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Reassurance

Reassurance, from the series Definitive Reincarnate, 2003/2006, Nandini Valli Muthiah, Indian, b. 1976, color photograph, 40 1/4 x 40 x 1 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan, © Nandini Valli Muthiah.

City Dwellers: Contemporary Art from India

Aug 30 2014 – Feb 16 2015

Seattle Art Museum

Third Floor Galleries

Bollywood movie culture, venerated politicians, religious traditions, and art historical icons all contribute to the myriad of influences in contemporary urban Indian culture. The artists in this exhibition pay tribute to this multitude even as they introduce elements of irony, introspection, and critique.

Through their photography and sculpture, the artists negotiate diverse ideas and influences on contemporary Indian society—Hindu mythology, Bollywood movies, Indian and western art, and icons of everyday life in a global market economy. Many of the works are influenced as much by popular movie culture and the use of digital technology as by the conventions of religious ritual and street processions, traditional theater, and dance.

Come see the colorful, contradictory, and complex India of today through the works of some of the country’s leading artists.


Public Urban Spaces. Where we work, shop… and sleep?​​​​​​​

Untitled

Untitled, from Sleepers, 2007-2012, Dhruv Malhotra, Indian, b. 1985, color photograph, 24 x 30 1/4 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan. © Dhruv Malhotra, Photo courtesy of PHOTOINK, New Delhi.


Expressing the Inexpressible​

Self in Progress II

Untitled (Self in Progress), 2001, Alwar Balasubramaniam, Indian, b. 1971, gesso, wood, fiberglass, 72 x 47 x 35 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan. © Alwar Balasubramaniam, Photo courtesy Talwar Gallery, New York/New Delhi.

Untitled (Self in Progress)

Untitled (Self in Progress) (detail), 2001, Alwar Balasubramaniam, Indian, b. 1971, gesso, wood, fiberglass, 72 x 47 x 35 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan. © Alwar Balasubramaniam, Photo courtesy Talwar Gallery, New York/New Delhi.

Most of [Balasubramaniam’s] recent sculptural works, particularly those cast from his body, are rendered in pure white, the absence of color accentuating the pieces and imbuing them with an austere beauty.”

–Minhazz Majumdar


The Ordinary Becomes Extraordinary (and Vice Ver​sa)​​

Scooter

Scooter, 2007, Valay Shende, Indian, b. 1980, gold plated metal discs, 45 x 70 x 30 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan. © Valay Shende

India Shining V (Gandhi with iPod)

India Shining V (Gandhi with iPod), 2008, Debanjan Roy, Indian, b. 1975, fiberglass with automotive paint, 66 x 32 x 36 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan. © Debanjan Roy, Photo courtesy Aicon Gallery.


Avatars: When Worlds Converge​​​

Include Me Out II

Include Me Out II, 2011, Vivek Vilasini, Indian, b. 1964, inkjet photographic print, 68 1/4 x 64 1/4 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan. © Vivek Vilasini, Photo courtesy Sakshi Gallery.

Disillusioned

Disillusioned, from the Definitive Reincarnate series, 2003, Nandini Valli Muthiah, Indian, b. 1976, color photograph, 30 x 30 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan, © Nandini Valli Muthiah.

Overdose

Overdose, 2009, Manjunath Kamath, Indian, b. 1972, triptych, color photographs, left panel: 95 1/2 x 36 3/4 in., middle panel: 95 1/2 x 72 in., right panel: 95 1/2 x 36 3/4 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan. © Manjunath Kamath, Photo courtesy Sakshi Gallery.


​Changing Roles for Women in India​​​​

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Gopa Ray and Mother and Daughter, from the Ladies of Calcutta series, 2008, Dayanita Singh, Indian, b. 1961, gelatin silver print, 41 3/8 x 41 3/8 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan, © Dayanita Singh.

Flirting

Flirting (after 1990s Kannada film still), from the project Native Women of South India: Manners and Customs, 2000-2004, Pushpamala N., Indian, b. 1956 with Clare Arni, British, b. 1962, C-print, 21 1/2 x 16 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan. © Pushpamala N., Photo courtesy Nature Morte, New Delhi.


​Disappearing Ways of Life​​​​​

Artist Making Local Call

Artist Making Local Call, 2005, Jitish Kallat, Indian, born 1974, color photograph, framed: 22 1/2 × 79 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan, T2014.5.22

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Untitled (Taxi), 2003-2006, Subodh Gupta, Indian, b. 1964, face mounted photo on Plexiglas, 36 3/4 x 54 3/4 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan. © Subodh Gupta, Photo courtesy Subodh Gupta Studio.

Untitled

Untitled (Godrej Typewriter Factory) from the Parisis: The Zoroastrians of India series, 1984, Sooni Taraporevala, Indian, b. 1957, digital print, 11 1/2 x 17 in., Collection of Sanjay Parthasarathy and Malini Balakrishnan. © Sooni Taraporevala


Where the Artists Live and Work​​​​​​

Where the Artists Live and Work

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