Your Form is My creation

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YOUR FORM I S MY

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TUZE ROOP MAZE DENE

BHASKAR HANDE’S

EXHIBITION OF

PAINTING DRAWINGS

SCULPTURES & GRAPHICS

INSPIRED BY

“TUKARAMACHI GHATHA”

YOUR FORM I S M

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R E AT I ON

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VwPo én _mPo XoUo(‘TUZE ROOP MAZE DENE’)

2008

(C) Copyright Bhaskar Eknath Hande

All rights Reserved. No Part of this Publication may bereproduced in any term or by any means, includingPhotocopying without Prior Permission of theCopyrighter.

Publisher :Sandhya Bhaskar Hande

Vaishwik Publication (India)

Text:Dilip ChitreRob Van Tour Bhaskar Hande



YOUR FORM I S M

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YOUR FORM IS MY CREATION

TUZE ROOP MAZE DENE

PREFACEThe exhibition "Your Form Is My Creation"consists of about 300 artworks made by thepainter,sculptor and poet Bhaskar Hande.Bhaskar Hande hails from the state of Maharashtrain India and lives now already for 25 years in TheHague, The Netherlands, as an independent artist.In "Western" eyes his work could be placed withinthe abstract-expressionism, but on furtherconsideration we find also symbols, colours, formsand shapes reminding us of the culture of his landof origin.Bhaskar Hande has grown up in the rural parts of Maharashtra where also the great seventeenth-century poet and saint Tukaram lived. The poemsand hymns of Tukaram are in our time still part of the everyday life of hundreds of thousands of

human beings. The 300 artworks (paintings,gouaches, drawings, lithographe, silkscreens andschulptures) are inspired by the ideas of Tukaramand the purpose of this exhibition is to makethe world of Tukaram accesible for a westernaudience, for people with so many otherlanguages in the East, and to enliven it for Marathi-speaking people.

TUKARAM

Tukaram's stature in Marathi literature iscomparable to that of Shakespeare in Engiish orGoethe in German. He could be called thequintessential Marathi poet reflecting the genius of the language as well as its characteristic literaryculture. There is no other Marathi writer who hasso deeply and widely influenced Marathi literatureand literary culture since. Tukaram's poetry hasshaped the Marathi language, as it is spoken by50 mil ion people today, and not just the literaryculture and language, Perhaps one could comparehis influence with that of the King James version of the Bible upon speakers of the English language.For Tukaram's poetry is also used by illiterate millions to voice their prayers or to express their love

of God. Tukaram was born in 1608 and vanishedwithout a trace in 1649. What little we know of his life is and reconstruct ion from his ownautobiographical poems, the contemporary poetessBahinabai's memoirs in verse and the laterbiographer of Mar at hi poet-saints, Mahipati'saccount. The rest is all folklore, though it cannot bedismissed on those grounds alone.Tukaram was born a vaishya at the middale of thecaste hierarchy. A series of traumatic events in hislife, including the devastating famine of 1629 inwhich he lost his first wife, made him withdraw

from normal life and turn to religion. However, hiswriting and singing in praise of Vitthal (Vishnu) toecstatic audiences was unacceptable to theBrahmins who took religion to be their preserve.Consequently he was forced to drown his entirework in a river. He was presumably told by hismocking detractors that if indeed he were a truedevotee of God, then God would restore hissunken notebooks. Tukaram then undertook a

fast-unto-death praying to God for the restoration ofhis work of a life time. After thirteen days of fasting,Tukaram's sunken notebooks reappeared from theriver. They were undamaged.

BHAKTI

Tukaram became part of the Bhakti-movement,which was the middle-way between the externes of the Brahmins on the one hand and folk-religion onthe other. Like during Reformation time in Europethere was a tendency towards a direct contactbetween the devotee and his Gold in his own

language, without interference of priests - a purereligion, disposed of the frills added by time andconvention. Bhakti was also the most democraticand egalitarian community of worshippers, sharinga way of life and caring for all life with a deep senseof compassion. Bhakt i is founded in a spirit of universal fellowship. Its basic principle issharing. The deity does not represent anysectarian dogma to the worshipper but only acommon object of universal love or a commonspiritual focus, Poetry is an other express! on of thesame fellowship. Tukaram may have written hispoems in loneliness but he recited them to live

audiences in a shrine of Vitthal. Hundreds of peoplegathered here to listen to his poetry. There hasbeen described by a contemporary poetess howTukaram, in a state of trance, chanted his poemswhile an enraptured audience rocked to their rythm.

