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ARTICLE : Art vs Freedom
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To: GHEN <ghen@netcom.com>
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Subject: ARTICLE : Art vs Freedom
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From: ashok <ashokvc@giasbm01.vsnl.net.in>
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Date: Thu, 17 Oct 96 18:54:58 PDT
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Priority: Normal
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ReSent-Date: Thu, 17 Oct 1996 18:34:50 -0400 (EDT)
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Resent-From: ghen@netcom.com
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ReSent-Message-ID: <Pine.SOL.3.91.961017183450.15919A@netcom.com>
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ReSent-To: ghen@netcom.com
Title : Art vs Freedom
Author : Prabhakar Begde
Publication : The Times of India
Date : October 17, 1996
The vandalism of paintings by Husain at the Husain-Doshi
gufa in Ahmedabad, which is itself a classic example of
imaginatively blended art and architecture, is saddening.
I am a great admirer of Husain's work and his various
endeavours in the field of art and even had an opportuni-
ty to work with him briefly while conducting art and
painting workshops for young artists at Delhi and Mumbai
airports about eight years ago (his favourite then was
Sridevi).
Being an architect and a keen student of Indian art,
architecture and iconography, I have studied Husain's
sketch of Saraswati, with his beautiful linework, which
is the characteristic of his style - and I beg to differ
with his interpretation.
According to Indian iconographic principles (the word
'Hindu' would invite mistakenly a 'fundamentalist'
label), Saraswati is portrayed as a beautiful woman clad
in white clothes (shubhra vastravrita), seated or stand-
ing on a white lotus (svet padmasana) and having two or
four arms. She plays the veena, symbolising music and
the fine arts. When four-armed, her emblems are the
veena, a book (indicating her association with learning)
and a rosary. Her usual mount is a swan (hamsa), a
symbol of purity and knowledge, and occasionally a parrot
(suka) or a peacock. Her mudra is vyakhyana.
Iconography literally means ,writing with images' and
these images were the outcome of a beautiful interaction
between philosophy, religion, literature and the arts
which had its own meaning and purpose and still continues
to excite the admiration of the civilised world. Why
should these beautiful symbols of our art and culture be
destroyed in the garb of 'artistic and intellectual
freedom'?
I had to face the ire of Mr Husain once simply because I
misspelt his name with an extra 's' which he did not
approve; if he is so sentimental about the spelling of
his name, why should he assume liberty to tinker with
iconographic language which has a deep symbolic meaning?
Or maybe by stripping Saraswati, the image of' purity of
thought and action, Husain intends to emphasise the
present moral bankruptcy of our society.
"Nations are created by poets and artists," said Ananda
Coomaraswamy, that great savant of our art and culture,
"not by merchants and politicians." In this context,
Husain should realise his social responsibility. To quote
Dr Radhakrishnan: "Consideration for the feelings of
others is the greatest mark of culture." And Mr Husain is
an honourable man.
