At the end of last year, Amitawa Das held a single show in New Delhi, In another time which is nowThe characteristic of a wide range of his career is characterized – from early pieces to the work made in 2015 in the 1960s. The show was organized in collaboration with Shrine Empire Gallery and Art Exposure Gallery. This march, an art gallery in the fort district of the subcontinent, Mumbai, opened its doors with a show of the late Hakku Shah, highlighted seven decades of his artistic journey. Gallery co-founder Keshav Mahendru says, “The stories often told the stories of mainstream. Our focus focuses on art history.”
An ‘Untitled’ Amitawa Das Penn and Inc. on Paper (1992) in Thirin Empire
Haqu Shah Jakere Angen Naurangia (2002) in the subcontinent. Photo Credit: Ryan Martis
While the previous decade has focused an unprecedented focus on emerging and early career visual artists-with the launch of opportunities such as residences and scholarships, new awards and grants, and even galleries such as galleries, even a recent change in the location and commercial gallery ecosystem seeking to include fresh talent in their respective rosters. Now there is an active interest in displaying established and late career artists. From retrospectives to large exhibitions, galleries are celebrating senior artists, whether they are retired, yet in practice or even deceased. What is this departure running? We talk to major museums and galleries.
“The visual language of Amitawa is philosopher, poetic and introspective, such as we work with many artists, especially whose practices reflect memory, perception and human status”Anahita tanejaCo-founder, Shrine Empire Gallery. Das is the first artist of his generation to be represented by him.
Anahita Taneja (Right) and Sheffly Somani
Aerogenesis approach
“Many late-career artists were leading. Seeing his practices again, we accept his contribution,” says Sunparanta Goa Center for the Arts advisor and mentor Issate Salgaoocar. “For example, Cholamandal Artist Village is a seminal part of our modern art history, and we recognize the importance of such collectives in shaping alternative art discourses.”
Issheta Salagokar
Some galleries, such as the Bengaluru-based museum for art and photography (MAP), are taking an inter-vision approach. “Our curatorial approach is meant to connect historical practices with the present,” the founder Abhishek Poddar. The map displayed the work of Meera Mukherjee and Jayiv Baghel, two important figures in India’s modern art history, complementing it with a photo essay by contemporary photographer Jayasiusah Nasavaran. “This made an additional layer for the audience to connect with one or the other,” says Poddar.
Abhishek Pudar | Photo Credit: Prabhna Shetty
Krishna Reddy’s print on seeing the exhibition of the map in ‘Rhyme Unbroken’. Photo Credit: Philip Calia
New Delhi-based exhibit 320, which is known to support and support the mid-career sounds, makes a place for senior artists whose practices provide depth and continuity. “We have shown the works of Gopi Gajwani, and recently shown to make Devraj Dakoi’s art on an inter -dialogue,” says Rasika Kajaria, the founder of the gallery.
Devraj Dakoi; S Pranamu (1987) in Exhibit 320
Rasika Kajaria
Latitude 28, New Delhi, performs the work of senior doctors with young artists to detect interrelations in the development of artistic languages. They also organize a single show like Jyoti Bhatt. “That art has been a defined element in historical narratives and continues to influence artistic and cultural milestones,” says Bhavana Kakar, the founder of the gallery.
Jyoti bhatt Start of journey Latitude at 28
Bhava Kakar
Preliminary supporter
Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNAMA), New Delhi, is committed to showing various voices and attitudes in its exhibitions. Robina Crores, Director and Chief Curator, Kenma says, “We were among the first people to present the ancestral exhibitions of artists like Himmat Shah, Jeram Patel, Rameshwar Bruti and Arpita Singh. Their artistic practices have been represented less in the big artistic discourse.” Many of these voices illuminate seminal moments, which have later shaped creative practices., For example, Patel used a blochorch to burn wood in his art works, while Shah detected ideas and concepts through terracotta sculptures.
Roobina Karode | Photo Credit: Mohammad Roshan
Nature Morte in New Delhi has been identified with young and emerging artists since its establishment in 1997. “But, from 1997–2003, we included FN Suja, Bhupen by eating, Himmat Shah, Zarina Hashmi, Krishna Reddy, and Nasreen Mohammi. Gallery.
Peter Negi
Continuous relevance in the present time
Pudar says that they work, who serve as entry points in large interactions about identity, society and change. “Even when artists find out the subjects contained in the past, the questions they raise are relevant today,” they share. Like Haqu Shah, practice deal with timeless questions such as love and humanity. The subcontinent, co-founder, Dhani Gudka says, “His works are inherent, deep and honest, and will always be relevant.”
Dhawani Gudka (right) and Keshav Mahendru | Photo Credit: Sarang Gupta
Negi says that Manu Parekh’s recent single show was inspired by sacred rituals, mainly Hindus, who still occurs today. Parekh gained prominence in 2022 through cooperation with the House of Dior. 22 A series of artifacts, which characterize the imagination from pictures by Manu and his wife Madhavi, served as a backdrop from a floor to a roof for the spring/summer runway show of Dyer at Paris Haute Couture Week.
Manu Parekh Chant for Shiva Shakti in the temple Nature in Morte
These artistic practices are not the remains of history, but our contemporary social and cultural fabrics are constantly built, calling Salgaokar. “Such tasks invite reflection on how the past indicates our current social and political realities,” she says.
Easy entry point
To explain the recent interest in senior artists, some art experts point to the growing fatigue with the perspective of contemporary and young artists, where meditation is on creating laden with the concept of their work. Senior artists also have a big inventory as many works are not in circulation. Price points for their functions ranges from ₹ 1 lakh to ₹ 5 lakh to moderate sized pictures for small paper functions or versions. Some work more important and massively, such as Manu Parekh, the price can be more than ₹ 1 crore.
Similarly, the practice of dacoji provides a lens through which the past has an impact on the current to see as a living, breathing effect. Kajaria feels that her work detect memory and migration, which are relevant today. “Dacoji’s practice is still alive in history, alive with probes that complements the experimental feeling,” Kajaria says.
Culture writer is located in Delhi.
Published – June 05, 2025 03:52 pm IST
