5 Powerful Female Indian Artists
Art history is an important subject for artists and art lovers to know about. Knowledge of the fruitful art history of a style or place is very helpful to gain inspiration from and even implement some features. Along with historic artists, people creating art now are very crucial to understanding the world of art in India. Specifically, there are very influential female Indian artists with multiple important works of art through their tenure. Here are Five Powerful Female Indian artists who have taken their ethnic backgrounds and modern notions to create some influential works of art.
Born in Delhi, Reena is a visual artist who currently lives and works in Mumbai. She looks at the cycle of nature and the ethos behind humanity through her art. A recurring object of her art was the ‘rubber stamp’ and the symbolism of bureaucratic practices which are just controlled and faceless processes which showcase irony. Bringing attention to the collapse of monuments and structures in India through her artwork highlighting lost pieces of history. For instance her work based on the Bhau Daji Lad Museum in Mumbai titled Untitled (Cobweb/ Crossings) is renowned and highlights the streets and lost faceless histories surrounding the museum. The ‘web’ symbol is prominently used to deal with the issues of ruin and those who orchestrate it.
She is a contemporary Indian artist who explores multiple practices like performance art and interactive video for installations. Exploring a diverse range of themes like consumerism, desire, religion and nationalism. Some of her installations relied on audience participation and even delved into political issues such as human rights. She is one of the foremost Indian artists who often discusses the societal divide which is so present. Blurring the established boundaries through her art is a prominent work and is a strong statement.
Having worked largely in painting and drawing, she is a contemporary Indian artist who explored film and photography. She often draws from literature and historic mythology relating to personal experiences through numerous works of art. Similar to others in the field, she also toys around with themes of modernity and traditions in this contemporary society. Using her own family’s experience during partition and the impact the partition had on people’s lives and relates to current experiences which are parallel. She likes to focus on the future and one’s instincts, which was the focus of her exhibition in 2014 called ‘Cassandra’s Gift’.
A London born contemporary artist, Bharti Kher deals with self reflection and human relationships through her work. One of the singularities about Kher’s work is her use of the ‘bindi’. This is a simple significant symbol in Indian culture and she deals with it uniquely balancing modernity and tradition. The bindi appears in her installations and her works of art which subtly challenges the norm of women and the role they play in society and even the concept of a ‘third eye’. One of her most popular works of art ‘The Skin Speaks a Language Not Its Own’ has the entire subject covered in bindis which looks mystical and fantastical.
She is an Indian-American artist and sculptor, who loves to explore the multiple mediums available to create unique works of art. Her multimedia works explore multiple events in colonial history and focus on a sense of identity and give simple colorful objects new meaning. Her artwork is a mix of the cosmopolitan background and the traditional mythologies which influence her creative visuals. The western point of view of the east is a popular theme in Banerjee’s work and her installation in Paris titled ‘Take me, Take me… to the Palace of Love’ presented the Taj Mahal through a rosy lens. She used colorful exotic materials in her work and it was a very unique representation.
These are only a few of India’s artists who have made their mark on the art community and there are several more who have the talent and ability to reach new highs, like some of the artists featured on Artsome. Supporting local artists is an important thing, especially when you are guaranteed to purchase someone’s unique innovation and creation.