R. Siva Kumar

R. Siva Kumar

R . Siva Kumar lecturing at the opening of The Last Harvest : Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore, Museum of Asian Art, Berlin (2012).
Born (1956-12-03) 3 December 1956
Kerala, India
Nationality Indian
Other names Raman Siva Kumar
Education Visva-Bharati University
Alma mater Visva-Bharati University
Occupation Art historian, art critic and curator; principal of Kala Bhavana
Movement Bengal school of art
Contextual Modernism
Spouse(s) Mini Sivakumar
Children Siddharth Sivakumar (Son)

Raman Siva Kumar (born 3 December 1956), well known as R. Siva Kumar, is an internationally noted contemporary Indian art historian, art critic, and curator. In 2010, in his interview with the Web of Stories the eminent artist K. G. Subramanyan refers to R. Siva Kumar as "one of the best" art historians .[1] R. Siva Kumar's major research has been in the area of early Indian modernism with special focus on the Santiniketan School. He has written several important books, lectured widely on modern Indian art and contributed articles to prestigious international projects such as the Art Journal,[2] Grove Art Online or The Dictionary of Art, Oxford University Press.[3][4] [5][6]

He was awarded the Kesari puraskaram for art writing by the Lalit Kala Akademi, Kerala in 2010.[7][8] He has also curated major exhibitions like Santiniketan: The Making of a Contextual Modernism, and The Last Harvest : Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore and retrospectives of important Indian artists, such as Rabindranath Tagore, Benode Behari Mukherjee(co-curated with Ghulam Mohammed Sheikh), K. G. Subramanyan. He also has co-curated an exhibition titled "Tryst with Destiny" for the Singapore Art Museum to mark the 50 years of Indian Independence and served as a curatorial adviser for Rhythms of India: The Art of Nandalal Bose curated by Sonia Rhie Quintanilla for the San Diego Museum of Art.

Early life and education

R. Siva Kumar was born in Kerala. After completing his early education in Pune and Kerala he moved to Santiniketan, where he joined Kala Bhavan and completed his MFA in history of art.

Career

Since 1981, Professor Siva Kumar, who is often considered to be "the most erudite and self-effacing art historian"[9] of his time, has been teaching art history at Kala Bhavana, where he has held several offices, including that of the Principal.[10] His writings on Abanindranath Tagore and the Santiniketan artists have contributed a new perspective on them by shifting the critical focus from nationalist revivalism to a context sensitive modernism. Among his curated exhibitions Santiniketan: The Making of a Contextual Modernism commissioned to mark the fifty years of Indian independence, Benodebehari: A Centenary Retrospective (co-curated with Ghulam Mohammed Sheikh) and The Last Harvest : Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore commissioned to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Tagore are considered landmark exhibitions. The reputed Indian Magazine, Frontline reported, "The best show was the one (celebrating 50 years of Indian Independence) curated by R. Siva Kumar of Santiniketan, 'The Making of a Contextual Modernism', exhibiting about a hundred works each of Nandalal Bose, Rabindranath Tagore, Ram Kinker Baij and Benode Behari Mukherjee".[11] While The Last Harvest : Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore was shown at ten major museums of the world including the Museum of Asian Art, Berlin; Asia Society, New York; National Museum of Korea, Seoul; Victoria and Albert Museum, London; The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago; Petit Palais, Paris; National Gallery of Modern Art, Rome; National Visual Arts Gallery, Kuala Lumpur; McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Ontario; and National Gallery of Modern Art, Delhi.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi release R. Siva Kumar's Rabindra Chitravali

In a review of Rabindra Chitravali in The Statesman, German scholar Martin Kämpchen writes, "It collects excellently faithful reproductions of Rabindranath's paintings in large format. The editor, Kala Bhavan's art historian, Prof R . Siva Kumar, has spent his entire working life researching the Bengal School of Art, especially the Santiniketan crop of painters. This is the crowning achievement in this hard-working and self-effacing scholar's career."[12]

For the Royal Asiatic Society, Cambridge Journals, W. Andrew Robinson wrote, "The unparalleled quality of the volumes' reproductions, made from new scans of the original works kept in Santiniketan, in New Delhi and elsewhere, and printed by India's leading art printer, Pragati Offset, based in Hyderabad, is thrillingly good. Rabindra Chitravali: Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore is surely one of the finest art books to have been produced in India.[13]

