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Indian Buddhas fetch big money (Go to Top) London: This has been the week of the Buddhas for the Western art world. In London, two famous museums have combined to pay 850,000 pounds for a 14-inch carved figure of the Sakyamuni Buddha dating from the 7th century, and in New York an anonymous buyer has paid 736,000 dollars for a standing sculpture of Buddha from the Gandhara region, dating from the 2nd or 3rd century. The Sakyamuni figure, from the period of the Gupta dynasty in India, was bought jointly by the Victoria and Albert Museum (which holds the UK's best known and most comprehensive Indian collection) and the British Museum, because neither could afford the asking price of the London dealer alone, despite help from Lottery funds and other donors. Mark Jones, Director of the V and A, said: "The V&A has wanted to acquire a Gupta-stryle Buddha for more than 40 years. This is a rare and beautiful object which adds immeasurably to our Indian collections." The Buddha will be exhibited by the two museums in turn; it will be on show at the V&A for the next three months, then will spend a similar period at the British Museum, before going round the country as the centerpiece of a loan exhibition of Indian Buddhist sculpture. Made of copper alloy, the figure depicts the Buddha in the style of the late Gupta period in India, sharing a number of distinctive features with other Buddhas of the period. The Buddha is represented standing in a slightly flexed pose, with his right hand raised in a gesture reflecting his role as protector of devotees. It shows a finely carved head, with sylised curls and delicate features. A downward cast of the eyes suggests that this image was designed to be installed in an elevated position on an altar or carried in procession. The free-standing Buddha statue from the region of Gandhara, of which the vale of Peshawar was the ancient centre, was the key item in a sale of Indian and Sout East Asian art by Sothebys in New York, which netted a total in excess of 3 million dollars this week. It has been in a private collection in Italy and has not been on the market in recent memory and its auction piece was more than double its estimated value.
The exquisitely carved sculpture typifies the Buddhist ideals of the
period. The Buddha stands with his pleated robe draped around his shoulders,
one looped end held in his hand. The well- proportioned face, with narrow
heavy-lidded downcast eyes and softly curving bow-shaped lips radiates
serenity, and epitomises the highest achievements of Gandharan art.
A red sandstone panel from Centra India - the Mithuna Panel - was bought
by an anonymous buyer for 120,000 dollars, well over its estimated price.
It depicts a sensuous carving of a loving couple in a gentle embrace
- in the style of erotic panels that commonly ornamented the facades
of mediaeval Indian temples. Among modern items, an oil-on-canvas diptych
of Mother Theresa by M.F. Hussain was bought for 78,000 dollars by a
private collector, while a trade buyer paid 153,000 dollars for a painting
by Francis Newton Souza entitled Mystic Repast. Goa targets barbers for AIDS control (Go to Top) Panaji (Goa): Alarmed by the rising HIV/AIDS threat, authorities in Goa have issued a stricture making it mandatory for beauty salons and barbers to sterilise their equipment before use. The move comes in the wake of a recent study by the state health department, which listed infected sccissors and razers used by barbers as a major source of HIV transmission. "Right now, why we had to implement this in a big way is that there is a high possibility of HIV patients or Hepatitis B patients transmitting this disease if we do not use unsterilized equipment especially for barbers. We are taking ample precaution because these diseases have been detected in Goa," state health minister Suresh Amonkar said in capital Panaji. But a few weeks into the ban, salons and particularly the small-time barbers are blatantly flouting the order. Goa has over 5,000 beauty and grooming salons. Though people have welcomed the move, most are sceptical about its effective implementation. "The implementation needs to be looked...the rules are good but I have my doubts about their implementation. Sterilization of the instrument is probably not being done...yes blades are changed for every customer but sterlization is not being done," Ujjval, a customer, said. While most salons are unaware of the directive, others only put their tools in boiling water, which though preventive does not ensure 100 percent sterilisation. Under
the new guidelines the beauty parlours, as they are commonly referred
to India, have to use proper sterilization machines, where the accessories
will be kept at proper temperatures. "We always take these precautions.
Washing the instruments with hot water, with dettol (an antiseptic)
we do all this. We don't reuse blades. The government recently started
this but we have always been careful," Vasant, a hair dresser. said.
