Art as a Means of Expression:

The pandemic restricted physical interactions and confined millions to their homes. In these isolated environments, art became a means of self-expression. People turned to painting, drawing, photography, and digital media to convey their emotions, fears, and hopes. The act of creation itself became a form of catharsis, allowing individuals to release pent-up anxieties and connect with their inner selves.

A Source of Comfort and Solace:

Art, whether it’s a soothing piece of music, a captivating novel, or a mesmerizing painting, provided comfort and solace during dark times. It acted as a refuge from the relentless news cycle and a way to find beauty amid chaos. People turned to their favorite artworks for moments of respite, allowing them to recharge and regain a sense of normalcy.

Community and Connection:

Despite physical distancing, art fostered a sense of community and connection. Virtual art exhibitions, online classes, and social media platforms became spaces for artists and art enthusiasts to come together. Sharing creative endeavors, stories, and experiences helped people feel less alone, forging new connections and reinforcing existing ones.

Art as a Form of Advocacy:

Art has long been a powerful tool for social and political commentary. During the pandemic, artists used their work to raise awareness about critical issues, from healthcare disparities to the mental health challenges brought on by isolation. Art acted as a voice for those who couldn’t speak, advocating for change and justice.

Inspiration and Resilience:

Art also inspired resilience. Many artists channeled their own experiences during the pandemic into their work, creating pieces that reflected the human spirit’s capacity to endure. Their creations served as a testament to the strength and adaptability of individuals and communities worldwide.

A Glimpse of the Future:

As the world emerges from the pandemic, art offers a glimpse of the future. It embodies the resilience, hope, and transformation that are possible even in the face of adversity. Artistic expressions born during the pandemic will continue to serve as reminders of this era’s challenges and triumphs.

Conclusion:

In the pandemic era, art transcended mere aesthetics; it became a lifeline. It provided an outlet for expression, a source of comfort, a means of connection, and a powerful advocate for change. As we move forward, let us remember the profound impact that art had on individuals and society during these trying times. Its ability to heal, inspire, and unite serves as a testament to the enduring power of human creativity and resilience.

The post The Healing Power of Art in the Pandemic Era first appeared on Indian Art News.

Although the world is currently battling the COVID- 19 crisis, we as a society have dealt with a host of other contagions in the past as well. You can learn more about this through Science Gallery Bengaluru’s new exhibition. The not-for-profit public institution for researchbased engagement is conducting a 45-day virtual exhibition tracing the reason behind transmission through not just a virus, but human emotions, art, dance, social behaviour, disinformation and more. This virtual exhibition, called Contagion, has been curated by Danielle Olsen, international cultural producer at the Wellcome Trust, and Jahnavi Phalkey, founding director, Science Gallery Bengaluru.

It has been in the making for the past one year. “Contagion presents a multiplicity of voices to better understand our collective experience of the COVID-19 pandemic. We open doors to research, to creative responses, and handson activities that will help us all formulate relevant questions as we make our way through this demanding moment,” says Phalkey. According to Madhushree Kamak, programme coordinator for Contagion, the event also aims to engage young adults in research in humanity, technology, art and other disciplines.

“This our fourth such exhibition. It has 16 interactive exhibits that deal with topics like viruses, vaccines, contagious laughter and much more. We also have a public lecture series including talks and tutorials, starting this week, moderated by senior experts from health backgrounds,” says Kamak. The interactive virtual exhibition will kick off with an open lecture and tutorial by Sheila Jasanoff, a science professor at Harvard Kennedy school speaking about ‘Control, Consensus, Chaos: The Global Response to the Pandemic’, including a case study of India.

Later in May, artist Ranjit Kandalgaonkar will exhibit his works related to drawing the Bombay plague, Christos Lynteris, a senior lecturer in anthropology, will be exhibiting his works on ‘Controlling the Plague in British India’. Besides dealing with pandemic and disease control related subjects, the programme will also host Ananya Kabir, a literary and cultural historian, who will conduct a tutorial class on Contagion and Electricity: Two Ways of Talking About Connection in Dance.

