The Raza Foundation, in collaboration with Triveni Kala Sangam, has organised Luminous Legacy, an art exhibition that celebrates 75 years of FN Souza, SH Raza, MF Husain, KH Ara, HA Gade and SK Bakre - the original six members of the Progressive Artists’ Group’s continued contributions to the artistic sense of the country.
The event, conceptualised by art historian, Geeti Sen and spread over two galleries, showcases 30 of the members’ pieces and how the Progressive Artists’ Group changed the scenario of India’s contemporary art with their prolonged effort in trying to understand the various styles of artistry, through their Indian sensibilities.
Sen mentions that MF Husain was very knowledgeable about various religion which showed in his paintings. “Husain’s vision was vast, with figures cutting across communities, race and caste. He was as familiar with the enactment of Ramlila as with the tazia processions of the Shiahs in Indore…For him, there was no conflict in what he described as India’s ‘composite culture’. When he was singled out for the privilege of representing India at the Sao Paolo Biennale in 1972, he chose to create 14 canvases from the Mahabharata,” says Sen.
Pointing to a series of SH Raza’s paintings which show a gradual change from realistic landscapes of India to his experiments with abstract paintings with the ‘bindu’ (dot), Rafique Shah, a freelance artist with The Raza Foundation and coordinator of Luminous Legacy, says, “The exhibition covers two galleries so that the precise journey of each artist can be shown.
The idea is to celebrate this journey and see how the shared thinking of the brotherhood advanced the way later Indian artists thought about art.” (Luminous Legacy will be displayed at the Shridharani and Triveni Art Gallery in Triveni Kala Sangam, Tansen Marg, till July 10)