Nearly a million tourists visit Goa, famous for its sun-kissed beaches,
every year, and the heavy influx of hippy drug takers coupled with rising
sex tourism has made the region especially vulnerable to AIDS. According
to the latest WHO estimates, AIDS has already killed more than 20 million
people and over 42 million more affected and the world is facing nothing
less than a global pandemic. India itself has four million HIV positive
cases, the highest after South Africa. South Asia has the highest concentration
of the poor in the world and despite various campaigns, governments
face an uphill battle checking AIDS spread, largely because of the stigma
attached to it. Kashmir bat makers cash in on cricket frenzy (Go to Top) Halmulla
(J-K): Makers of cricket bats in Jammu and Kashmir are a busy lot
these days. All 60 families in Halamulla, 60 miles from Srinagar, are
working overtime to meet a sudden surge in demand in the backdrop of
the ongoing India-Pakistan cricket series. Millions of cricket fans
in the subcontinent are tuned in to the 39-day series in Pakistan which
India is playing after 15 years. The relations between the nuclear rivals
have improved ever since the last April peace call by Prime Minister
Atal Behari Vajpayee. This cricket series is part of the ongoing confidence
building measures taken by both the countries. Latif Ahmed, a leading
bat maker, said he has received advance payments and even had to turn
down several orders to clear the backlog. "This time there is a lot
of demand of our bats. This series is happening after a gap of 14 years.
So there is lot of demand. We are unable to meet the demand, there are
lots of orders. We hardly had any work last year but now we have to
hire labour from outside to meet the demand," said Ahmed. Ahmed has
engaged 25 employees, who are busy in his factory, fashioning the raw
willow into seasoned bats. The bats range from Rs. 45 to 1,400, depending
on their quality and its manufacturing process. Mohammed Amin, another
bat maker, that he has received orders for 15,000 bats against the 7,000
last year. "The India-Pakistan series is a boost for our industry. People
are very much interested in this series. We have more work now," said
Amin. There are about 300 bat manufacturers in Kashmir employing more
than 10,000 people directly or indirectly, and generating a turnover
of over 5 million dollars. Kashmiri willow is second only to English
willow for the spring effect and its feel batsmen admire. Kashmiri bats
are used everywhere from casual street games to just below Test level.
The willow used for making bats thrives in parts of Jammu and Kashmir,
but won't grow in commercial numbers elsewhere in the country. Varanasi weavers protest against powerlooms (Go to Top) Varanasi: Traditional weavers in Varanasi, on Wednesday took to the streets to protest the advent of powerlooms. The handloom sector is the mainstay of the city's labour- intensive Banarasi saree industry. The Banarasi sarees, named after Varanasi's old name, Benaras, are also the city's most famous export. Weavers said that the advent of the powerlooms, which produce Banarasi sarees on a large scale, has not only hit their business but also the entire Banarasi saree market. Seasoned weavers and designers alleged that the use of powerlooms and computer-generated designs take away the feeling of grandeur from the famous Banarasi silk saree, a time tested icon of Indian craftsmanship, and also brought a bad name to the entire market. Many even accused the powerloom-owners of plagiarising their designs. "These big traders are slowly and steadily converting handloom designs into powerloom designs, which is illegal. They also fool the customers by claiming their sarees as silk sarees, whereas, the fact is that silk sarees cannot be made on powerlooms," said K.P. Verma, Deputy Director of Handloom Industry Association. From
just 1,758 powerlooms in 1995-96, the number has increased manifolds,
and now touches a whopping 125,000, enough to send over a hundred and
twenty-four thousand people employed in the handloom sector into a frenzy.
"Weavers are at a great loss...Earlier, the powerlooms used to be fewer,
but of late, the number of power looms has grown significantly and this
has caused a great setback to the handloom industry," said Rajnikant
Pandey, President of Weavers' Association. The holy town of Varanasi,
situated on the banks of the Ganga, is a huge draw for international
tourists and traders coming to India with its promise of spiritual enlightment
and a raw, rustic, wholly Indian charm. Apart from the beautiful sarees,
Varanasi is also famous for its ethnic Indian handicrafts and carpets
which match the best in the world. Most of the exporters have their
clients in European countries. Papier mache art attracts artisans from across South India (Go to Top) Hyderabad: Over 20 craftsmen from various south Indian states participated in a workshop on "papier mache", or paper pulp technique, recently held at Shilparaman, the crafts village in Andhra Pradesh. Artisans used papier mache to produce eco-friendly and bio-degradable artecrafts. Participants said the workshop provided them an opportunity to blend traditional and contemporary art. "What we learnt here is that traditionally they make papier mache Ganeshas, on mass production basis, so we converted that into contemporary art," said Hashoor, an artist from Karnataka. The organisers said the workshop aimed to draw on the traditional knowledge for contemporary application. "This is an interactive camp between contemporary artists from all the states of South India, and a few traditional artists who actually work with papier mache regularly. The whole idea was to learn their traditional process and to use it in a way that would add in some way to contemporary practice," said Abhijit Gupta, organiser of the papier mache workshop. Papier Mache is being used the world over to create objects of art and utility.
Papier mache involves kneading of pulped paper, usually newsprint with
rice husk or lentils paste. Right proportions of yellow clay and fenugreek
powder are added. Resin is also mixed to impart strength. The mixed
paste is then moulded into desired shapes. Products also include screen
partitions, wall panels, table tops and kitchen utilities besides a
variety of decorative items. |
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