The class is based on how social dance can become viral and aims to understand the way we must dance during the pandemic. The science event, beginning on April 30, will have 40 trained moderators from Bengaluru who will help walk the visitors through different exhibitions and help them understand the behind the scene moments of the artist. Contagion will take place from April 30 to June 13. For more details, visit the Bengaluru Science Gallery website.

By Sanath Prasad

Express News Service

https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/bengaluru/2021/apr/28/spotlight-on-science-2295569.html

Headline has been changed to adapt to the article. Rights belong to the original content creator..

The post Contagion, a virtual multidisciplinary event of Viruses, Human Emotions, Art, Dance and more first appeared on Indian Art News.

Review by Madelia Hickman Ring

NEW YORK CITY – If a tree falls in the woods and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound? It was that sort of existential crisis facing organizers and participants of Asia Week 2020, which proceeded to take place March 12-19 despite the COVID-19 prompted travel bans for travelers coming to the United States and the postponement of sales of Asian art at most of the auction houses in the city that typically account for a significant part of the activity of the week.

Such is the prominence of the auctions that many exhibitors initially viewed the lack of competition for viewers to be an advantage to gallerists. Sadly, the ban on international travel, or safety concerns from museums and collectors outside of New York City, meant that most buyers simply did not make a personal appearance. Many events at the Asia Society, Japan Society and the Metropolitan Museum of Art were canceled, further limiting reasons to come to New York City.

What did galleries do? Some exhibitors made the difficult last-minute decision not to come at all while others opened for a shorter exhibition time than expected. Those were UK-based Nicholas Grindley LLC and Littleton & Hennessy Asian Art; Alan Kennedy from Santa Monica, Calif., and Japan-based Hara Shobo and Sokyo Gallery, which was to make its debut at Asia Week.

Based on reports by exhibitors, the visitors whose demographic was hardest hit were curators but many dealers were using digital means to sell to clients who could not – or would not – make the trip, and several reported sales despite the pandemic’s effect, largely to local or online buyers.

Katherine Martin, chairwoman of Asia Week New York chairwoman and director of Scholten Japanese Art, said, “It’s so hard to summarize Asia Week. I was surprised at how many people came to our little opening, I was not surprised that so few people ultimately saw our exhibition, and I was surprised I made any sales at all, which we did. We were fortunate that we presold approximately two-thirds of our exhibition before it opened and before things started to unravel quickly in reaction to the expanding impact of the virus. But once the show opened, attendance was way, way down, and we did not enjoy the typical supplemental sales (not directly related to the special exhibition) that we usually have as a result of having people at the gallery.” Martin reported sales from the gallery’s website, noting “people buy art in good times and bad.”

Asia Week has an increasing focus on contemporary Asian art, with the majority of incoming exhibitors specializing in Twentieth and Twenty-First Century works of art. Brooklyn- and Manhattan-based Boccara art featured two parallel exhibitions on Kim Jeong Yeon and Hyun Ae Kang, two contemporary Korean artists. Boccara had scheduled two receptions, on Thursday and Friday, March 12-13, and both went ahead as planned. Virtual exhibitions at both spaces are still viewable, at https://boccara-art.com/news.html.

On hand from New Delhi and Kolkata, India, modern and contemporary Indian art specialist Akar Prakar was exhibiting the work of Ganesh Haloi in an exhibition titled “Form & Play.” Working in nonfigurative images, the artist says, “You cannot imagine how much freedom I enjoy. And because I feel that sense of infinite freedom, I can exercise that to create my own land. It is my own world – parallel to and different from what you call reality.” Gallerist Reena Lath said she would return to Asia Week next year, with an exhibition focused on Somnath Hore.

Contemporary Vietnamese art was on view at debuting dealer Rosenberg & Co., in Midtown Manhattan and featured the work of Nguyen Cam in an exhibit titled “Blue Night, Red Earth.”

Also in Midtown Manhattan was contemporary Japanese dealer Ippodo Gallery, which is not new to Asia week but was premiering its new gallery space. Despite the featured artist – Koichiro Isezaki – not being able to travel from Japan, the reception on Thursday, March 12, was attended by more than 50 people, while the gallery saw about 25 visitors on Friday, March 13, and 30 people that included a museum group tour on Saturday, March 14. A representative for the gallery reported positive reactions, inquiries and sales. The exhibition will continue to be open by appointment only through April 16; www.ippodogallery.com.

