Printmaking has long been a "much-maligned monster" of the art world. Though it began as an early form of popular art that functioned independently of text, history eventually saw it subsumed by the dissemination of literature—creating a quirky irony where literacy became a precondition for viewing art.
While the colonial era utilized graphic prints for topographical records, great artists across generations have championed the medium for its experimental possibilities and commercial viability. Yet, when not consciously protected by the artistic community, printmaking risks being dismissed as a mere technical craft—a perception that led to its "fall from grace" during the heights of modernism.
Today, we are witnessing a global renaissance. From signed limited editions to estate serigraphs, the medium has reclaimed its currency; studios are once again abuzz, and the machines are constantly engaged.
It is against this backdrop that I have formulated an idea for an exclusive exhibition of printmaking and graphic arts. Uday and Sunaina Jain of Dhoomimal Gallery have been avid collectors of prints and they did not think twice when the proposal was put before them. As the curator of the exhibition, I travelled to India’s most famous art destinations and met art collectors who held good stocks of print art in their collections. Culling from them was an interesting task and I could get both national and international artists including Picasso, Anish Kapoor, Marc Chaggal, Souza and so on from their collections. I also visited print ateliers run by young and devoted printmakers and selected their works besides getting works from the independent artists from all over the country.
I do not claim it as a survey show of Indian printmaking art. But those who want to see a cross section of the energetic printmaking scenario of our country could have a good view of it from this exhibition. This show covers almost all the printmaking techniques; lithography, etching, dry point, aqua tint, viscosity, serigraph, woodcut, linocut, photo transfer, chromolithography and so on. This month-long show will have workshops on printmaking, seminars and panel discussions.
JohnyML
Curator of Print Age: The Art of Printmaking in the Age of AI Reproduction