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The
New Age Art Boom PACESETTER
RATUL SAHA Centrespread Bling it
on
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The New Age Art
Boom
Painting is dead. Vivan Sundaram may have declared so decades ago and devoted himself to installation art. But it is only in the recent years that this art has caught the fancy of the art community. Many cutting-edge young artists are venturing into this field. So Jiten Thukral and Sumir Tagra better known as T&T, who began their odyssey into the art world with installation works, are busy preparing a massive 80-ft X 80-ft creation for Galerie Hilger Contemporary in Vienna. Globe-trotting artist Sumakshi Singh is giving finishing touches to an installation Backstage Onscreen that will soon be displayed at the Hong Kong Art Fair. She is also working on an installation for the prestigious exhibition, Indian Highway. No wonder, Mukesh Panika, former director of the Religare Arts, is prompted to quip, "Without doubt, installation art is the medium of today." But what exactly is this medium, anyway? Some say it is an artistic statement of three-dimensional works that are usually site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. Mumbai-based Reena Saini Kallat, an avid practitioner of the genre, simply calls it a vehicle to take an idea forward. T&T ventured into this realm as they wanted the viewer to experience art with all his five senses, and not just gawk at it. So, their very first installation BoseDK, which they created with the help of empty bottles, plastic bags and used wine glasses, included sound, visual and smell. Sumakshi Singh had viewers walk through her perceptual installation. At present, she is creating an illusionary installation, in which the viewers will become an integral part of the artwork. In fact, it is these spatial possibilities of installation art that have caught the imagination of the artistic community. It is not only younger artists who are fascinated by this medium. Seasoned artists who found their moorings in other mediums, also sense immense possibilities in it. But does this increased interest also translate into commercial viability? New Delhi-based art curator Sushma Bahl feels that art collectors are waking up to installation art. Many art lovers install these works in their homes and in corporate offices. Sumakshi cites names of big-time art collectors Anupam Poddar and Kiran Nadar, who have bought installation art for their private museums. In fact, Nadar has recently opened Subodh Gupta's mammoth public installation Line of Control, which she purchased for an undisclosed amount from Hauser and Wirth Gallery. Sure enough, installations don’t come cheap but the price varies from artist to artist. T&T’s installation has fetched about a crore and Reena Saini Kalat's painted sculptural installation (made of rubberstamps) was bought by The National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts for $1,20,000 (Rs 60 lakh). Yet T& T, who have sold nearly 80 per cent of their works albeit to museums abroad, assert, "Installation art is not easy to sell." Prateek Raja from Experimenter Gallery, Kolkata, however, feels that the number of risk-takers among collectors is increasing. Of course, the demand nowhere rivals that of the paintings. Also, installation art is not always permanent and often requires great effort to store it, which further inhibits the buyers. Kallat, however, feels that collectors from the world over are going out of the way to conserve installations. Take Marc Quinn's works. Created out of his blood, the sculptures need permanent freezing. Yet, there are collectors who are willing to do so. Even Kallat’s work Silt of Seasons, a video projection on sand, requires sand to be placed in a particular way, and yet has been acquired by a museum in the West. But in the Indian context, it must be understood, as Panika says, "We don't have a ready audience, both in terms of critiquing it and understanding it." After all, installation art has been in the West for long. And while traditionally, and in our vernacular lexicon, installation has been a part of our rituals and temples, the word installation art is rather new. Says art critic and author Alka Pande, "The understanding and interpretation of installation art has come from the West." Kallat reasons, "When an artist creates art, the idea is to make it more meaningful to oneself. Installation art allows one to breathe an idea in complete totality." Panika feels buyers may not be interested in the complete installation but the buzz that it generates does have spill over benefits. So, the buyers may pick up parts of an installation or other art works associated with it. For instance, the animation part of Sumakshi's work has been bought by the CoCCA museum in Coimbatore. Panika feels that with the
interest being evinced by museums and galleries the world over, ultimately
buyers, too, will come for this new language of art. The art fraternity,
anyway, is engaged in the liberation and freedom of expression that this art
allows than be bothered about the nitty-gritty of buying and selling. As a new
trend in art, it is here to stay.
