r DEPARTMENT OF ART HISTORY & AESTHETICS FACULTY OF FINE ARTS M.S. UNIVERSITY OF BARODA

CORDIALLY INVITES YOU TO THE INAUGURAL SESSION OF U. G. C. NATIONAL SEMINAR ON

COMPARATIVE AESTHETICS AND CRITICISM OF CONTEMPORARY ARTS

KEY NOTE ADDRESS BY

DR. (SMT) KAPILA VATSYAYAN MEMBER SECRETARY INDIRA GANDHI NATIONAL CENTRE FOR THE ARTS, NEW DELHI.

TO BE PRESIDED BY

PROF. V. C. SHAH VICE CHANCELLOR, M.S.U, BARODA

WEDNESDAY,2ND JANUARY, 1991, 11.00 A.M.

VENUE: GENERAL EDUCATION AUDITORIUM, M.S.U, BARODA

SUBSEQUENT SESSIONS AT DEPARTMENT OF ART HISTORY & AESTHETICS

PROFESSOR RATAN PARIMOO PROFESSOR V.S. PATEL DEEPAK KANNAL DEAN DR. SHIVAJI PANIKKAR FACULTY OF FINE ARTS (DIRECTORS OF SEMINAR) B,t..R ODA INAUGURAL SESSION WEDNESDAY. 2nd JAN. 1991 , 11 a.m.

To be Presided by Professor V. C. Shah Vice Chancellor, M. S. University of Baroda.

1. Welcome by Prof. V. S. Patel Dean, Faculty of Fine Arts, M. S. U. Baroda.

2. Introduction of the Seminar, Prof. Ratan Pari moo. Director of the Seminar and Head, Dept. of Art History & Aesthetics.

3. Information regarding the Alumni Gathering on the occasion of 25th Anniversary of the Department - Smt. Aruna RathQd Lecturer, Dept. of Art History & Aesthetics.

4. Interrelation of Indian Arts, Lecture under Tagore Chair in Humanities Lecture Series as the Keynote Address Dr. (Mrs.) Kapila Vatsyayan.

5. Address by Prof. V. C. Shah, Vice - Chancellor, M. S. U. Baroda.

6. Vote of Thanks by Shri Deepak Kannal, Reader, Dept. of Art History & Aesthetics.

1 p.m. - 2 p.m. Lunch Break

SESSION II 2.30 p.m. to 5.30 p.m. 1. Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan Interrelation of Indian Arts

2. Dr. Thomas Pantham Impact of British Colonial Rule in M. S. U. Baroda.

3. Dr. Sudhir ~handra Impact of British Colonial Rule in Surat India

4. Prof. Kulbhushan Jain Modernity in Indian Architectl!re School of Architecture Ahemadabad.

5. Prof. Praful Kar New Historicism and M. S. U. Baroda. The Old Problem : Will the new Historicism provide an alt~rnat iv e to deconstruction.

6.30 p.m. MOHINI ATTAM PERFORMANCE, by Bharati Shivaji and Kala Ghanashyam ' Venue - General Education Auditorium 8.30 p.m. Dinner time SESSION III THURSDAY 3rd JAN, 1991 9 a.m. - 12.30 a.m.

1. Prof. Dinesh Mahulkar Logistics and Aesthetics Institute of Advance . Studies, Simla

2. Prof. G. P. Deshpanday Dialectics of Defeat J. N. U. , New Delhi

3. Smt. Geeta Kapoor A set of Theses on the Place of Art Critic, New Delhi Modern in Indian Cultural Practice

4. Dr. Ranjitsingh Rangila Art Object and Aesthetic Leap Centrallnst. of Indian Languages, Mysore

5. Dr. Smt. Rekha Jhanji Viablity of Comparative Punjab Uni, Chandigarh Aesthetics

6. Dr. Nitin Gupte Frankfurt School of Criticism M. S. U. Baroda

7. Dr. Alexander Henn Impact of Britisr. Colonial Rule in Heidelberg, Germany India

Lunch Break - 1. p.m. - 2 p.m.

SESSION IV 2.30 p.m. to 5.30 p.m.

1. Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan Interrelation of Indian Arts

2. Smt. Chandralekha . Innovations in Dance Choreographer, Madras

3. Smt. Bharati Shivaji Enriching Mohiniattam Repertoire Dancer, New Delhi

4. Dr. Sunil Kothari Innovation in Classical Indian Calcutta Dance An Overview

5. Shri P. K. Nair Organization of Time and National Film Archives space in Indian Film Song Pune Picturization a.30 p.rn. Screening of Ritvik Ghatak's 'Subarnarekha' Auditorium, Faculty of Fine Arts

8.30 p.m. Dinner time SESSION V FRIDAY 4th JAt ', 19;1

4't 9 a.m. to 12.:30 a.m

1. Shri :( N. P2.n ik;::.;; Rhythm and its Application Trivand n..: m

2. Dr. Ashok Ranade Contemporary Ao::;thetics and . N. C. P.,A, ~om bay Criticism : P ~rfo r minQ Arts

3. · Dr. \ ,- <.: ) 8hagwat Form and Content of Khyal Bor:,"ay

4. Dr. {S; nt.l Premlata Sharma Relevance of Rasa B. H. LJ Varanasi Theory far Contemporary arts with special reference to • Music .

