{"id":2129,"date":"2018-09-12T17:05:04","date_gmt":"2018-09-12T10:05:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.littlewanderingwren.com\/?p=2129"},"modified":"2018-09-17T13:15:41","modified_gmt":"2018-09-17T06:15:41","slug":"the-shambolic-delight-of-the-national-gallery-of-modern-art-new-delhi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.littlewanderingwren.com\/staging\/8794\/2018\/09\/12\/the-shambolic-delight-of-the-national-gallery-of-modern-art-new-delhi\/","title":{"rendered":"The shambolic delight of the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s modern\u00a0art, Jan but not as we know it!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

I did not get off to a good start, arriving to\u00a0find the museum closed. A large sign on the gate says ‘By order of the Minister of Culture Government of India, new opening hours from <\/em>11 am‘.<\/em><\/p>\n

It’s 10.15 am and this early bird is definitely not catching the worm!<\/p>\n

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The 11 am\u00a0tour English tour as advertised at the ticket office, runs at 11.30’ish, Hmmmm make that Indian time more like 12 Noon.<\/p>\n

The entrance fee of 20 rupees for a local, becomes 500 rupees for a foreigner…<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The toilets are disgusting, the cafe none existent, unless you wanted a can of coke, I didn’t. Am I sounding like a spoilt tourist?<\/p>\n

Continuing on, there’s a large lake being mopped up in the shop that had nothing appealing to buy even without the water damage.<\/p>\n

Yep! Welcome to India, Wren.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m sincerely all for tourists contributing towards the maintenance of Delhi\u2019s fine arts but the lady with the mop and bucket trying to turn back the tide in the shop looks like she could do with a few bucks from management to get the leaky roof fixed.<\/span><\/p>\n

I wander down to view the masterworks from the National Gallery of Australia (NGA), thinking really? Did anyone from Australia actually check out where they were sending their precious artworks?<\/p>\n

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The Indigenous Australia exhibition is a surprise and such a welcome relief.<\/p>\n

I have the whole place to myself and I soon become engrossed. Well done Australia for bravely partnering with the National Gallery of New Delhi and giving audiences here an insight into art\u00a0by some of Australia’s most important and admired Indigenous artists. I am later told that this exchange of artwork also includes an invitation for Indian artists to a study tour in Australia.<\/p>\n

The NGA has chosen over 100 works from their 8000 object collection for the Delhi exhibition and I am immediately drawn to two politically charged artworks.<\/p>\n

‘Ash On Me’ is a collection of vintage ashtrays with varying images of aboriginal identity. Bottom line, it is about having a cigarette stubbed out on you.<\/p>\n

Ok, so Australia is a none to perfect place either.<\/p>\n

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Ash On Me by Tony Albert 2008 & Austracism by Vernon Ah Kee 2003<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n

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Austracism is a direct play on the word ostracism, looking at the commonly expressed and all too familiar sentiments surrounding racism in Australia. Each opening line starts with ‘I\u2019m not a racist but \u2026’<\/p>\n

It’s got me thinking about my own initial harsh judgment of this museum through my western lens. A non-too perfect Aussie one at that.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Ok, ok,\u00a0 I forgive the flood in the art gallery, if not the state of the loos, actually that’s probably my British roots talking.<\/p>\n

Talking of which, let’s go and look at the main museum and see how Indian modern art developed, in part through the British East India Company.<\/p>\n

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The modern buildings of the National Museum of Modern Art, New Delhi<\/p><\/div>\n

I hurry back for my 11 am, now 11.30 am but nearer 12 noon start for the English tour.<\/span><\/p>\n

Within minutes it appears the guide is double booked and as I am the only tourist, my tour is hijacked by a class of fine arts students. <\/span><\/p>\n

Welcome to the English language tour run in Hindi!<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Just go with the flow Wren, go with the flow…<\/p>\n

The guide was fantastic, a real enthusiast and the students and I were enthralled.<\/span><\/p>\n

I absolutely loved it, and my initial impressions of a dingy, disorganised, disaster of a Fine Arts Museum were gradually replaced, as one by one each painting, artist and the history of modern art in India were brought alive.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The students were engrossed, they had been challenged to find one piece of artwork from the collection that spoke to them, to do some research on the background and complete their own art in a similar style.<\/p>\n

Suddenly it was if I was back in my teens with all that excitement of a full life ahead and a huge lot of learning to be had! It was as I had gatecrashed a living lecture from a fine arts college and I’m living the creative dream. This IS alright after all!<\/p>\n

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We start with a painting of a butterfly drawn by a child in the workshop area of the museum, and the guide asks us:<\/p>\n