Exhibitions

Durga, 1985

Bikash Bhattacharjee, (1940 – 2006)

Oil on canvas, 41 1/2 x 39 3/4 inches (105.4 x 101 cm)

Peabody Essex Museum, Gift of the Chester and Davida Herwitz Collection, E301220

© The Estate of Bikash Bhattacharjee. Image courtesy Peabody Essex Museum, photograph by Walter Silver.

Midnight to the Boom: Painting in India after Independence

On view February 2, 2013 to April 21, 2013

Located in the: Peabody Essex Museum

The political freedoms gained from Britain at midnight on August 15, 1947, inspired a revolutionary art movement that continued through the economic boom of the 1990s. Unrestricted by cultural expectations, three generations of Indian artists fully engaged with the world around them, embracing their individualistic approaches to modern art. 

Drawn from PEM's Herwitz Collection and loans from museums and private collections.

Support provided by the Chester and Davida Herwitz Charitable Trust, the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation, Marguerite and Kent Srikanth Charugundla, Dr. Mahesh and Smita Patel, Vadehra Art Gallery, New Delhi, and the East India Marine Associates of the Peabody Essex Museum. 

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Promotional Partner:

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Media Partner:

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Images

The Bombay Buccaneer, 1994

The Bombay Buccaneer, 1994

Atul Dodiya, (b. 1959)

Acrylic and oil on canvas with film clapstick

72 x 48 inches (182.9 x 121.9 cm)

Peabody Essex Museum, Gift of the Chester and Davida Herwitz Collection, E301042

©Atul Dodiya. Image courtesy Peabody Essex Museum, photograph by Walter Silver. 

Sketch, 1994

Sketch, 1994

Sudhir Patwardhan, (b. 1949)

Oil on canvas with pencil on paper drawing

48 x 40 inches (121.9 x 101.6 cm)

Peabody Essex Museum, Gift of the Chester and Davida Herwitz Collection, E303393

© Sudhir Patwardhan. Image courtesy Peabody Essex Museum, photograph by Walter Silver. 

Ganapati the Warrior, 1977

Ganapati the Warrior, 1977

Jogen Chowdhury, (b. 1939)

Pen, ink, pastel, and lacquer on paper

21 3/4 x 29 3/4 inches (55.2 x 75.6 cm)

Peabody Essex Museum, Gift of the Chester and Davida Herwitz Collection, E300806

©Jogen Chowdhury. Image courtesy Peabody Essex Museum, photograph by Walter Silver. 

Family - 1, 1983

Family - 1, 1983

Ranbir Singh Kaleka, (b. 1953)

Oil on canvas

80 1/2 x 85 1/4 inches (204.5 x 216.5 cm)

Peabody Essex Museum, Gift of the Chester and Davida Herwitz Collection, E301025

©Ranbir Singh Kaleka. Image courtesy Peabody Essex Museum, photograph by Walter Silver. 

Sequence, 1981

Sequence, 1981

Tyeb Mehta, (1925 - 2009)

Oil on canvas

69 x 102 1/2 inches (175.3 x 260.4 cm)

Peabody Essex Museum, Gift of the Chester and Davida Herwitz Collection, E301015

©The Estate of Tyeb Mehta.

Image courtesy Peabody Essex Museum, photograph by Walter Silver.

Durga, 1985

Durga, 1985

Bikash Bhattacharjee, (1940 – 2006)

Oil on canvas, 41 1/2 x 39 3/4 inches (105.4 x 101 cm)

Peabody Essex Museum, Gift of the Chester and Davida Herwitz Collection, E301220

© The Estate of Bikash Bhattacharjee. Image courtesy Peabody Essex Museum, photograph by Walter Silver.

Related Events

Midnight to the Boom: Painting in India after Independence ›
Opening Day
Saturday, February 2, 2013 from 11am - 3pm

Included with museum admission

Film

NEW FORM AT THE FARM
An ASKlabs Film for the Keystone Trust
Produced by Alberta Chu
11-11:30 am and 2:30-3 pm | Morse Auditorium

A film about some of the works of renowned contemporary artist Anish Kapoor, one of the most influential artists today. Filmmaker Alberta Chu will be in attendance at both screenings.

 

Docent-led Gallery Tours

11:30 am and 2 pm | Meet at information desk
Tickets available on day of tour

 

Presentation

EXPLORING MIDNIGHT TO THE BOOM
1–2 pm | Morse Auditorium

Curator Susan Bean and Ajay Sinha, professor of art history at Mount Holyoke College, discuss the creation of Midnight to the Boom: Painting in India after Independence and illuminate the modern art movement in post-colonial India.

 


Made possible by the Lowell Institute

The Rajah’s Rice › For children ages 5 to 8 with adult
Story Trails
Sunday, February 3, 2013 from 2pm - 3pm

The people of Rani's village are hungry. But when she is rewarded for a good deed she first asks for only a single grain of rice. Will her clever plan save her people? Find out as we read The Rajah's Rice by David Barry, and then create a colored rice mosiac to take home.

Tickets available on day of program.

 

Made possible by Target

target

Members' Evening Reception ›
Midnight to the Boom: Painting in India after Independence
Wednesday, February 6, 2013 from 6:30pm - 9pm

Evening Reception | 6:30–9 pm

Further Reading