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Saffronart Luxury Country House is WSJ ‘House of the Day’

October 23, 2013

Elisabetta Marabotto of Saffronart introduces one of Saffronart Prime Properties which featured on the Wall Street Journal over the summer

London: Back in August the Wall Street Journal proclaimed ‘House of the Day’ one of Saffronart Prime Properties.

A Stylish Eco-Friendly Country House, Aldona, Goa

A Stylish Eco-Friendly Country House, Aldona, Goa. Image Credit: http://www.saffronart.com/real-estate/Property-Details.aspx?iid=33602&tc=0&sid=#

The chosen property is an eco-friendly two-story country house located in Aldona, Goa. This property is the  perfect getaway from the crowds and usual distractions of modern life. This home is well suited for those wishing to reconnect with themselves, the environment and the natural rhythms of life.

The uniqueness of this property stems from each facet of the home having been designed in harmony with its beautiful surroundings. This is one of the first homes in Goa shortlisted to receive a ‘Gold’ certificate from the India Green Building Council.

The property features four bedrooms and four bathrooms. Three of the bedrooms are in the main house. (The fourth is in the pool pavilion.) All four bedrooms are open on two sides, have teak wood doors and polished cement floors. The three bedrooms in the main house also have basalt walls. The master bedroom, has an elevated view of the surroundings. The built-up area of approximately 4500 square feet is constructed on approximately 1226 square yards of land.

Everything started when the owner, Anjali Mangalgiri, and her husband bought a piece of land in Aldona in 2010. They began construction in 2011 and spent about two years building this two-story house. Ms. Mangalgiri works in real-estate design and construction. She and her husband live in New York City but both grew up in India. They fell in love with the bio-diversity of Goa after visiting friends in the state and started to look for land to build a house.

This property is available for sale and you can find more information on Saffronart website and on the following article.

Below you can enjoy few images of this extraordinary property.

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The Entrapment of Gods

October 18, 2013

Rashmi Rajgopal of Saffronart tries figuring out what kept the Gods anchored to earth all along.

Mumbai: It’s that day of the week again when you need to pay a visit to your benefactors, Lord Balaji et al.  But today is different: you have a special wish in mind. Your attire is as attention-grabbing as an S.O.S. alert fired from a sinking ship, but that’s the whole point of all the jewellery. You reach your local temple and notice all the dazzling jewellery anchoring the Gods to Earth. Then, out of nowhere, insecurity collides with full force into you. You stare at your feet, suddenly reminded of your mortality and puny insignificance. You gaze dismally at the idols you came to pray to. Their divine magnificence would any day outdo your attire.  Then you forget why you came to the temple in the first place…

“Wish you looked as good as us, eh? No amount of penance will grant you that,” smirks Lord Balaji with Sridevi (l) and Bhudevi (r). Image Credit: http://blogs.houseofgems.com/index.php/2012/11/the-legendary-temple-jewelry-of-india/

“Wish you looked as good as us, eh? No amount of penance will grant you that,” smirks Lord Balaji with Sridevi (l) and Bhudevi (r). Image Credit: http://blogs.houseofgems.com/index.php/2012/11/the-legendary-temple-jewelry-of-india/

Sadly for you (and luckily for the Gods), temple jewellery is made solely to adorn our anthropomorphic idols. Specifications are based on the Gods in question, their roles, the manifestation of their powers in ornamental form etc. When the fad began centuries ago, donors generously flooded temples with customised jewellery for Gods. Temple jewellery varied according to the donor’s social, economic and religious standing (Nigam, M.L., Indian Jewellery, 63). Oh, and secularism scored big time.  Hyder Ali, Tipu Sultan, the Nizam of Hyderabad (Ibid, 65) and other Muslim rulers of the south also lavished these temples with jewellery.

You’re scratching your head, wondering what all this signifies. Deity jewellery symbolises all the heavenly resplendence our earthly minds cannot possibly fathom. It’s painfully obvious that we can never match up to the Gods, hence the distinction. This is all rad, you say, but bear in mind this feat was no assembly-line production. Which is where dedicated goldsmiths and craftsmen feature. Adhering to a rigid set of requirements calls for a back-up of centuries-old family tradition, skill, patience and monetary investment. If you set out looking for skilled artisans, you’re most likely to find them toiling away in Nagercoil and Malaypore in Tamil Nadu, South India. Ah, but I see you lunge for Doc Brown’s DeLorean. Going back in time, you’d want to check out the special workshops of Mysore King Krishnaraja Wodeyar III.