Closely associated with the critical traditions of the Santiniketan his writings on Abanindranath and the Santiniketan artists have been recognised as making an important contribution to the reassessment and critical reception of these artists. Reviewing his book Paintings of Abanindranath Tagore Tapati Guha Takurta wrote: ‘With this magnum opus on Abanindranath Tagore, Siva Kumar can be seen to have traversed full circle within this particular lineage of art practice and art writing in Bengal. An art historical journey that began with and has continuously returned to the work of K. G. Subramanyan, has tracked its course backwards in time to mark out its significant inheritance, not just of the Santiniketan masters (Nandalal Bose, Rabindranath Tagore, Benode Behari Mukherjee and Ramkinkar Baij), but also in the little-known oeuvre of the later Abanindranath.'[14]

In 2013 he was awarded by the Paschimbanga Bangla Akademi for his book Ram Kinkar Baij – A Retrospective.

R. Siva Kumar also received a special award from the University of Dhaka for his contribution to the Indian art scene.[15][16]

Contextual Modernism

In Santiniketan: The Making of a Contextual Modernism Siva Kumar introduced the term Contextual Modernism which later emerged as a postcolonial critical tool in the understanding of Indian art, specifically the works of Nandalal Bose, Rabindranath Tagore, Ram Kinker Baij and Benode Behari Mukherjee.[17]

The brief survey of the individual works of the core Santiniketan artists and the thought perspectives they open up makes clear that though there were various contact points in the work they were not bound by a continuity of style but buy a community of ideas. Which they not only shared but also interpreted and carried forward. Thus they do not represent a school but a movement.
— Santiniketan: The Making of a Contextual Modernism, 1997

Several terms including Paul Gilroy’s counter culture of modernity and Tani Barlow's Colonial modernity have been used to describe the kind of alternative modernity that emerged in non-European contexts. Professor Gall argues that ‘Contextual Modernism’ is a more suited term because “the colonial in colonial modernity does not accommodate the refusal of many in colonized situations to internalize inferiority. Santiniketan’s artist teachers’ refusal of subordination incorporated a counter vision of modernity, which sought to correct the racial and cultural essentialism that drove and characterized imperial Western modernity and modernism. Those European modernities, projected through a triumphant British colonial power, provoked nationalist responses, equally problematic when they incorporated similar essentialisms.”[18]

Role in preventing Tagore fakes

R. Siva Kumar being interviewed by a journalist in Dhaka, 2013

R. Siva Kumar, being an authority on Tagore's paintings, curator of his largest Exhibition and the author/editor of the most comprehensive reference work on Rabindranath's paintings has played an important role in preventing Tagore-fakes.

In 2011 the Government College of Art and Craft in Kolkata, under principal Dipali Bhattacharya, had organised an exhibition in of 23 Tagore paintings. And later 20 were found to be fake. Siva Kumar, who had already seen digital images of the paintings and was convinced that they were all fakes, had warned the college principal, Dipali Bhattacharya, against holding the exhibition. But Bhattacharya went ahead wi the claim that the paintings were "genuine".[19]

“There’s a great market for Tagore's paintings and his works are of a rare kind. I had seen the reproductions and I knew they were fake. It's unfortunate because it completely destroys the oeuvre of the artist. But the problem of fakes is larger than what is made out of it." R. Siva kumar had revealed to the Indian Express.[20] According to Siva Kumar the fakes were "by an academically trained artist — not old Santiniketan. Elements have been taken from different prints and then collaged together...This (Tagore-faking) needs to be nipped in the bud. The other day, I came upon a notice about an exhibition of Nandalal (Bose) and Abanindranath (Tagore), the medium being acrylic and canvas. Acrylic paints were not invented then. They are totally uninformed. The art world should wake up if it wants credibility. Institutions should be more careful. They have a certain responsibility to their heritage and legacy. The academic part of it should be more professional."[21]

