Often referred to as the 'Francis Bacon of India', Tyeb Mehta’s artworks were distinctive for their disturbing realism. Composite figures, drawn out of raw strokes, comprise the major attraction in his works.
A retrospective exhibition in the capital has brought some of Mehta’s most well-known artworks under one roof. The Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA) is presenting ‘Tyeb Mehta: Bearing Weight (With the Lightness of Being)’ to mark the birth centenary of Mehta; Mehta was born on July 26, 1925. The exhibition has been mounted in collaboration with the Tyeb Mehta Foundation and Saffronart Foundation; opened earlier this month, it will remain on display till June 30.
Curated by KNMA’s artistic director and chief curator Roobina Karode, it features more than 120 works including paintings, drawings, sculptures, film and other archival material.
“Bringing a large-scale exhibition of Mehta is important since there hasn’t been an attempt to do his retrospective thus far,” says Karode, calling it the artist’s first-ever retrospective which brings together works from different periods of his career. From his early drawings to his renowned series, the goal was to depict the different routes of his journey, she says.
A modern vision
Mehta was born in Kapadvanj town of Gujarat’s Kheda district in 1925. His early years were spent in the Crawford market neighbourhood of Bombay. Mehta’s family was involved in the film distribution business and owned and operated several cinema halls in Pune. Their work in the film industry introduced him to the world of image-making at a young age. He initially studied cinematography and worked as an assistant film editor before enrolling at the Sir J. J. School of Art in 1947. It was here that he discovered painting and decided to pursue it seriously.
Mehta later became associated with the Progressive Artists' Group, which sought to break from the revivalist nationalism of the Bengal School of Art and create a new visual language for a newly independent India. Over time, Mehta came up with his own distinct style — with minimalist and expressionistic artworks in which sharp diagonals, flat, colourful planes, and figures suspended in motion were key signatures.
Having witnessed the violence of Partition, Mehta was aware of the precarity of life. These intense emotions also show in his artworks. The exhibition features some of his most recognised series, including ‘Falling Figure’, ‘Falling Bird’, ‘Mahishasura’, ‘Kali’, ‘Bull’ and the ‘Diagonal’. Themes of violence, myth and the human condition are common to these works.
The bull, for instance, is described by Karode as a “compulsive image” for the artist. “He was fascinated by its vitality, intensity, plasticity, and fragility.” Mehta started sketching bulls at the Bandra abattoir in the 1950s, and the beast went on to appear throughout his body of work across decades, right up to his final painting, ‘Bulls’, from 2007. Unlike his previous multi-dimensional drawings of the beast, his last painting, created in pitch black, appears on a planar surface — the animal’s body parts scattered across the large canvas.
Other artworks like ‘Falling Figure’ and ‘Falling Bird’, along with the ones inspired by mythology — ‘Mahishasura’, and ‘Kali’ —- shows Mehta as a witness to life and conflict in post-Independence India.
Intersections of existence
The exhibition also features Mehta’s 16-minute-and-16-second short film Koodal — meaning ‘meeting point’ in Tamil. The film explores moments of everyday life, death, and their various intersections and encounters. The non-linear narrative of the film reflects the artist’s observations of public life, with Carnatic music running throughout as the frames shift from one place to another — such as temples, roads, restaurants, and abattoirs.
Koodal, written and directed by Mehta, and produced by the Film Division of India, was awarded the Filmfare Critics Award in 1970.
The exhibition also includes wooden and bronze sculptures by the artist, and rarely shown archival material — his early drawings and sketches, notebooks, letters and photographs.
Tyeb Mehta passed away in 2009 in Mumbai. Yet, his artworks still interest young artists. “The protagonists of his (Mehta’s) paintings… are close reflections of how he perceived the social fabric around him,” Karode remarks. “We could say that they continue to help us make sense of the uncertain times we live in today.”