5. P of. A. N. Mishra Form and its Concept Jiwaji ·Uni. Gwalior in ancient texts

Lunch Break - 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.

SESSION VI 2.30 p.m. to 5.30 p.m.

1. Smt. Gayatri Chatterii Ritvik Ghatak's Subarnarekha National Film Archi'.Jes, Pune

2, Prof. Satish Bahadur Aspects of Film F. T. I. I, Pune

3. Shri Hasmukh Baradi Dramatic space Performing Garage Theatre, and mass media art

4. Dr. C!landrabhanu Patnayak Manipulations in the Trailor I G N Q U, New Delhi

5. Dr. Sanatkumar Vyas Loka Kalaka Natakomen S. P. Uni. Vallabh Prayog (Hindi) Vi dyanagar

6.30 p.m. LlLAVATI, Choreographed by Chandralekha General Education Auditorium

8.30 p.rn. Dinner time SESSION VII SATURDAY 5th JAN, 1991 9 a.m. to 12.30 p.m.

1. Dr. Ranjitsingh Bajwa Critical Theory and Aesthetic G N 0 Uni. objectivization in Folk Theatre Amritsar case study of Ras Lila Performance in Punjab

2. Shri Samik Bandyopadhyay Problems of Reading Calcutta Indian Theatre

3. Dr. Parminder Singh On Rajarao G N 0 Uni. Amritsar

4. Dr. Ganesh Devi The function of Criticism M. S. U. Baroda An Indian perspective

5. Shri Deepak Kannal Dalit Literature in Marathi M. S. U. Baroda An extension of Indian Romanticism?

6. Shri Narayanan Modern Kannada Novel Central lnst. of Indian Languages, Mysore

7. Dr. (Smt.) Urmi Kessar The Climate of Thought Punjab Uni. Critical Aesthetic writing in Chandigarh Pre-Independence India

Lunch Break - 1 p.m to 2 p.m.

SESSION VIII (Concluding Session) 2.30 p.m. to 5.30 p.m.

1. Shri Sandeep Sarkar Critique of Critical Criterion Art Critic, Calcutta

2. Dr. Shivaji Panikkar Indian Radical Painters & M. S. U. Baroda Sculptors Association - Prob­ lems of Political Art

3. Prof. Ratan Pari moo Material for the study of style, M. S. U. Baroda Narratology and Semiotics, from Literature and their Relevance for Pictorial Arts

4. Dr. (S mt.) Vaijayanti A Re-interpretation of the Navangule Vishnudharamottara M. S. U. Baroda Adhyay.a-41

Concluding Discussions

6.00 Alumni Association Meeting (Art History/Art Criticism) U. G. C. National Seminar On 'Comparative Aesthetics and Criticism of the Contemporary Arts' (Sister Arts in the Contemporary Context) from January 2nd to 5th, 1991 .

OBJECTIVE AND SCOPE

To mark the 25th year of its growth and development, the Department of Art History & Aesthetics, which has been recog­ nised by the U. G. C. under the DSA Programme since 1987, has planned to hold a National Seminar on Comparative Aesthetics and Criticism of the Contemporary Arts, during January 1991.

The objective of this seminar is to bring together for the first time in a common forum, art historians, art critics, literary, film and theatre critics, including some of the intellectually ~inded practitioners of these arts, Sanskrit scholars of aesthetics, philosophers and sociologists, who have been observing documenting and assessing the contemporary manifestations in the various art expressions in varied media, in our country.

The purpose is to realise together the manner the various art expressions have been reviving, developing and expanding, in India during the twentieth century and the perception of these by the respective critics and some distinguished practitioners. This will enable a well-studied idea of what has been happening rather than some piecemeal and confused documentation, of the mod­ ern creative genius enfolding in India, the new contemporary culture in the process of evolution and making.

However, the accent will not be essentially historical, i. e., . the chronological/historica l, sequences of generations of practis­ ing artists, but rather keeping in view the above information, how the development should be critically grasped. It will be an analytical approach to assess the role of the revival of traditional heritage and forms at whatever degree and level, which was undertaken as a challenge to earlier western influence, which was less sensitive to the traditional forms. Interestingly, there has been another phase of western influence which is still going on, which is a combination of new values as well as a new perception of the now evident rich traditional forms also inspiring their relevance for contemporary creative experimentation.

