Alwar Balasubramaniam
Nasreen Mohamedi, Photoworks | Talwar New York, 2003
Talwar Gallery, New York is delighted to present as the wind blows, a celebration of the Twentieth anniversary of the gallery. On view will be new works by several of the gallery artists as well some earlier works.
It was two decades ago on a historic week that Talwar Gallery, New York opened its door in September 2001. After months of planning and renovations, our opening was scheduled for the week following 9/11 and we did open. Placing one foot in front of another, one exhibition after another, the gallery started. The founding mission was to present art from the Indian subcontinent and the Indian diaspora, irrespective of race, religion, gender and especially nationality. The art did not reveal its origin on the surface; the one line connecting them all - India - was veiled to allow the works to stand on its own. The journey has not been short in travails but with many rewards, foremost of which has been the relationships with artists. Their vision and their work were forged in early days with little recognition or a market, all we had and needed was to believe.
Alwar Balasubramanian & Deepak Talwar | Bala's first exhibition at Talwar NY, 2002
Talwar Gallery introduced a range of artists from South Asia to American audiences and established a dialogue with international institutions that continues today. For most artists exhibited it was their first solo exhibition worldwide outside their home country. Nasreen Mohamedi’s series of solo exhibitions began in 2003 with the first ever exhibition dedicated to her photographs. Arpita Singh’s formative abstract works from 1970s were exhibited for the first time at Talwar. The iconic and groundbreaking installations and performance works of Rummana Hussain from the 1990s were revived by Talwar after almost a quarter century. Over two decades we witnessed the evolution of the young and innovative artists Alwar Balasubramaniam and Ranjani Shettar from their first shows in the early 2000s as we did of continued pushing of the boundaries in abstract painting and in sculpture by Sheila Makhijani and N.N. Rimzon respectively. With seventeen exhibitions between two diaspora artists, Allan deSouza and Alia Syed, we observed a sustained exploration of the photograph and film respectively.
Allan deSouza, People in White Houses | Talwar New York, 2003
From the deeply moving and personal last exhibition of Anjum Singh who passed on last year, we continue to celebrate her accomplishments and body of work. We find new beginnings too with the upcoming debut of young Kartik Sood’s painterly humanist drama this season. We traversed the lush landscapes of Paramjit Singh to the unpredictable contours of Muhanned Cader’s palpable seascapes. Other solo exhibitions over the years included those of Risham Syed, Rajendra Dhawan, Shambhavi, Navjot, Valsan Kolleri and Zarina Bhimji. Solos being the norm, the gallery also presented a handful of curated group exhibitions – Mango (2002) featuring women artists from South Asia was curated by Melissa Chiu, then Director of Asia Society Museum and Emperor’s new clothes in showcasing artists from Pakistan.
We are grateful to our audiences for their ongoing engagement and support over the last two decades and look forward to building upon that over the decades to come.
Zarina Bhimji, Cleaning the Garden | Inaugural exhibition at Talwar New York, 2001
“The inauguration of Talwar Gallery...... A welcome debut.”
THE NEW YORK TIMES, 2001
