy in New Delhi that he designed was selected by the International Union of Architects as one of the 20th century’s 1000 best buildings. The distinguished octogenarian continues to boldly experiment with form, structure and medium. In this series, the indefatigable artist uses a vocabulary filled with equestrian accoutrements to convey energy and movement from the animate to the inanimate. Almost concurrently, his sculptures will be unveiled at Tao.
At Cymroza, Mumbai, from October 15 to 27; at Tao, Mumbai, from October 16 to 26.

I-DENTITY CRISIS
Rajesh Pullarwar was given the Most Promising Artist of the Year award by the National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai, in 2005. Since then, he has had two solo shows with Chatterjee & Lal. Using new printing techniques, his unique formulation of the silkscreen method creates works with inks as their base. In I, his first solo show at C&L’s new space in Colaba, Pullarwar will exhibit works that throw up questions revolving around the nature of the self. When seen from afar, the self-portraits are representational… but the closer one gets, the more they dissolve into abstraction.
At Chatterjee & Lal, Mumbai, from October 9 to 26.

OF FORM AND FIGURE
After studying sculpture at the Government College of Fine Arts, Thiruvananthapuram and while doing his post-graduation in the subject at the M.S. University, Baroda, K. Raghunadhan was one of the founder members of the Indian Radical Painters and Sculptors Association in 1987. Following a self-imposed hiatus of two decades, his first solo exhibition (Anecdotes) at Kashi Art Gallery, Kochi, in 2006 drew gasps of admiration. His talent was noticed by Mumbaikars at Double-Enders in 2005, curated by Bose Krishnamachari. So it is with excitement that we look forward to his first solo show in Mumbai with Aditya Ruia’s Bombay Art Gallery, where he will be exhibiting seven works – including six different free-standing figures (an elephant, a baby elephant sporting the skin of a tiger and four human figures) and one relief.
At Jehangir Nicholson Gallery, NCPA, Mumbai, from October 16 to 24.