Other debuting exhibitors were New York-based Carlton Hobbs, who was exhibiting a selection of Chinese export furniture and decorative items. Featured items included a pair of Qing dynasty nodding-head figures in their original clothing, a black lacquer, polychrome and gilt cabinet on stand for the Export market; and a palisander cabinet with canted sides and inset famille rose porcelain plaques and Chinoiserie elements made for the Royal Pavilion at Brighton.

Visiting from Mill Valley, Calif., was historical Asian and Tribal art and textile specialist, Thomas Murray, who was showing at Arader Gallery. His exhibition was titled “Rarities: The Himalayas to Hawaii” and closed early.

Walter Arader, specializing in Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian art, anticipated the dearth of international visitors and had prepared a small exhibition geared at Western buyers titled “Masterworks of the Company School.” Featured were original ornithological and botanical drawings and watercolors made in the Nineteenth Century by Indian artists commissioned by officers of the East India Company.

Chinese art – either ancient or contemporary – is one of the smallest components of Asia Week, with just five galleries participating. RM Chait Galleries was celebrating 110 years in business and published a spring exhibition catalog featuring ancient Chinese ceramics, bronzes, jades and Chinese export silver. Steven Chait said, “with our catalog and some early visits, we did business through the start. I would expect more internet inquiries as people are more confined but seeking the solace of these wonderful objects.”

James Lally of J.J. Lally characterized it as “the worst ‘Asia Week’ anyone could imagine,” citing a “perfect storm” of quarantine in China and elsewhere across Asia, airline cancellations and emergency closures throughout New York City. His Asia Week exhibition, “Elegantly Made: Art for the Chinese Literati” closed early but will stay open through March 27 by appointment.

New York gallerist Eric Zetterquist, whose Asia Week exhibition featured Japanese ceramics and Song dynasty Chinese ceramics. Afterwards, he commented, “While it was a decidedly strange Asia Week, I had many local visitors to my exhibition. I made sales to locals, as well as foreign clients who purchased items from photographs or live video feed. It is heartening to find that art lovers find solace in beauty during difficult times…”

Showing more than two dozen paintings from the royal courts of India and Persia, London-based Oliver Forge and Brendan Lynch, Ltd., also decamped early upon fears they would not be able to return home. “Our biggest casualty was museum curators,” Lynch said, adding that visits from a core group of New York collectors and interest remotely resulted in some good sales and more pending with some of the institutions that could not attend.

Contemporary Japanese art specialist, Carole Davenport, reported Asia Week attendance was about half what it typically is but received numerous inquiries from people requesting images and information. She sold before Asia Week and had a few pending sales, most in the mid-five-figure range.

Joan B. Mirviss was exhibiting two distinctly different exhibitions simultaneously: “Ukiyo-e Highlights from the Collection of George Crawford” and “Restraint and Flamboyance: Masterworks of Mino.” Commenting on Asia Week after she closed the gallery early, Mirviss said, “The past two weeks have been challenging in almost every sense. My gallery was most fortunate to have started our Asia Week process several months ago, and we managed to mail out both of our fully illustrated catalogs in mid-February. Additionally, by simultaneously offering online previews of the exhibitions, we were extremely fortunate to have placed nearly half the works in both shows before Asia Week actually commenced. Additionally, we were blessed with devoted-client visits immediately at the start of the scheduled events and that too assured us of additional sales.”

Another exhibitor for contemporary Japanese ceramics was Dai Ichi Arts, Ltd., which reported selling more than a dozen pieces.

Selling ancient Korean works of art was New York City-based Kang Collection. Peter Kang commented, “It was obviously much slower than normal but not completely dead. We had a light flow of people during the weekend and a number of possible deals are available which we will pursue over the coming weeks, which is normally how Asia week is for us as most of our clients are curators.”

The Asian art auctions typically conducted during Asia Week were initially rescheduled to June, with previews of highlights open for visitors. Specific dates for these sales have not yet been set and the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic remains to be seen.

For information on Asia Week New York, www.asiaweekny.com.

The post Asia Week Struggles Against Travel Bans, Virus Fears first appeared on Indian Art News.