Why are you specifically referring to South India, you ask me. Not because I’m a South Indian, I tell you, slightly offended. Well-preserved specimens are more probable to be found down south compared to the north, which has been subject to invasion over the years. Speaking of the north, there are extant specimens in the Srinathji temple in Nathdwara, Rajasthan (Krishnan, U. R., & Ramamrutham, B., Indian Jewellery – Dance of the Peacock: Jewellery Traditions of India, 196). Which brings me to part two…

Just when you thought Lord Balaji had the last laugh, the Enamel and Pearl Srinathji Necklace (Lot 23) shows up. Image Credit: http://www.saffronart.com/customauctions/PreWork.aspx?l=9157

Just when you thought Lord Balaji had the last laugh,
the Enamel and Pearl Srinathji Necklace (Lot 23) shows up. Image Credit: http://www.saffronart.com/customauctions/PreWork.aspx?l=9157

The necklace you see here depicts Srinathji, an avatar of Krishna. This is also temple jewellery, and here it becomes crucial to distinguish between the ornamental and the religious. This isn’t for your aesthetic pleasure, oh no. Temple dancers, priests and royalty began wearing temple jewellery metaphorising the overwhelming power I spoke of earlier. Then devotees jumped on the bandwagon. And you’re thinking it would be a good idea to take a cue from all this. What’s the cue? Saffronart.

“You know you want me,” says the Gowrishankaram (lot 82). Image Credit: http://www.saffronart.com/customauctions/PreWork.aspx?l=9216

“You know you want me,” says the Gowrishankaram (lot 82). Image Credit: http://www.saffronart.com/customauctions/PreWork.aspx?l=9216

Here’s the perfect example of having entrapped Lord Shiva in gold: the Gowrishankaram pendant (Lot 82). You’re relieved to see him in his calmer self, seated with Parvati on his bull, Nandi. You begin thinking you may want to bid for this piece. That’s not all. The lower compartment is an urn to store vibhuti¸ or sacred ash, to mimic Shiva’s ritual of smearing himself with it (Untracht, O., Traditional Jewelery of India, 39). Yes yes, temple jewellery is metaphor-obsessed. Just go for it.

These pieces feature in the Autumn Auction of Fine Jewels and Silver on October 23-24,2013.

To view the online catalogue, please click here.

The Second Jehangir Sabavala Memorial Lecture By Rustom Bharucha

October 8, 2013

Elizabeth Prendiville shares a brief note on a talk with Rustom Bharucha this past weekend.

 New York: On October 4th The Jehangir Sabavala Foundation presented its second edition of an ongoing memorial lectures series. The lecture focused on the relationship between Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore and Japanese art historian and curator Okakura Tenshin. The talk was conducted and monitored by esteemed writer, cultural critic and director, Rustom Bharucha. Bharucha has authored several books on cultural exchange and globalization.

The lecture took place at The Visitors Centre in Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya Fort in Mumbai.

We look forward to announcing more details from this event as it breaks.

Heritage Reinvented: Inaugural exhibition

October 5, 2013

Ambika Rajgopal of Saffronart announces the inaugural exhibition- Heritage Reinvented at Tryon St. Gallery, London.

London: Five artists from different parts of the world unite to present Heritage Reinvented at the Tryon St. Gallery in London. In this exhibition, while drawing from their own individual socio-cultural peculiarity, they contest, challenge and transform the imagery and concepts normally associated with their own culture.

The Dark Cloud series, 2013, Kazim Ali. Image Credit: © Tryon Street Gallery and Ali Kazim

The Dark Cloud series, 2013, Kazim Ali. Image Credit: © Tryon St. Gallery and Ali Kazim

The five artists are the Pakistani Ali Kazim, the New Zealander Brett Graham, the English Tom Hunter, the Ecuadorian Oscar Santillan and the Korean Meekyoung Shin. Though their standpoints are varied, their desire to amalgamate their socio-cultural past in order to speak to the present remains a constant in all their works. The artists attempt to create a new personal vocabulary through which they examine and revisit their heritage and often their own identity.

Ali Kazim originally trained as a miniature painter, but started his career as a circus-hoarding painter in the small town of Pattoki, Pakistan. His paintings, principally of lone masculine figures, have a multilayered tactility on account of many layers of watercolour pigments on textured paper, which imparts his work with a low relief quality.

Untitled (self portrait) series, 2013, Ali Kazim. Image Credit: © Tryon St. Gallery and Ali Kazim

Untitled (self portrait) series, 2013, Ali Kazim. Image Credit: © Tryon St. Gallery and Ali Kazim

On display is a new series of work, where Kazim uses the framework of the South Asian visual culture, but he relativizes it. He is influenced by the miniature style techniques, which in the Mughal period were used to symbolize official rank, wealth and status. However, he strips away the colorful splendor of the miniatures to reveal a quiet monochromatic introspection, and thus transforms the long-standing miniature tradition of painting. Similarly Kazim draws from the Bengal school’s wash technique as can be seen in his self-portrait, where he uses over 20 washes of pigment to achieve the desired effect. His portrait is meditative, melancholic and remains firmly rooted in its past, while examining the present.

