JOIN USBright lights, quirky installations, dynamic artworks and delicious food come as a package for art aficionados when the annual much-awaited India Art Fair comes to the Capital. In its seventh edition this year, the extravaganza which celebrates almost all art forms was however talked about a little more about the food on offer than the artworks!
No wonder the NSIC Exhibition Grounds in Okhla were a permanent place for art and food lovers over the weekend - January 29 to February 1.
More than 80,000 visitors indulged their visual senses in art and devoted their palate to food from restaurants across the city. This potent combination of art and food inspired Vana Retreats from Dehradun to create an art installation for their food stall inside the
VIP Lounge.
Beyond food, there were also book stalls set up at the fair this time. These provided the visitors a chance to explore and buy books on art. During the Speaker’s Forums and at other times of the day were various launches of books written mainly on art.
When it came to the exhibits inside the two halls, there were rather few pieces which caught attention this time, as compared to last year. Take for instance the vibrant ‘Absolut’ bottle sculpture by artist Jagdish Chintala which caught the attention right at the entry. There were some sculptures that depicted the rigours of the common man and were quite a hit. Examples of these are ‘Cyclist in a Gallery’ by Asim Basu displayed by Aakriti Art Gallery and Valay Shende’s
‘Mumbai Local’.
David Gerstein’s cut out steel layers of colours in forms of 3D artworks were quite a hit at Bruno Art Gallery’s booth and so were the cute and colourful lion cubs crafted by artist
Venkat Bothsa.
In the paintings, the ones displayed by foreign galleries attracted a lot of visitors and queries. Especially the paintings displayed at TNK Art Gallery / Les Oreades Moscow, Russia were quite popular with the visitors.
The sales, not surprisingly, spiralled. Approximately 25 per cent this year, including six booths sold out all the displayed works. A large number of artworks was bought by visitors from the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, New Zealand and Australia which shows the emergence of new cultural patrons and collectors from newer parts of the world.