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PACESETTER
RATUL SAHA
"It has been a wonderful journey. We are bringing changes everyday after many trials so that the lovers of Bengali cinema get more. The way Bengali cinema is emerging; it should reach a wider national audience and NRI Bengalis. We have set ourselves a reasonable goal of 10,000 visitors per day," elaborates Ratul. Ratul’s website currently shows up prominently on Google’s search engine. It is also present on Yahoo and Bing. "As of today, www.bengalimovies.org is ranked fifth on Google, among movie-related searches. The whole system is structured on a popular, scalable and reliable system. The technical team, which includes students from IIT, NIT and CMI (with work experience from IBM and Adobe) is working hard to make things smoother and cleaner," explains Ratul. Of the three partners, two are financing the website. The editorial team consists of eight Kolkata-based youngsters, devoted to Bengali cinema. Each of them has been assigned definite work profiles and being paid modest salaries from the invested money. "We have managed to put together the website with the help of designers, who created some mock websites, with a presentable and user-friendly site at the end of the day," smiles Ratul. Over the next five or six years, Ratul sees himself finishing his Ph.D. in Computer Science. He dreams of making his baby www.bengalimovies.org the best website on Bengali cinema. Excited with Ratul’s website and its USP, two big production houses, offered to buy the site. They also requested the young man to work with them but he declined. "I am focused on what we serve to the users. I cannot work under someone, I am too young for that," sums up the young man.
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CENTRESPREAD
That, in a way, explains why the home theatre was voted the ‘Gadget of the Year’ in 2011. It remains one of the most tantalising products in the Indian entertainment market. Many consumers are fooled into believing that a home theatre is a gigantic television, complete with a surround sound system. In reality, the term home theatre refers only to the audio equipment and the platform the audio plays on. A home theatre system usually includes five (or more) speakers, amplifiers and a sub-woofer, along with movie or a movie-playing platform like a DVD, VCD or a Blu-ray player. Brands like Bose, Onkyo LG, Samsung, Philips and others design home theatres to replicate the surround effects of a movie theatre. A television screen is generally not a part of the package, though companies are now introducing deals that include one, especially for the Indian market. Most popular The conventional home theatre system with 5.1 channel digital sound (five speakers and one sub-woofer) is still the most popular in India, although the sound bar is also gaining ground. However, do make sure that there is ample space in the room for the system. If there are no space constraints, you could upgrade to the 7.1 or 9.1 systems, which are cutting-edge in this technology. Wall-mounting the system is an option for a pleasing look. For those with less space to work with, a 2.1 channel digital sound (two speakers and one sub-woofer) will work well. In homes where there is almost no space for speakers or wall-mounting, a sound bar may work the best as this single horizontal unit comes with a sub-woofer and an inbuilt DVD/VCD player. Smart buy Buying a home theatre system is going to cost you substantially. A smart buy for those who own an iPod or an iPhone is a system with an integrated iPod dock. If you buy an iPod dock separately, the cost of the home theatre system shoots up by Rs 5,000. Most people, who invest in a home theatre system, dedicate a room specifically for home entertainment. Try and figure out a rectangular room with as less natural light and sound from outside as possible — for privacy as well as an excellent sound experience. If it is just movies that you are interested in watching, a screen and a projector would serve you well. However, if gaming features on your to-do list, then a giant screen (a 70-inch, at least) will be a good choice. Once you have decided on the right home theatre system, make sure the speakers are mounted on the side and rear walls of the home cinema to get the best sound out of the system. Speakers already have specifically engineered enclosures to enhance their performance. So don’t enclose them in cabinets or shelves. Doing so can actually degrade the sound quality. Cinema-like ambience Remember, without a properly accessorised room, even the best of home theatres can seem to lose audio and video quality. So, throw in LED lighting to set the right mood and create a cinema-like environment. Carpet the floor or throw in some rugs, put up movie posters. Add book shelves by the walls to absorb harsh, muddy sounds. You can even get experts to install acoustic-friendly fabric or sound control panels on the walls to help control reflective sound waves. Some speakers also create faux surround sound effects by bouncing sound off the walls. Add to this some upholstered sofas or La-Z-Boy recliners, or if you have big bucks to spare, bring in professionals to install plush theatre seating (make sure, there is enough leg space). Get a microwave for some instant popcorn. Finally, just put on your favourite movie and you have a complete cinematic experience in the comfort of your own home.
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Painting
Ratul
Saha
This is the grand emperor of all home theatres. The Bose Lifestyle 48 DVD Entertainment System is a High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) compatible and includes the trademark Jewel Cube speakers and a DVD and CD player. One of the unique features of the speakers is that it evaluates the dimensions of the room and adjust the sounds of the acoustics automatically. It stores up to 340 hours of music and as an audio, it can be connected to 14 rooms with Bose-link technology. The intelligent playback mode will identify your preferences and create a listening experience dedicated to your tastes. It is designed to complement flat-panel TV screens and is compatible with a wide range of formats, including DVD video, CD, VCD, MP3 files and MPEG-2.
