Their evolved aesthetic predisposition primes artists to be collectors. What restrains them from turning acquisition into a habit, though, is the lack of resources—the bane of most artistic livelihoods. But the artworld is framed by precious loyalties, and works of art often circulate within such networks as a result of deep personal bonds and, often enough, through exchanges between artists themselves. How and why artists acquire other artists’ work is as opaque as the inner necessity that informs the very act of art making. “Since we are artists, I suppose it is quite normal or natural to be living with works of art,” says artist and collector Surendran Nair. “Whatever works that we have are more or less associated with intimate memories or anecdotes, and that is quite joyous.”
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RIYAS KOMU
For his special project at the India Art Fair in 2014, artist Riyas Komu showcased a hollow 30 sq m shipping crate whose exterior featured select politically charged photographic prints by Vivek Vilasini, Richard Bartholomew and Pablo Bartholomew from his personal collection, while nestled within was a video performance by Naseeruddin Shah. Titled My Grave, the project marked Komu’s coming out as an artist collector who has amassed a diverse array of work purely on the merit of his friendships. His collection includes works by Viswanadhan, Ed Ruscha, Ellsworth Kelly, Sudarshan Shetty, Prajakta Potnis and Bose Krishnamachari, all of which were purchased over time. “I carry my thoughts about collecting as something private; I keep it to myself as I am not in a position most of the time to buy art,” says Komu.
Image: Riyas Komu’s 'My Grave' (2014) was a 30 sq m crate with photographs drawn from his collection lining the exterior and a video work within
MANISHA GERA BASWANI
Running parallel to her growing photographic series of Indian artists at work in their studios, titled Artist Through the Lens, artist Manisha Gera Baswani’s art collection has long since colonised every available wall space in her Gurgaon apartment. Baswani traces the origins of her sizeable collection to a set of prints by Jyoti Bhatt purchased back in 1995 from a printmaking show at Gallery Espace, Delhi, which she still counts among her favourites. “Art is meant to elevate you—and when an artist buys, it is truly for that reason,” she says. “It also honours and extends respect to a fellow artist.” At the top of her current wish list is a bronze bust of Indian Classical singer Mallikarjun Mansur sculpted by the late artist Sarbari Roy Choudhury.
Image: Manisha Gera Baswani considers Himmat Shah’s opus, 'Terracotta' (to her right) an invaluable part of her collection
HEMALI BHUTA AND SHREYAS KARLE
Last year, artist couple Hemali Bhuta and Shreyas Karle managed an unusual coup. They invited 14 of their peers to barter art among each other. What ensued were at least 200 pages of correspondence, from artistic negotiations to emotional bargaining, resulting in a unique collection that converged for roughly three months at the Mumbai Art Room, in a show overseen by its director, Nida Ghouse, titled Len Den or Bartered Collections. What the two count among their most prized objects is this catalogued correspondence. “This collection almost marks this moment of exchange, and thus, conceptually we just become the owners of that moment,” says Bhuta. “What extends out of that moment is truly the artworks—that have now gone to their new owners but are held together under the same strategic core intention, and hence, hypothetically, becomes a collection of One.”
Image: Hemali Bhuta and Shreyas Karle are the proud owners of 200 pages of email exchanges among artists
REKHA RODWITTIYA AND SURENDRAN NAIR
For many years, the Baroda-based artists chose to keep the art they’d acquired since their student days safely packed away, opting for blank walls instead. Only in the last decade have they actually begun to hang some of it. “We do not see them as precious because of their monetary value, but love them for what memories they evoke and the relationship we have with the artist,” says Rodwittiya. Their impressive collection, either gifts or the result of barters, include works by KG Subramanyan, Bhupen Khakhar, Vivan Sundaram, Anita Dube and Manisha Parekh, to name a few. “As artists, we are trained to have an insightful aesthetic comprehension and are therefore expected to possess a more refined artistic perception; so it may be true that these shared areas subtly bind us artists together where our personal collections may reflect shared interests,” she adds.
Image: Rekha Rodwittiya and Surendran Nair say it’s the relationship they have with an artist that makes their artwork precious
OLIVIA FRASER
Based between London and Delhi, Olivia Fraser’s acquisitional aesthetic is a direct extension of her artistic practice that traces its lineage to the Miniature tradition, which she first encountered at the National Museum, Delhi, in 1989. Her fascination led her not only to intimately study the medium, but to also steadily assemble a collection of Mughal, Pahari and Rajput paintings from the Nathdwara tradition alongside Company School paintings. “What unites them is that they’re all 18th to 19th century paintings, traditionally thought of as a time of decline: the Mughal court was no longer the centre of political power, and artists were moving away into provincial courts, sparking a renaissance there which scholars are now beginning to realise is one of the most exciting and vibrant periods in all Indian art,” says Fraser.
Image: Olivia Fraser’s own work draws from her collection of Mughal, Pahari and Rajput paintings from the Nathdwara tradition
Photographed by Rohan Hande
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