Kiran Dixit Thapar turned the gallery space of the Birla Academy of Fine Arts into a charming diorama of village life for her show, Glimpses of Santiniketan. This veteran sculptor — probably one of the last living female disciples of Ramkinkar Baij — filled the gallery with sculptures of creatures big and small, be it a feline caught mid-stretch or a dragonfly hovering over a lotus pond, or villagers working on the fields or tending to chickens, or even lovers cosying up before a kiss. Executed in diverse metals, from bronze to steel, there is a fluidity to her works that makes even the cold metal seem like it is alive.
It is, however, clear that Dixit Thapar is most at home working with the soft pliability of steel. The magnificent installation, Chai Chai (picture), is proof of her skill when it comes to moulding metals. A crowd of some 15 figures, including men, women and children, are captured marching ahead with banners and flags. Dynamic and lively — reminiscent of the sense of action and resolve captured by Debi Prasad Roy Choudhury in his famous sculpture of the Dandi March — each figure in this michhil expresses a different demand. While her sculptures undoubtedly dominated the show, Dixit Thapar’s watercolours that were displayed alongside on the walls were charming and idyllic too.
In sharp contrast to such pastoral scenes was the bustle of one of the most romanticised cities in the world, captured by the photographer, Satyaki Ghosh, for his exhibition, Rendezvous in Paris, at the Harrington Street Arts Centre. Paris is perhaps among the most photographed places in the world and Ghosh hearteningly evaded the trap of taking stereotypical shots by focusing on how the people make that city what it is. Candid shots show Parisians going about their lives, almost oblivious to the beauty around them which cannot but awe the visitors. The clever interplay of light and shade — most skilfully reflected in the black and white images — adds to the charm of Ghosh’s photographs.
His use of the Hasselblad Xpan for some of the images adds not just an interesting depth of field to the photographs but also ensures that the panoramic shots are populated by many subjects, with numerous tiny stories unfolding across their width.