SAYS TUKA

Tukaram saw himself primarily as a poet. He hasexplicitly written about being a poet, theresponsibility of a poet, the difficulties in being apoet and so forth.Tukaram's genius lies for an important part in

his ability to transform the external world into itsspiritual analogue. The whole world became a sortof functional metaphor in his poetry, a text. Hispoems have an apparently simple surface. Butbeneath the simple surface lies a complex understructure and the tension between the two is alwayssubtly suggested.The famous "Signature Line" of each poem, "SaysTuka" opens the door to the deeper structure.Aphoristic, witty, satirical, ironic, wry. absurd,startling or mystical, these endings of Tukaram'spoems often set the entire poem into sudden



reveres motion. They point to an invisible, circularor spiral continuity between the apparent and thereal, between everyday language and the intricateworld-image that it often innocently implies

DILIP CHITRE

The translation of seventeenth-century Marathipoetry in modern English is a very complicatedthing to do, During many periods of his life has Dilip

Chitre been doing this, fascinated again and againby the beauty and the relevance of Tukaram's workfor present-day life -and to make Tukaram'spoems and thoughts within reach of aninternational audience. Dilip Chitre was born in1938 in Baroda, India. Among his published worksare two collections of his Marathi poems a collectionof short stories and an anthology of contemporaryMarathi poetry in translation. Dilip Chitre has so farauthored many(no. Of books) books, of which is histranslation of the 3200-line mystical Marathi poemAnubhavamrut - The Immortal Experience of Beingwritten by the pioneer Marathi poet Shri Jnandev in

the 13th century.Dilip Chitre was a member of the InternationalWriting Program, Iowa, U. S. A. in 1975-76. He haslived and worked in Africa, the U. S. and many partsof India and has lectured in universities in Europeand the U. S. A.He lives at present in Pune. India

BHASKAR HANDE

The Artist

The Hague-based artist Bhaskar Handé was born in

India in 1957 in the village of Umbra] near Pune in,Maharashtra state. His family was of the Kshatriyacaste, a high order of warriors from timeimmemorial. From generation to generation hisforefathers were among the leaders and custodiansof the village. The past lives on vividly in this smallcommunity and until recently the village hadmaintained its medieval circular shape with onecentral entrance. The inhabitants are largely tillersof the land who supply every day one of the mostimportant fruit markets in Bombay, 'CrawfordMarket'. The village, now housing five thousand

inhabitants, maintains original artistic traditionssuch as the performance of folk dramas, in whichBhaskar also took part as a boy. The atmosphere of life in this rural area of India is evoked excellently inthe poems by the poet Arun Kolatkar, now also well-known beyond India and part of whose poem 'TheBus' is included here.The tarpaulin flaps are buttoned down on thewindows of the state transport bus all the way up toJejuriA cold wind keeps whipping and slapping a corner of the tarpaulin at your elbowYou look down the roaring road You search for signs

of daybreak in what little light spills out of the busYour own divided face in a pair of glasses on an oldman's nose is all the countryside you get to seeYou seem to move continually forward towards adestination just beyond the caste mark between hiseyebrowsOutside, the sun has risen quietly It aims throughan eyelet in the tarpaulin and shoots at the oldman's glasses

The adventurous spirit of the young Bhaskar ledhim at the age of 16 to exchange his shelteredexistence in Umbraj for the challenges of the bigcity Bombay. Thanks to his artistic bent he receivedcommissions to paint cinema hoardings for thegreat Bombay film industry.Returning to his native village after several years,the whole world of his youth had disappeared. Theauthentic historic village had been swallowed up bya reservoir. His parental home, the school, thehouses of friends and relatives, the places he hadplayed: everything lay deep underwater with theexception of the age-old temple built high on a

hillside which is now only accessible by boat in therainy season. For the local inhabitants, a new andanonymous village has been built on the edge of the lake. That is how fast things change in the newIndia. An uprooted Bhaskar Hande returned toBombay to become a working student at the localart academy. During his study he became friendswith part of the new generation of artists: film-makers, actors, writers and poets, fine artists. Heperformed in a theatre group, travelled much of India with the group and got to know other largecities such as New Delhi and Calcutta. He graduated

in 1981 and acquired work at an advertisingagency.At the secondory school and academy he becameacquainted with Western art history and he felt theneed to continue his studies abroad. On the adviceof friends who had already visited the 'West', he didnot select London or Paris, but sought contact withart academies In Japan,Italy, the United States andThe Netherlands. The Royal Academy of Fine Arts inThe Hague was the first to react and he wasadmitted to the Monumental Painting and Designcourse in 1982.A complete outsider, he found himself in this

unknown world.In 1984 he graduated and embarked on theAnimation Film course at the Vrije Academic in TheHague,

Since 1987 he has put his paintings on showregularly in The Hague, Amsterdam and other

European cities like Bruxels, Paris, London etc. Hehas also developed as a graphic designer and in1989 he founded his own design studio in The

Hague. From time to time he has been returnningto India to see how fast things change in that

ancient country. In his work he



has maintained something of the great traditions of his country, only descernable to initiates in theglowing tones and the wilful stylistic language.His Work

