If they can brave the record-breaking Delhi heatwave and the long distance, then a rewarding artistic experience awaits the art lovers and the artists. Some art students from Dwarka did just that. They visited the India Art Fair (IAF), 2022, which is on from April 28 to May 2, 2022, at the NSIC grounds, Okhla.
The fair which is an annual affair is back after some COVID disruption. More than 60 art galleries and 14 institutions are taking part in this year's IAF. The fair offers art lovers and students alike an opportunity to see a huge quantity and variety of artwork from upcoming artists and some very famous artists as well. M.F Hussain, A Ramachandran, Paresh Maity, S.H Raza, Atul Dodiya and Ghulam Mohammed Sheikh are some of the eminent artists whose work is on display at the IAF.
The heat though was a real trouble maker. Asghar Ali, an artist, who runs an art institute, Kalabhumi, in Dwarka and had brought his students to visit the fair, says, "The footfall this time around has reduced a lot. One reason is the heat and the other is the high ticket rates. Also, I was disappointed because the works of some regular and much-loved artists such as Khishan Khanna and Subodh Gupta were missing. The organisers had installed some water coolers which were proving far from adequate to deal with the prevalent heatwave conditions. On the whole, things looked dull." He adds, "As far as art is considered I think the whole trend is to follow the American abstract art and that is what was predominantly on display."
Krishna, a young art student who visited the fair was very excited. Says he," It was amazing to see such a huge variety of artwork on display. The fair had a dominant presence of abstract art and installations. I wanted to see more realistic art made using traditional mediums but not much was on display. The ticket price at Rs 800 per person was very high."
