A Piece of Art

Took the girls out yesterday evening, the sun was up till quite late now, though the sudden showers still demand us to have some warm clothing. After dinner, we decided to walk and one of our stop over was at this piece of art by Subodh Gupta. This piece of art is on a temporary installation which was open here on April 27, 2010 at 6:00 p.m. and will be on display until October 31, 2010

A little excerpt of Gupta from Wikipedia

"Subodh Gupta is best known for incorporating everyday objects that are ubiquitous throughout India, such as steel tiffin boxes used by millions to carry their lunch as well as thali pans, bicycles, and milk pails. From such ordinary items the artist produces sculptures that reflect on the economic transformation of his homeland and they are related to Gupta's own life and memories. As Gupta says: "All these things were part of the way I grew up. They are used in the rituals and ceremonies that were part of my childhood. Indians either remember them from their youth, or they want to remember them." And: "I am the idol thief. I steal from the drama of Hindu life. And from the kitchen - these pots, they are like stolen gods, smuggled out of the country. Hindu kitchens are as important as prayer rooms".

Gupta transforms the icons of Indian everyday life into artworks that are readable globally. He is among a generation of young Indian artists whose commentary tells of a country on the move, fuelled by boiling economic growth and a more materialistic mindset. Gupta's strategy of appropriating everyday objects and turning them into artworks that dissolve their former meaning and function brings him close to artists like Duchamp; The Guardian called him "the Damien Hirst of Delhi" (2007). He succeeds in finding an art language that references India and at the same time can be appreciated for their looks and aesthetics in the whole world; as Gupta says: "Art language is the same all over the world. Which allows me to be anywhere."

In his new works that Subodh Gupta is presenting at Hauser & Wirth in October 2009, the artist moves away from composite sculptures toward objects that possess an auratic quality. Ready-made commodities experience transformations in scale and material. Relations to European art history are now to be found. Among the new works is a three-dimensional reworking in bronze of Duchamp's mustachioed Mona Lisa "L.H.O.O.Q." (1919)."