To make and sell fake art is a real skill. I used the word ‘make’ because here you don’t create, just copy or clearly steal the soul of someone else art. Blame whom for this menace in Indian art and globally. I will talk about the Indian scenario here…blame the galleries, the buyers or the artists. You pick your choice. I quietly accept the fact that, fake is the new in-thing, especially in a fake society of ours.
Delhiwallahs are major devotees of fake art. They live by it, they take oath for buying fakes only. Next comes Mumbai and Kolkata. Till the time the thick headed morons in these cities demand for Hussians, Razas,Souzas, Tagores, Gaitondes, Hores, Shergills and many more masters, thebusiness of fake will flourish. Many galleries, art dealers or agents openly sell fakes. Either they are protected by the law or they don’t give a damn about it. Specially the art of Progressive Artist’s Group are in demand. Originals are mostly unaffordable by this flock of buyers. But, still they need that fake art to satisfy their ego.
Bless the poverty of opportunities for Indian artists and young graduates in art colleges. Lack of avenues to earn a decent living, except for some low paid art teacher job in a Govt. or private school. That too mostly offered to female breed of this community. The male ones are left to fend for itself. I explain this statement, the age limit for women candidates for DSSB teacher job is 42 and for male it’s 35.Similarly with KVP teaching jobs the age limit for women is more and for men it’s less. So it’s very natural and instinctive for male artists, to take to painting fakes of Indian or European masters. They are skilled, hunger in their belly and acutely helpless. Young, trained, talented art graduates from Kolkata, Bihar and Indore are mainly involved in this business. They just need some money to sustain. It’s a matter of mere livelihood for most of them. They create fake on a very low budget, not paid much. Just enough for their monthly room rent in Delhi or Mumbai. The middleman or the gallery mint the real deal. This situation of artists in India is duly exploited by the gallerists or art promoters to supply the never ending demand for Indian masters.
The show-off breed in Delhi, who just earned their millions desperately need some ego balm in the form of name tags as far as hanging art in their homes. They love to chat beneath a fake Hussain or Raza during their innumerous parties or social encounters. Why to buy an original, soulful piece of art by a young Indian artist. He or she doesn’t belong to the art map of our land. Rajiv Savara want to have a regulatory body to check fakes. I suggest that Lalit Kala Akademi takes the initiative as it’s the foremost body to promote art in India. Or the Ministry of Culture constitutes a separate body to take care of this matter. The Government should have a National Art Policy and guidelines for Art galleries to follow it by the book while doing business. What action would be taken for selling and buying fake art. Till the time there are no better opportunities for Indian artists, this business of fake will prosper and some day it will overtake the market for original artworks.
The NRI Diaspora is also to be blamed for pushing the market for fakes. They are chasing big names only in Indian art. They fail to promote young Indian artists. There is a certain limit to original works of any artist. But here the scenario is so grave that, even when a certain work of Hussain, Raza or Tagore is in museum collection, the NRI or a DESI would demand to have it painted as a fake. He simply gets hold of a gallery or some art student to fulfil his demand. I see the rise in fakes after 2005 art market burst. Recession has fuelled the supply of willing artists to do this rascal’s job. Even college students feel no shame to earn some quick pocket money through this devious mode of earning. This shit is going on in many of the well known art colleges in India.
You protest, shout, blame them or put them behind the bars; the business of fakes will go on. Vast number of artists are jobless, government apathy towards art and artists make the situation grave enough for a relook by our social thinkers. We have to question ourselves, for how long faking art is acceptable. When we can’t contain a crime we legalise it, that seems to be the reality now.
Seriously, just how fake are we!
By - Soumen Bhowmick,
July, 2014
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