Indian women artists: Successful beyond biases

If women artists, by and large, must endure comparatively less discrimination within the profession on account of their gender, then why do we have so few women artists in the field, and fewer still at the top? The answer lies in the general social mores that guide our binary perceptions of honour, tradition and values, which the female gender has borne the responsibility of since times immemorial. This ensured that fewer women were taking up the arts professionally right since the advent of modern art in India, and the situation continued till the end of the previous century. The equations, purely in terms of numbers, seem to have undergone a paradigm change in the past couple of decades, but the women still have a long way to travel to achieve parity with their male counterparts

Every year, from about a fortnight before March 8 - celebrated globally as the Women's Day - the buzz around women achievers in different fields starts amplifying. Every player worth its salt goes out to do his/ her bit to celebrate the day, which in the world of art translates into hosting exhibitions of artworks by women artists or related events.

However, a mere listing of artists by their gender in an exhibition, is, at best, a nod to their presence in the field, and offers a 'different talking point' to art goers. Women in the world of visual arts, like their counterparts in most other fields of human excellence, continue to form a significant minority. But, unlike most of those other fields, they are not a 'discriminated' lot. They are, in fact, a powerful voice bringing spotlight on the condition of women in society, often succeeding in making strong statements through their creative expressions than it would be otherwise possible.

If women artists, by and large, must endure comparatively less discrimination within the profession on account of their gender, then why do we have so few women artists in the field, and fewer still at the top? The answer lies in the general social mores that guide our binary perceptions of honour, tradition and values, which the female gender has borne the responsibility of since times immemorial. This ensured that fewer women were taking up the arts professionally right since the advent of modern art in India, and the situation continued till the end of the previous century. The equations, purely in terms of numbers, seem to have undergone a paradigm change in the past couple of decades, but the women still have a long way to travel to achieve parity with their male counterparts.

Modern Indian Art's Pathfinder

For those not clued in, the birth of modern Indian art coincided with the birth of the modern Indian nation, with the 1940s playing a seminal role in turning many a wheel in the subcontinent. The protagonists of the unfolding saga of modern Indian art were largely men, the most famous of them being the members of the Progressive Artists' Group, whom we know today as the most valuable signatures in the art market — FN Souza, SH Raza, MF Husain, Tyeb Mehta and VS Gaitonde, among others.

However, before they broke new ground, a petite young woman had already showed what it meant to be a globally attuned modern Indian artist.

The pathfinder was the feisty Amrita Sher-Gil (1913-1941), the first Indian artist to study at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, the crucible that would forge some of the most stellar careers of Indian art in the decades to come. Born to a Hungarian mother and an Indian father, she pursued her short yet prolific career in India, rooting her globalised vocabulary of art in a distinct Indian aesthetic. Unfortunately, this National Treasure artist (and the only woman in the list of nine gems of Indian art) passed away two months before her 29th birthday.

Raza, in a 2015 interview with this writer, had shared: "Amrita Sher-Gil was our leader. She showed that we needed to strike a balance between our Indian and global outlooks in order to create meaningful art."

Top Women Artists of India

Post-Amrita Sher-Gil, modern Indian art underwent a tectonic metamorphosis. However, only a few women artists became a part of that story. Some important women artists from those early years include Prema Pathare (1902-1977), Devayani Krishna (1910-2000) and B. Prabha (1933-2001), to name a few. It was only from the late 1960s and early 1970s that women started appearing in bigger numbers as serious career artists — alongside second-generation Indian modernists who followed the Progressives. Many of those who entered the art world in those decades are now some of the top practicing artists of our times, having built seminal, individual careers through pathbreaking narratives. These include Arpita Singh (b. 1937), Nasreen Mohamedi (1937-1990), Zarina Hashmi (1937-2020), Anjolie Ela Menon (b. 1940), Madhvi Parekh (b. 1942), Shobha Broota (b. 1943), Anupam Sud (b. 1944), Gogi Saroj Pal (b. 1945), Latika Katt (b. 1948), Mrinalini Mukherjee (1949-2015), and Navjot (b. 1949).

Since then, an increasing number of women artists are pursuing increasingly bolder narratives and successfully demolishing gender-related barriers. A brief listing of top women artists would go beyond the scope of this article, and would remain inadequate.

Women Artists in the Art Market

The auction circuit, however, continues to be heavily lop-sided, distinctly tilting in favour of men. But, Sunny Chandiramani, Vice President (Client Relations), AstaGuru Auction House, says, "In recent years, we have seen a growing interest in the artistic achievements of India's women painters, which has resulted in a slew of high-profile exhibitions and retrospectives at important institutes as well as impressive auction results and world records. The creations of women artists have not only been a subject of interest for academics and critics but have also inspired confidence in the collector community. While Amrita Sher-Gil's paintings continue to be the most valuable and sought after, creations by modern masters such as Meera Mukherjee, Nasreen Mohamedi, Anjolie Ela Menon, and Arpita Singh, to name a few, have also been garnering heightened demand. Furthermore, the artistic pursuits of contemporary women artists such as Nalini Malani, Bharti Kher, and Anju Dodiya, amongst others have been lauded and appreciated globally. Such positive changes only indicate that the art ecosystem in India is giving our women artists their long-overdue recognition. The gradual increase in demand for their works is a healthy indicator, and therefore, is plausibly an ideal time for one to consider acquiring iconic creations by our country's women artists."

As for the auction records, Sher-Gil remains one of the most valued Indian artists. Her 1938 painting, In the Ladies' Enclosure, became the second most expensive Indian painting sold with the price of Rs 37.8 crore achieved at a Saffronart auction in July 2021. (The most expensive Indian painting is a 1961 Untitled work by V. S. Gaitonde, sold for Rs 39.98 crore at a Saffronart auction in March 2021.)

Besides Sher-Gil, Arpita Singh and Bharti Kher (b. 1969) have laudable auction records against their names. Eighty-four-year-old Singh, based in New Delhi, remains on top among practicing women artists. In December 2010, her painting, Wish Dream, sold for $2.24 million (approx. Rs 9.6 crore) at a Saffronart auction. She continues to hold this record for the second most expensive painting by an Indian woman artist.

Another auction record worth highlighting is that of Gurgaon-based Kher's, whose sculpture of a prone elephant covered with her leitmotif — the bindis — and titled Skin Speaks a Language Not Its Own, fetched $ 1.5 million (approx. Rs 6.9 crore) at a Sotheby's auction in 2010.

Just as the number of women artists increases with every passing generation, their representation in important exhibitions, auctions, academics and narrative building also grows in importance. As Sher-Gil showed nearly a century ago, where there is a will, there's a way.

(The writer is a New Delhi-based journalist, editor and arts consultant)