[PhotoSparks] 'It’s a golden era of Indian arts' – Gitanjali Maini, founder director, Gallery G

PhotoSparks is a weekly feature from YourStory, with photographs that celebrate the spirit of creativity and innovation. In the second part of this pictorial essay on Gallery G, we showcase more of the amazing art works on display and interview the gallery’s founder director, Gitanjali Maini (see Part I here).

In the earlier 135 posts, we brought you a wide range of creative photographs from art fairs, world music festival, painting fair, telecom expo, art museum, mobile showcase, math museum, social hackathon, bookstore, co-working space, sensorium, international design week, flower show, outdoor ads, startup roadshow, computer museum, startup T-shirts, business cards, art therapy, startup festival, Diwali rangoli, Vesak, jazz festival, modern art gallery, ecopreneurs, painter-poets, health activists, eNGOs and digital innovators.

Gitanjali Maini founded Gallery G in Bengaluru in 2003. Her lifelong involvement with art began when she was four, when her father gave her a Husain print in Delhi from the Lalit Kala Akademi. Her passion for art carried on right through school, college and starting up her own family. She was an HR executive in Infosys, a beginning which she credits with her people skills.

“I got into the business of art because I felt there was so much talent in India but the industry was not well organised or focused. Having an HR background, I felt that working with artists would be a good business to get into,” she recalls.

Gitanjali cites artists Raja Ravi Varma, Amrita Shergill, Anish Kapoor, Riyas Komu and Jitesh Kallat as influences in her work. “From Bharti Prajapati in 2003 to Raja Ravi Varma in 2015, we have the full rainbow of Indian artists in our bank. The growth has been exponential and we feel blessed,” she says.

Gallery G’s next project for 2018 is called Chariots: The Fabled Vehicle. “We have bought out a full chariot from Kumbakonam. It’s going to be a visual treat,” Gitanjali beams.

Indian art is now showcased overseas in galleries from Singapore to San Francisco, and the economic boom in India is driving the art market in homes and corporates. The business of art galleries has matured into a full-fledged retail endeavour, with proper operational systems, merchandising and inventory structures, supplier and customer relationship building, and brand equity.

“Use your artistic skills to assist galleries and projects in assistant or curator roles. The experience will polish your skills as an artist,” she advises those who want to get into the art world. “Spend an hour a day and do research on the Internet. Educate yourself daily to become better and better,” she adds.

As a regular work practice, she shares images and ideas online with a team of artists. “Our projects are fun learning and creatively satisfying. People appreciate our work, buy art installations, and even give us cards and flowers that motivate us. One kind family invited me for lunch and said, ‘You always give us a good time.’ Now I want to repeat the favour, it’s very touching,” says Gitanjali proudly.

The Indian art scene is definitely on the upswing now. “It’s a golden era of Indian arts,” says Gitanjali. She has three messages for our audience. “Art lifts communities like no other. Support and invest in arts. Be friends with artists–it’s a choice you will never regret,” she signs off.

‘Art for every wall’ is Gallery G’s aim–making art universally accessible, less forbidding and more user-friendly. How has art touched your life today, and what are you doing to promote its creative power?

Got a creative photograph to share? Email us at [email protected]!

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