In 2014, Siva Kumar called for the formation of an investigation unit to track theft, copies and forgery of art. Times of India quoted him,"A national-level investigation agency should set up a team of specialists who follow only such cases so that they can see pattern or notice the involvement of same people or part of the same network. One can then consider putting an embargo on galleries and collectors whose names figure in such reports." He also urged that supportive legal measures should also be drafted. Explaining the rise in fakes originating from Bengal, he pointed to the revival of interest in art of early 20th century. "Bengal masters figured prominently in art history. Their works were few in circulation. Hence, when demand went up, it spawned fakes."[22]

Memberships and associations

Awards and recognitions

Curated exhibitions

Major publications

Selected articles

See also

References

  1. ↑ "KG Subramanyan – Artist – Siva Kumar". Web of Stories. 10 September 2010. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  2. ↑ Kumar, R. Siva (1 January 1999). "Modern Indian Art: A Brief Overview". Art Journal. 58 (3): 14–21. doi:10.2307/777856. JSTOR 777856.
  3. ↑ http://museumstudies.si.edu/tagore_schedule_final.pdf
  4. ↑ "Erasing Borders:Passport to Contemporary Indian Art Feb–June 2008". Iaac.us. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  5. ↑ "The Curatorial Imperative Mohd Ahmad Sabih, Researcher for India | Asia Art Archive". Aaa.org.hk. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  6. ↑ "Friday Review Thiruvananthapuram / Interview : Insightful views". Chennai, India: The Hindu. 23 January 2009. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  7. ↑ "Lalithakala Akademi awards". The Hindu. Chennai, India.
  8. ↑ http://www.guildindia.com/News/StateawardsofLalitKalaAkademi,Kerala2010.pdf
  9. ↑ "What you see when you see: Freedom through the eyes of artists – Bangalore Mirror -".
  10. ↑ Ananya Vajpeyi (3 March 2013). "ADVENTURES IN ARCADIA- Experiments with the life of the mind". Calcutta, India: The Telegraph. Retrieved 14 March 2013.
  11. ↑ Archived 17 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
  12. ↑
  13. 1 2 http://andrew-robinson.org/uploads/REVIEW_OF_PAINTINGS_OF_TAGORE.pdf
  14. ↑ Bengal Art: New Perspectives, Pratiksha, Kolkata 2010, ISBN 978-81-89323-11-0, p .29
  15. ↑ "eProthomAlo". eProthomAlo. 13 January 2013. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  16. ↑ "banglanews24.com news and entertainment 24x7".
  17. ↑ "Finding an expression of its own".
  18. ↑ http://www.huichawaii.org/assets/gall,-david---overcoming-polarized-modernities.pdf
  19. ↑ "We Are Blind to Beauty – OPEN Magazine".
  20. ↑ http://expressindia.indianexpress.com/story_print.php?storyId=1038299
  21. ↑ "The Telegraph – Calcutta (Kolkata) – Metro – Fakes in the time of Tagore frenzy: finger of fraud at art college show".
  22. ↑ "Call for expert panel to scan masters' art – Times of India".
  23. 1 2 3 "R. Siva Kumar". Visva-bharati.ac.in. 3 December 1956. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  24. 1 2 "Santiniketan – The Making of a Contextual Modernism by R Siva Kumar". Indiaclub.com. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  25. ↑ "Osians-The Auction House". Osians.com. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  26. ↑ "K.G. Subramanyan : a retrospective /". Dkagencies.com. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  27. ↑ "National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi". Ngmaindia.gov.in. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  28. ↑ Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Generaldirektion. "Staatliche Museen zu Berlin: Kalender". Smb.museum. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  29. ↑ Current Exhibitions Upcoming Exhibitions Past Exhibitions. "Rabindranath Tagore: The Last Harvest | New York". Asia Society. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  30. ↑ "Permanent Exhibitions | Exhibitions & Events | 국립중앙박물관". Museum.go.kr. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  31. ↑ "Rabindranath Tagore: Poet and Painter – Victoria and Albert Museum". Vam.ac.uk. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  32. ↑ http://www.artic.edu/sites/default/files/press_pdf/Tagore.pdf
