The Bauhaus in Calcutta: An Encounter of the Cosmopolitan Avant-Garde, 2013. Edited by Regina Bittner and Kathrin Rhomberg. Edition Bauhaus 36, Hatje Cantz Verlag, Germany. English edition, 6.5 x 9.5, pp. 212. Published on the occasion of The Bauhaus in Calcutta exhibition at Bauhaus Dessau from March 27–June 30, 2013.
The Bauhaus exhibition in Calcutta in 1922 was a unique experience on the international art scene—a meeting of artistic and intellectual affinities. On a search for renewal after World War I, Western modernism encountered its Indian counterpart, which had emancipated itself from colonial constraints. At the Bauhaus’s first international show, works by Paul Klee, Lyonel Feininger, Johannes Itten, and other Bauhaus artists were presented alongside those of modern Indian artists such as Nandalal Bose, Sunayani Devi, and Abanindranath and Gaganendranath Tagore. This publication gives an account how this unusual encounter came about and presents the exhibition as an exemplary case of art history that dealt with shared visions rather than transmissions from the West to the East.
Featuring a Foreword, Introductory Remarks, (13) Essays and Appendix with contributions by: Sria Chatterjee, Boris Friedewald, Tapati Guha-Thakurta, Kris Manjapra, Kobena Mercer, Partha Mitter, Raman Siva Kumar, Sanjukta Sunderason, Rajeev Lochan, Alexandra Farenholtz, Hortensia Völckers, Regina Bittner, Katrin Rhomberg, Torsten Blume, Christoph Wagner, and Saloni Mathur. With 112 illustrations in black and white and color.
A nearly fine softcover with a few lightly bent pages and a hint of wear along the back cover. Highly recommended!