On March 19, a new record was set for Modern Indian Art. A heated bidding war at the Christie’s auction in New York led to the sale of M.F. Husain’s 1954 painting. ‘Untitled’ (Gram Yatra), sold for a whopping 13.7 million dollars or 118 crore Indian rupees, 70 years after it was bought by Leon Elias Volodarsky, an eminent art collector for a measly Rs 1,400.
Husain, a modernist, one of the founding members of the Progressive Artists Group (PAG), did also spend the early part of his career, making ends meet by painting billboards, furniture and toys. Working on large, prominent advertisements and dealing with perfecting the precision of visually appealing toys, must definitely have given Husain a unique foundation as he began his career as a fine artist.
The synergy between advertisement and art has been obvious with artists such as Husain catapulting their careers from such humble beginnings. Commercial posters, billboards are not only advertisements but they are historic art documentations, providing a glimpse into the world of changing consumer demands, growing artistic narratives and the evolution of technology with time. Last year, an exhibition titled, ‘Journey Through Time: +1 Day, +1 Story’, displayed advertisement posters from 1920 to 1960’s from the archives of hotelier Tarun Thakral.
An integral chapter in Indian history, dotting the journey of India, from the freedom struggle, the fight for independence to the original swadeshi, make in India movement. Colourful, vibrant commercials, promoting Indian products and creativity are testament to the importance of advertisement and the artistic value of the individual creating them.
The trend of aspiring, struggling artists turning to billboards and posters was not limited to India. A few years ago, an exhibition titled ‘James Rosenquist: His American Life’ in Acquavella Gallerie in New York shed light on the life of the pop art pioneer. Rosenquist would jump from billboard to billboard, painting advertisements in the bustling streets of Manhattan. The influence of his work as a billboard painter creeps into his art and the ease by which he could scale a painting from a five inch photograph to a fifteen feet work of art was a marvel.
However, I do wonder why the world of advertisement was only the springboard for many artists and not a place to stay. Even the famous Andy Warhol, supported himself as an illustrator but only till he succeeded in the world of art, legitimising the intersection between art and advertisement as ‘pop art’. This crossover movement in the 1960’s gave billboard artists a way to be accepted in the world of fine art by extracting elements from advertisements, bold figures and lines, and large texts, which were fit for commercials such as Warhol’s ‘Campbell’s Soup cans’ and ‘Brillo boxes.’
Despite this shift there are artists keeping the legacy of hand painted billboards as advertisements alive, embodying daily trends and cultural shifts through their large scale commercials. Earlier this year, a hand painted billboard caught the likes of people at Prabhadevi in Mumbai. The Aravani Art Project has been working passionately for the Transgender Community and the LGBTQIA+ in an effort to raise awareness through art. One may be aware of their brightly coloured, powerful messaged murals but the billboard, a hand painted hoarding as an advertisement for a television show on Shiva by Discovery Channel was a new experience for them. A captivating painting of Ardhanarishwara, the divine union of masculine and feminine or ‘purush’ and ‘prakriti’ energy, half male and half female. The work, symbolising unity, the all pervasive nature of Lord Shiva and resonating with the Transgender Community.
The world of advertising is ever changing. The Egyptian Civilisation concocted the usage of papyrus while the Song Dynasty of Ancient China took the help of a copper printing plate. The plate, which used to print posters is now believed to be the earliest recorded medium of printed advertisement. With industrialisation and capitalism, the need to advertise only grew. Newspapers, posters, magazines, radio, television and now the reels on Instagram, we vehemently scroll through. These mediums had the ability to market catchy phrases and slogans, captivating images using wit and humour, relatability or aspiration and even important social messages and current affairs. Amul had mastered the art of making memes much before the advent of social media. Keeping the Amul girl as a constant mascot, the brand successfully engages an entire nation with advertisements through tongue in cheek humour and relevant news for decades now.
The era of hand painted billboards may be clouded with nostalgia but there is an artist in every advertiser. The new Britannia campaign for example, champions sustainability but in a seamlessly artistic manner. The ‘Nature Shapes Britannia’ campaign has biodegradable billboards made of 100 per cent cotton, designed in shape to the contours of the trees around. The artwork bends around the surrounding branches, fitting into the space where it is displayed like a piece from a jigsaw puzzle.
Certainly, this has to be celebrated as a work of art, making advertisement a playground for creative expressionism.
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