  33. ↑ "Le Petit Palais – Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941)". petitpalais.paris.fr. 11 March 2012. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  34. ↑ Archived 14 January 2013 at the Wayback Machine.
  35. ↑ "McMichael Canadian Art Collection > The Last Harvest: Paintings by Rabindranath Tagore". Mcmichael.com. 15 July 2012. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  36. ↑ http://www.ngmaindia.gov.in/pdf/The-Last-Harvest-e-INVITE.pdf
  37. ↑
  38. ↑ Ashoke Nag, ET Bureau 8 August 2013, 01.18PM IST (8 August 2013). "A. Ramachandran to exhibit his works in Lalithkala Academy Kochi – Economic Times". Articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  39. ↑ The Santiniketan Murals – Jayanta Chakrabarti, R. Siva Kumar, Arun Kumar Nag – Google Books. Books.google.co.in. 1995-01-01. ISBN 9788170461166. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  40. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20071017195415/http://frontlineonnet.com/fl1418/14180690.htm. Archived from the original on 17 October 2007. Retrieved 4 February 2016. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  41. ↑ "K.G. Subramanyan, a retrospective (Book, 2003)". [WorldCat.org]. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  42. ↑ "Ramachandran: A Retrospective (Volume I & II) Ella DATTA | Asia Art Archive". Aaa.org.hk. 5 June 2012. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  43. ↑ "Ramachandran, A Retrospective| Book| Store |SWB | Scholars without Borders, an online academic bookstore in India". SWB. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  44. ↑
  45. ↑ Tagore, Rabindranath; Kumar, R. Siva (1 January 2005). "My Pictures: A Collection of Paintings". Viva Books, in association with, Visva-Bharati Pub. Department, Kolkata – via Google Books.
  46. ↑ "R Siva Kumar: new books, used books, rare books by R. Siva Kumar @". Bookfinder.com. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  47. ↑ "Contemporary india art | india art gallery | online indian art gallery delhi | contemporary art india | online gallery art india". Gallery espace. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  48. ↑ "Benodebehari Mukherjee (1904–1980) : Centenary Retrospective / curated by Gulammohammed Sheikh and R. Siva Kumar. – Version details – Trove". Trove.nla.gov.au. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  49. ↑ Benodebehari Mukherjee (1904–1980): Centenary Retrospective – Gulam Mohammed Sheikh, Binode Behari Mukherjee, R. Siva Kumar – Google Books. Books.google.co.in. 2010-04. ISBN 9788187737247. Retrieved 9 January 2014. Check date values in: |date= (help)
  50. ↑ "K.G.Subramanyan". Guildindia.com. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  51. ↑ "K.G. Subramanyan : the painted platters (Book, 2009)". [WorldCat.org]. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  52. ↑ Paintings of Abanindranath Tagore: R. Siva Kumar: 9788189323097: Amazon.com: Books. Amazon.com. 1 January 2009. ASIN 8189323091.
  53. ↑ "Pratikshan :: Books in Books on Art". Pratikshanbooks.com. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  54. ↑ Sensibility Objectified: The Sculptures of Sarbari Roy Choudhury – Sarbari Roy Choudhury, R. Siva Kumar – Google Books. Books.google.co.in. 2009. ISBN 9788189995270. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  55. ↑ Sensibility Objectified: The Sculptures of Sarbari Roy Choudhury: Amazon.co.uk: R. Siva Kumar: Books. Amazon.co.uk. ASIN 1890206032.
  56. ↑ "Recent Publications – Recent Publications – Sensibility Objectified: The Sculptures of Sarbari Roy Choudhury". Lalitkala.gov.in. 13 April 2011. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  57. ↑ "K.G.Subramanyan". Guildindia.com. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  58. ↑ "K.G. Subramanyan: Drawings | Asia Art Archive". Aaa.org.hk. 5 June 2012. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  59. ↑ "Commemoration of 150th Birth Anniversary of, Shri Rabindranath Tagore". Rabindranathtagore-150.gov.in. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  60. ↑ "The Last Harvest | Mapin Publishing". Mapinpub.in. 26 December 2013. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  61. ↑ et al, Siva Kumar (Author). The Last Harvest: Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore: et al, Siva Kumar: 9788189995614: Amazon.com: Books. Amazon.com. ASIN 8189995618.
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