Many may call it a basic home theatre. But the RCA RT2910 Home Theatre System features 1000 watt of total power to fill your home with resounding sound. It includes an AV receiver, four identical compact speakers, a centre channel speaker and a sub-woofer. Also featured are three HDMI inputs, a co-axil and an optical digital audio input. It has a line-in for connection to iPod and other portable audio products. It has a surround sound system, with Dolby Pro Logic and Dolby digital decoders. The sound is smooth and the bass clean, which makes movie watching an exciting experience. This 100-watt system is wonderful buy for those on a budget.
This relatively inexpensive system is guaranteed to pump up your home entertainment. The Philips Immersive Sound Home Theatre HTS5591 is a great listening and viewing experience. Its dynamic three-directional angled speakers offer powerful surround sound with the system’s double-bass technology, lending real depth to the tonal quality. The speakers not just deliver sound towards the front but also to the sides, creating a wider sweet spot so you can enjoy more immersive and cinematic surround sound. Its DVD video can be upscaled via HDMI, which is as close to the 3-D experience as one can get. It can play all popular entertainment content, including 3-D Blu-ray for a truly immersive movie experience.
One of the top systems in its class, the Panasonic SC-BT100 Blu-ray will take your favourite music and movies to the next level. It comes with a full-HD high-quality picture, premium sound and integrated universal dock for iPod. It has a Blu-ray drive, bamboo fibre speaker diaphragms and its wireless technology delivers signals to the two speakers that can be placed anywhere in the room. Its digital video processor reproduces crisp, natural colours that are exactly the same as the original. It has a 5.1 channel surround sound of Dolby, which is expandable to advanced 7.1 channel surround sound. It gives an overall excellent performance with hi-definition picture quality and a great sound system.
This is one authoritative home theatre that packs a punch. The Onkyo HT-S9100THX is an extremely versatile system in the market. Whatever input you choose — whether gaming, movies, broadcasts, or music — the system draws on a reservoir of precise amplification power to create a breathtaking home entertainment experience. The system includes a dedicated A/V receiver, a 12-inch powered, front-firing subwoofer, front speakers, a central channel and two pairs of surround back speakers. This allows the system to deliver panoply of surround sounds, including the Dolby and Master Audio. Go for it if you have the moolah to spare.
An amazingly stylish, slim and light LG HT953TV Home Theatre System that features high-end sound, especially tuned by audio company Mark Levinson, which gives it a hi-fi sound quality with 1,000-watt output. It has a pro-digital amplifier with a sensitive, touch-button, red LED and glossy parabola-designed speakers. It also features surround sound of Dolby digital technology. It comes with a HDMI cable to connect with your high-definition televisions. It also has iPod docks so that you can listen to your favourite music by connecting your iPod to it. It has a built-in DVD player with 10.1 virtual sound for an overall excellent performance.
As far as entertainment gizmos go, this American company packs a punch. The Harman Kardon HK HS 250BQ is a power-packed home theatre, which is certified to handle full, high-definition video processing and has the Dolby and Master audio. It has features that include sound correction and speaker calibration. Whatever input you choose — whether gaming, movies, broadcasts, or music — it draws on a reservoir of precise amplification power to create a breathtaking home entertainment experience. With video upscaling, audio equalisation, acoustic-treatment technology and integrated control with leading display brands, this is a fail-safe solution for most home environments.
It is truly a Sony. The Sony HT DDW5500 is a 6.2 channel home theatre component system with two high-performance sub-woofers, offering more balanced bass distribution, and allowing listeners to experience all the power, detail and emotion of their favourite music and movies. It has Digital Cinema Auto Calibration (DCAC), which automatically calibrates audio performance according to the shape, size and construction of the room. The home theatre comes with a digital media port for songs, pictures and videos stored on a variety of devices like the iPod, Sony walkman, MP3 player, Sony Ericsson walkman phones, bluetooth and wi-fi portable music. All you have to do is to plug in and play this high performance device for your listening and viewing pleasure.
GREAT INDIAN SPIRIT
TIE THAT BINDS
KIDS ON THE HIGH STREET
TASTE OF OPULENCE
iPAD WITH AN ATTITUDE
FOR THAT SINKING EXPERIENCE
GETTING SPORTY WITH SHOES
FASHIONABLE INVESTMENT
HEADY FRAGRANCE
MEMORIES IN GOLD & SILVER