In his previous works he used tracing paper in order to subdue the colours further, thus giving his portraits more psychological significance. Regarding this, Kazim clarifies, “I feel that the thematic concerns of the work are strengthened greatly through a careful selection and use of materials. They help me explore the human body in a more expressive way.”

Te Hokioi, 2008, Brett Graham. Image Credit: © Tryon St. Gallery and Brett Graham

Te Hokioi, 2008, Brett Graham. Image Credit: © Tryon St. Gallery and Brett Graham

In a similar manner, the other artists confront the stereotypes normally associated with their culture. Brett Graham is of European and Maori descent and his work depicts the amalgamation between Western modernism and indigenous spirituality. He shows the dichotomy of his dual heritage by juxtaposing modern instruments of warfare with traditional Maori designs. These colonial power symbols were considered to be spiritual symbols by the indigenous Maori. Graham’s work explores the effects of European colonialism on the indigenous Oceanic population.

After the Dragon, 2000. Tom Hunter. Image Credit: © Tryon Street Gallery and Tom Hunter

After the Dragon, 2000. Tom Hunter. Image Credit: © Tryon St. Gallery and Tom Hunter

Tom Hunter’s photographs reposition the composition and symbolism of European and American masterworks. In his work After the Dragon, Hunter draws stylistically and symbolically from Pre Raphaelite artist Edward Burne-Jones’s painting Pan and Psyche (1872-1874). Part of his Life and Death in Hackney series, Hunter contemporizes Psyche and Pan, making them subcultural inhabitants set in the landscape of post-industrial urban decay. By plugging the legacy of the past into the context of the present, his work creates a dialogic exchange between the two binaries.

The show is on view from 3rd October to the 22nd November 2013.

http://www.saffronart.com/auctions/PostWork.aspx?l=7535

Untitled, 2005, Ali Kazim. Image Credit: http://www.saffronart.com/auctions/PostWork.aspx?l=7535

Saffronart has previously auctioned Ali Kazim’s work in the November 2012 Art of Pakistan Auction.

For more information about the exhibition, please click here.

A Snapshot of “India Song”

September 28, 2013

Shradha Ramesh follows  Karen Knorr ‘s recent exhibit presented by Tasveerart.

New York: German born Karen Knorr, entices the viewer with an inimitable photographic panorama. Among her variegate digital photographic series ‘India Song’ is a kariotic moment in her visual venture. The series exudes a conjoint interaction of subjects -a rich, intricate architecture interacts with wildlife in an idyllic stage. She started working on the series in 2008, focusing on the theme of upper caste culture of the Rajput in India. The series imbibe cultural heritage of Rajasthan and Mughal architecture interspersed with animal protagnist. But the painting has underlying messaging she questions the base of the culture, colonialism, exoticism, gender, religion, and politics of India. The enigmatic composition blurs the distinction between reality and illusion, in an attempt to question the cultural heritage and rigidity in hierarchy.

A Place Like Amravati, Udaipur City Palace (Nilgai), Udaipur

A Place Like Amravati, Udaipur City Palace (Nilgai), Udaipur

Driven by satirical implication of societal demarcation and representation, her repertoires are aesthetic amalgamation of her quest on privileges of the aristocratic. The first of her series were a photographic compilation on social mockery of the upper class in London. Having lived and grown in a lavish neighbourhood in Belgravia, her works are a sardonic response to this lifestyle. She elaborates on The Belgravia series, she says “…At that time in photography, a lot of artists were showing people who were dispossessed. I felt it was time to turn the tables and look at the people who were in charge. It’s not exploiting them; they are strong enough to take the irony. It’s playing the game on their own terms. I also wanted to implicate myself, look at issues of privilege.”

The Lifting of Purdah, Moti Mahal, Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur

The Lifting of Purdah, Moti Mahal, Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur

An internationally acclaimed photographer, she has lectured, taught and exhibited at various universities both in US and Europe. Her techniques are wide spread and diverse, she has incorporated these in her photographic exploration. Each of these techniques expresses a sense of emotion, she said “One thing I noticed in conceptual art, it could be so serious. I don’t want to be that serious, I want to make a picture that’s ambiguous.” She establishes this through hybrid juxtaposition of two entirely different visual components- architecture (rigid) and nature (biomorphic).

A Soul Reborn, Ajanta Caves, Ajanta

A Soul Reborn, Ajanta Caves, Ajanta

 To really experience and interpret, one must see the works in person. India Song is on display from 27 September – 05 October 2013, Tasveerart, Delhi.

The photographs are available for purchase on StoryLtd.

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