The treasures of painter and critic Richard Bartholomew allow one a glimpse into the younger days of veteran artists like MF Husain, VS Gaitonde, FN Souza and others.
It is difficult to describe the genius — Richard Bartholomew. He is touted as one of the first art critics of the modern art scene in India.
He is also a renowned photographer and a painter. A few, selective photographs by him at the gallery Chatterjee & Lal are a treat to watch.
The art runs in the family and Richard’s son is also a well-known photographer, Pablo Barholomew. Ask him to comment on his father’s works as a professional photographer and he says, “Like all photographers even my father’s pictures mark a
period in time. But there is an aesthetic layer to his works that takes these pictures to a different level. Everything is mediocre but this is very good.” He adds, “Technique can be learnt by all but there is a reason why Ustad Zakir Husain is such a fine
musician as he has been exposed to certain nuances and the finesse of the art, thanks to his father (Ustad Allah Rakha). These things come to you mysteriously and you just tend to absorb these.”
Richard was in close camaraderie with the likes of FN Souza, VS Gitonde, Jehangir Sabavala. MF Husain and others and he also played an important role in invigorating the art world at that time. Pablo asserts, “My father was a gallerist in Delhi. And he planned what to show and how to show. And that did reflect his personal stream of thought; he brought certain energy to the art world and hence influenced it as well.”
While Richard was also a secretary of the Lalit Kala Akademi, there was much political state interference that he had to fight at every level. “It was always a fight for my dad, to try and fight and create an atmosphere in which the artists can work and strive,” confesses Pablo.
Last but not the least, Pablo admits that the role that the art critic plays today and the one that his dad did is drastically
different. “My day told people outside, what is happening in the art world. And he told artists that what people in the outside world like and how they think. The critique today is based on cultural theories and I don’t think that is not stimulating at all.”
Where and when
The exhibition is going on at Chatterjee & Lal, Colaba, till March 6.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}