Concurrently, new critical concepts and view points have been developing in the western countries in relation to the new modes of art manifestations in film, theatre and the literary media. Consciously or unconsciously, current Indian critical scene is also showing awareness of these, which often are amazingly relevant even for the analyses of the traditional forms of Indian . theatre or dance or literature. Curiously, even traditional Indian theories seem to have relevance for interpreting modern experi­ mentation, including the post modernist persuits. Thus another objective of the seminar would be concerning . the wide range of cr:tical theories, both tradit!onallndian as well as modern western , and how and if' whict] context these serve as enlightening critical tools, even strtJct<.J ralism and semiotics.

To sum up, our attempt will ,be to assess the Indian critical scene vis-a-vis the wide range of contemporary art expression­ how is the critical apparatus and process responding to the present day art practices and if it is adequately doing so.

The seminar is also visu~lised as an interdisciplinary exercise at two levels. At one level all the creative art media are : e pre s ent~d including practitioners and critics from university d e p~'lt m8 nts and from amorg those who are professional free-lancers. At another level, besides the critics and artists, we expect some sociologists, philosophers and S3nsk;it aestheticians amc1g the participants.

It will be a learning process for both rna sides ana ,herefore the artist and critic participan:s of the different art media, (lOWSO­ ever eminent and busy, are expected to stay together for all tne four days of the seminar so that there can be fruitful deliberations and interactions. The participants have been requested to sHiid a properly written and typed paper (ready for pub' i c a~ io n ) w(i ich are duplicated and copies circu!2wu to 8.,1ch participant before­ hand. We have been looking TOr gem linely interested individuals having positive attitudes. FUlth.ermore, ours being a university department ha vi n~J set our aim to estafJlishinp t ~,i s a ea as a serious university level pursuit, we have pdrticu1arly welcomed individuals from universities/institutional Siruci.ure wlilch will further strengthen this area in university studies.

(1) The Seminar is not in support of Revivalism or exclusively on the Traditional Arts or Modernity, but on actual contemporary creative manifestations in the arts, Viz, Painting/Sculpture/ Architecture/Poetry /Novel/Film/Theatre (Director, actor) /Muslc/ Dance, (Collectively known here as contemporary arts) : (2) The Seminar takes the view that traditional arts and modern arts are not irreconcilable, yet points of similarities and dis­ similarities in terms of context, content, meaning, form etc could be taken up. (3) Important conclusion of the Seminar would be identifying and appreciating a few significant works of the twentieth century by Indian novelists and poets, (regional language literature) painters, . film makers, theatre persons, musicians, dancers etc.

The Department of Art History &Aesthetics, Baroda. and the UGC/ DSA Programme:

The Department of Art History & Aesthetics is a constituent part of the Faculty of Fine Arts of the M.S. University of Baroda. \'I Initially the Department was set up as a small teaching unit to , handle the coverage of the Art History and Aesthetics subjects which are integrai components of the Fine Arts training as im- parted in the Faculty from 1950. Since early 1960s it has received full department status and from the early 1970s the Department has undertaken the teaching of Art History subjects at speciali- sation level offering B. A. (Fine) and M. A. (Fine) degrees with all the papers in l rt History, besides continuing the M. A. (Fine) Art Criticism course. Its range ofteaching covers areas of western as well as Orienta! Art History along with Aesthetics. The Department also offers guidence at PhD level in selected area of Fine Arts, especially Indian Art History. The Department has built up an extensive archive of photographs, colour reproductions and · sli des, documenting masterpieces of western as well as Indian sculpture and painting as its basic teaching and research resource, now being slJpplemented with the cove rage of archi­ tecture. During the last fift een years it has undertaken a series of short term and one advanced research project on the Vaishnava themes in Indian art. These have providea topics for several publications including the one based on the seminar held during 1983. This was followed by the on-site seminar on Ellora caves in 1985, the papers of which have also been published. Its success had emboldened us to hold the International level seminar on the Aj anta Caves, the papers of which are under publication. Considering the functioning, objectives and academic achievements of the Department including holding of National level seminars, do c ~ o ~a l research and art-historical publications through the last two decades, the University Grants CommiSSion, New Delhi, has recognised the Department under the Special Assistance Programme since 1987. The UGC has also recognized the Department as Regional Documentation Centre giving us the opportunity to set up the first University level photo-archives of Indian Architecture, Painting and sculpture along the lines of Archaeological survey of India (New Delhi), American Institute of Indian StUdies (Varanasi) and French institute (Pondicherry), for which additional premises have been provided together with a well-equipped photolab. The Regional Documentation Centre is manned by a Documentation Officer, Archivist, Photographer and Attender. Furthermore the DSA programme has enabled to strengthen the number of teach­ ing staff specialising i n different areas of Art History & Aesthetics which has now been raised to seven, including a full-time Sanskri­ tist. The major thrust area of the Department for research and study will continue to remain the Western Indian Region, viz, , Rajasthan, Madya Pradesh and Maharashtra, along with attempts to integrate art -historical studies with aesthetics and art criticism.

The present national seminar is not only a part of the 0 - going academic activities of the department but also our first national attempt to create a forum at the university level for an interdisciplinary dialogue concerning the various arts.