For all energy and beauty of the body, all sureness and boldness of the sword, but also all genuineness and ingenuity of the understanding, are grounded in the spirit, and they rise or fall only according to the correct power or powerlessness of the spirit. Spirit is what sustains and rules, and first and the last, not merely indispensable third element
-Heidegger in the fundamental questions of metaphysics
Non-figurative art shows that art is not the expression of the appearance of reality such as we see it, nor of the life which we live, but that it is expression of true reality and true lifeindefinable but realizable in plastics.-Mondrian
It is now a fact that in culture almost every thing is politicized, organized, structuralized and has lost its generic value. In arts there is always a danger of to be politicized especially in fine art, cinema, and theater since these art forms are most prone to it because of these being most communicative languages. And when a theory of exploitation is in existence which sees language as a tool for repression and exploitation than one must take precaution. Another danger is from capitalism who do consider art as a product to be produced mechanically so far they could do business and create more and more capital. Not satisfied by what they do earn from industrial production they want to make quick money from art works and not in open market rather in virtual field i.e. in auction mechanism.
These both trends will do no good to artists and art. Artist community should be aware of these dangerous trends in order to rescue the spirit of art. In fine art, abstract art genre faces no danger from political side since its power of communication is very limited but for figurative art this danger is looming large and we have seen how Husain, Nalini Malani, Arpita Singh and many other Indian modern artists has been corrupted and their consciousness has been purchased. Husain is captured by the above said both specters; first he was corrupted politically than purchased in 100 million by an industrialist thus having lost his consciousness of freedom, the very condition of to be modern he is finished.
This danger of being exploited is most critical question than an attack from a fascist regime. You can easily face the enemy if he comes in open but an enemy who is insider and have camouflaged, not easily identified than it would be tough to defeat that enemy. Fascism no doubt is our enemy but most important enemy is that one in which these all political singularities like liberal parties, pseudo Marxist parties etc. are interknitted. This enemy is identified as capitalism, in india it is feudalist-capitalism characterized by non progressiveness.
On this juncture of history no philosophy of reason can save the most sublime aspect of humanity i.e. culture. But art have that spirit since it had always fought against these forces. Those art forms which represent appearances figuratively, or narrate in a visual language had always been victim of political. However there were artists; who in figurative genre did something remarkable and immortal. Starting with Da Vinci Leonardo we have Matisse, Cezanne, Vincent Van Gauge, Paul Gauguin, Henri Moor, and Brankusi, who were engaged in creating something new other than appearances.
They wanted to transcend empirical reality, more correctly they wanted to separate art work from it since they believed that by doing so they will be able to create a second nature. This is why for these masters artworks are answers to their own questions of art. These artists were advocates of autonomy of art. Without autonomy art can not be creative as for as creativity is concerned. This question of autonomy is very important today since some political minded artists want to politicize art. The danger of loss of autonomy is not only from political side, it is also from them who want to convert art in industry and art work as an industrial production.
Artists should realize their responsibility sincerely in order to create something new. Art is not production. Art work inaugurates the truth; act of art is inaugural not political or declarations nor appeals nor interpretations of history, as we see today. In fine art only abstract art has the possibility to take a leap from the all hitherto subjects of representation because it is only available form of visual language other than philosophy which can think and take a leap. Being inaugural abstraction has no purpose other than itself i.e. completion of work in progress.
Work in progress is the very field where abstraction finds its horizon, its immanence. Abstract painting is not made; it is inaugurated in the process. This process is subjectively mediated but objectively accomplished. Abstract painting says nothing other than itself. It is poem, a visual poem but without meaning. To belong to the language of abstraction, means that we disappear in to the event of painting.
In Indian modern art context there are few masters who give us hope today. Today many abstract artists are producing designs in the name of abstract art; they dont understand the demand of abstraction except market demand. They are selling abstract art in the name of spiritual art though they dont know what is spiritual. These artists are mostly from a recently born school called Bhopal school of which there is a pope ( not naming now ) and a sanrakshak artist. This school follows Raza since sometime he promotes them and distributes them Raza award. They are religious-spiritual in their tone and language.
I have come across many artists who are cleverly using religious words and terminology as a title for their paintings though they have never come across those philosophical concepts. Abstract artist should not identify abstraction with religion since abstraction is a modern concept of art. It may or may not be necessarily spiritual and mystical; abstraction is just going beyond empirical reality, it is transcendental. This is why it is more concerned with philosophico- mysticism than religious.
In india abstraction has become religious; it has lost its philosophical flavor. The most important abstractionists in india like Raza, Gaitonde, Sohan qadri, G.R.Santosh, O.P.Sharma., KC.S.Pannikar, J.Swaminathan (before initiated in Vedanta swami was materialist) etc are religious abstractionists. They do associate themselves with religions and religious mysticism. Though it is not bad concept regarding abstraction (if one really understands religious consciousness) yet it dilutes artists consciousness because of which they do not really experiences the real ecstasy of artistic creation.
Abstraction as an experience itself; an experience in which one discloses him self into work of art is what is described by modern masters and aestheticians as an act of abstraction. In Kandinskyan sense too, Abstraction is the seeking of the inner by the way of the outer means through work in progress one opens himself. Abstract art work is spiritual only through the negation; it speaks the language of neti neti. Abstraction gives freedom to negate but it is not nihilism; it crates something out of nothingness but at the same time this something is not about something. It is that something itself, it is self sufficient entity: it is a work of art. This is why it is autonomous entity and demands autonomy for its existence.
From this point of view Abstraction is not considered as a genre rather as another form of expression within visual language. And it must be considered as such because this is the only platform from where one can take a flight. This is its relevant today when art has been considered political if not social. When postmodernism as a philosophy of life is knocking our doors and pursuing us through communication industry to indulge in a sheer material pleasure by declaring the demise of subject itself; the theory of abstraction becomes more important. Abstraction is most revolutionary of all art forms because it defies rationalist challenges and gives hope to humanity. Mans manliness is not only the gratification of desires rather to discover his being. See what Heidegger says in his poem -
At first take the last glow of blessing
from the dark hearth of be-ing
that it may kindle the countering:
godship-human kind is one.
through the distress of bold clearing
Between the world and the earth as song
To inaugurate all things
In joyful thanks to accord and rank.
Shelter in word the silent message
Of a leap over the large and small
And lose the empty findings
Of a sudden semblance on the way to be-ing.
Author is an art critic and writer of three books 'contemporizing Buddha', ' Hindu tantra Yoga' and 'Concerning The spiritual In Art-an Indian modern art perspective'. He has been awarded with 'Lalit kala Academy Scholarship Award' for art criticism in 2005. Currently working on a book 'Buddhist tantra yoga'. He lives and works in Delhi india.
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