In these days of art fairs and art auctions, the old style love for art is no longer cherished. Artists produce very little for themselves and more for the market and the one who sells the most are considered the most successful. But not so long back, we had many artists who would spend their entire lives without ever willing to talk about their art. Balraj Panesar is one such artist.
Belonging to a generation of such doyens as Bikash Bhattacharya and Ganesh Paine, with whom Panesar had formed the first major contemporary artists' group since the Calcutta Group broke down in 1950s. The group was named simply the 'Society Of Contemporary Artists'. It soon attracted such talents as Ganesh Haloi, Paritosh Sen, Manu Parekh, some of who in later years went to earn international recognition. Panesar was one of the life-bloods of this society and continued to encourage many late entrants and younger artists.
But art was only a part of his life. He was deeply concerned about his people, particularly about those who lived in the margins of society. He would visit every week the slums of the city and give away almost everything that he earned from the sell of his paintings and collages. His works reflected the slums, though in much abstract manifestations. It is at one of these slums that he had met Shakila, a young girl then who used to live by selling hand made paper packets. Panesar took her under his tutelage and taught her collage making.
Shakila had once drew the attention of the artworld with her own collages. The story of Shakila and Panesar gathered some attention though got lost in the labyrinth of our times. Panesar continues to live in a small room in Kolkata, unmarried for life, occasionally to be visited by Shakila, who lives away with her husband and sometimes by another of his devoted disciples, Devajyoti Ray, whose association with Panesar is also not known to the art world he traverses. Ray has often said it on many occasions that whatever he learnt has all come from Panesar, for which never paid any fee.
Nonetheless as we today celebrate the internationally acclaimed works of our new generation artists like Ray, lest we not forget that we all owe it to that generation to which Panesar belonged when art was not really for sale.
 |
| B.R. Panesar |
But art was only a part of his life. He was deeply concerned about his people, particularly about those who lived in the margins of society. He would visit every week the slums of the city and give away almost everything that he earned from the sell of his paintings and collages. His works reflected the slums, though in much abstract manifestations. It is at one of these slums that he had met Shakila, a young girl then who used to live by selling hand made paper packets. Panesar took her under his tutelage and taught her collage making.
Shakila had once drew the attention of the artworld with her own collages. The story of Shakila and Panesar gathered some attention though got lost in the labyrinth of our times. Panesar continues to live in a small room in Kolkata, unmarried for life, occasionally to be visited by Shakila, who lives away with her husband and sometimes by another of his devoted disciples, Devajyoti Ray, whose association with Panesar is also not known to the art world he traverses. Ray has often said it on many occasions that whatever he learnt has all come from Panesar, for which never paid any fee.
 |
| Shakila Bibi & Devajyoti Ray : Two of Panesar's disciples |
Nonetheless as we today celebrate the internationally acclaimed works of our new generation artists like Ray, lest we not forget that we all owe it to that generation to which Panesar belonged when art was not really for sale.
No comments:
Post a Comment