Printmaking Colloquium

Speakers: R.M. Palaniappan, Rajan Fulari and Kavita Shah
Discussant: Lina Vincent Sunish

August 24, 2013 | 6.30 pm
Auditorium, National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai

‘Between the Lines: Identity, Place and Power’ Selections from the Waswo X Waswo Collection of Indian Printmaking is an exhibition that represents over eighty-four Indian artists from diverse geographical regions. Consisting of woodcuts, etchings, lithographs and screen-prints, the works in the collection span a time from 1916 to the present. During this period, transformations in the Indian subcontinent have been enormous and reflect in the content of the works.

In the background of the exhibition, it is interesting to investigate several frameworks within which printmaking has been practiced and extended as a fine art and also a commodity in artistic transaction in India. The existence of Printmaking Studios is at the centre of the dialogue today. These studios have provided the space and technology for artists to continue making prints outside of a college department, and also became centres of continuing pedagogical support both supplementing and replacing academic discourse.

The medium, best produced in the collective, has thrived in various studio facilities across India, including Garhi in Delhi, the Lalit Kala Academi Regional centre graphics unit in Chennai, and Chhaap Studio in Baroda. These have also turned into hubs for artistic and theoretical movements and characterise significant local inputs in the promotion of the medium. In this discussion, three educators discuss printmaking pedagogy in the studio format, moderated by the curator of the exhibition.

Rajan Shripad Fulari studied Printmaking from Goa Art College and M.S. University, Baroda, and followed that with Film Appreciation from FTII, Pune. He has to his credit many accolades which include the Junior Fellowship, Govt. of India, National Award from Rajasthan Lalit Kala Akademi, and AIFACS Award, New Delhi. He has held many solo shows including those in Goa, Mumbai, New Delhi & at the Robson Gallery, Halliwell’s House Museum, Selkirk-Scotland. With exhaustive attributions to his career as a printmaker, Rajan has participated in group shows in India and abroad, including several international print biennales. At present, he is the Print Studio Incharge at Lalit Kala Akademi, Regional Centre-Garhi, New Delhi.

With a Diploma in Fine Arts (Painting and post-Diploma in Industrial Design from the College of Arts, Chennai), R M Palaniappan studied advanced Lithography at Tamarind Institute (USA1991) and was the Artist in Residence at the Oxford University (1996). His solo and group exhibitions find presence to major art centres across the globe. He has curated several important shows including ‘Major Trends in Indian Art’ on the occasion of the Golden Jubilee celebration of India’s Independence. A recipient of several awards, honours and residencies including the Fulbright Grant, Charles Wallace India Trust grant, he currently serves as the Regional Secretary of Lalit Kala Akademi, Chennai. Palaniappan, primarily a printmaker has successfully ventured into digital and computer imagery besides painting and photography.

Kavita Shah is a visual artist, painter, printmaker, educationist and a founder member of Chhaap Foundation for Printmaking Trust. Associated with Chhaap for a decade she attempts to create awareness for limited edition original prints. As an academician, she is involved with the Fine Arts faculty of M.S. University, Baroda, NID and other institutions. She has participated in major juried shows viz. Triennial-India and Bharat Bhavan Print biennial and has several awards at state level shows organized by the Lalit Kala Akademi of Gujarat, Karnataka and AIFACS. She has compiled several international print portfolios and was artist- in- residence in Finland and Italy and has worked actively in print studios at In La couriere et Frelaut, Paris and Print Making Workshop with Robert Blackburn, New York, USA.