The work of Bhaskar Hande has a meditative andphilosophical background and evolves from manybiological, economic and sociological systems. Histhoughts on this are never still. 'In process', as hehimself says. A thought hangs on, attracting more

and more attention and then acquires a fixed formthat is abstract, combined with thoughts of complexity, parallels and aspects.Bhaskar is also inspired by time passing, knowingthat he himself has to work. His sketches and formsare also a reflection of time, developing in works indifferent techniques and materials, which in turncontribute to further thought. He has not acquiredany specific examples or inspirations from arthistory. He reads Indian philosophy but also followsthe contemporary media and uses it all in his ideas.He does not want to copy or duplicate but to do whathe can, be what he is: original. 'It is an individual

thought that becomes universal. 'He reproduces his thoughts and influences in visualforms on canvas. Not everyone can read poetry -everyone can experience a painting in his own way.The material must contribute to the whole concept of the work. The invisible thought can be formed withcolours, materials, measurements and forms. Themind and the heart are in continuous interaction andcannot be separated. The natural process of thoughtis meditation. Harmony and balance are theuniversal values which he wants to express. Thecircle, the square, the triangle and the oval form

symbolize in his work eternal stable values. Intuitiveand emotional lines meander within these forms.Rest and restlessness keep each other in balanceand the colours provide evidence of a search for thisbalance. The ratio cannot survive without emotionand Bhaskar Hande's work is as filled with contrastsas life itself.

Rob van Tour





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Why This Belonging

In India I have been asked very often: how didyou get interested in Tukaram? Question thatcames from common persons, journalist, pressreporters, critics and enthousiasts who know thesubject and where surprised.

My journey led me from Umbraj to Bombayand thence to The Hague (Holland).

My journey Umbraj for, nine years in Bombayand 25twenty five years in Holland. All these years Idwelled among different peoples, struggling to

survive.I led a restless life, but never stopped reading

and writing. There were many byways beside thehighway. In the process I continually keptmemories of my village, seeming so attractive inthe rat-race of city life and the absence of mymother tongue amoung different peoples in foreignsurroundings. These reasons caused me tobecome introverted. But the distance made memore aware of the impressions, of my childhoodmemories from the countryside, my culture and

religion, which became more prominent in mythoughts. So they entered into my writing. My firstcollection of poems DASHAK (decade) was partlyinfluenced by these impressions.

Tukaram’s roots are deep in this earth. When Ifirst realized, I was in a period of growingunderstanding, my eyes began to see, my mindwas getting impression, I was breathing fresh air. Isaw Tukaram Dyaneshwar in the theatre, in kirtanperformances, in the pilgrimage to Pandharpur bymy parents. A small statue of Vitthal and Rukhministanding by the God Khandoba, paintings and

statues of varkari’s and saints inside and outsidethe temples. These impression were engraved inmy mind from childhood.At first when I read Tukaram, his work was veryhard to understand for me. I kept on trying regularly.At the time I was beginning to apprehend the power of writing. This was in 1979, as I was taking lessonsat the Art Academy. My visuals whereaccompanying the words, or the other way round.Now it seems difficult to decide which was first, thevisual or the words. I was interested in drawing, but

did not practice much. I was mostly doing stagperformances. In my secondary school examinatioI choose Art History instead of Mathematics. I wanot sure of further academic education, so to makeliving I joined a firm producing filmposters Bombay.With my natural talent for fine arts I began to dralarge faces of moviestars, and painting them

oilpant. At the same time I was admitted to the AAcadamy. I supposed to attend evening courses literature. I was avidly reading all kinds of newriting. In applied art, literature ad the visual arbecame more elaboratem supporting each other.I won State Awards and people took an interest in mwork. Drama, cinema, world trade fairs, literapublications and new circles of friends occupied mday and night. After five years of advertising courseobtained my diploma of Applied Arts. Now was thtime to begin to understand Tukaram’s Gatha.I went through an unstable period of my life, hopeand confidence. I had come to know another worlAdvertising was a glamorous field, but I wanted obtain a more complete knowledge of my capacitieand intellect. I began to study advanced arts foreign cultures and made a move in that directioThis is how I came to Holland. From 1983 to 1987stayed in a completely different culture, with different language and atmosphere. There weshocks on several levels. In the village I was farmboy, in the city I was a country bum and in thforeign country I was an Indian. I became consciou

that I was nowhere, not amoung my own and mstate became increasingly pinched.Whenever I got a chance I visited the farm. Why this longing? I thought over and over. Where on thearth will I not get the feeling of being a stranger?tried to fill an answer to this question. Slowly I begato understand the spiritual harmony betweeTukaram and Vithoba. I began to see the meaning not to belong to people or places. This is nenjoyable or unenjoyable, neither to be a devotee an atheist. Then I started to believe in my bein

During the last 25-twenty five years I have beetraveling between Europe and India. I have seemany aspects of life, but I cannot answer thquestion why I live in Europe and not in India or othway around. One might say this is a dual situatiobut I do not consider it as such. I search for meaninin the paradox of these traditions. They become mixture of philosophies, cultures and traditions, oof which growns a new meaning of my life. Devoteand deity will stand on one level like Tukaram anVithoba.



Visual and poetry together, this concept comes outwhen I present DASHAK (Decade) with exhibition.I had selected ten poems to make painting out of them. One of the poems, I realize the form of Vitthal. In the process of reading Tukaram’s Gatha,the form grown up vividly. Images, forms, symbolsand metaphor which Tukaram described in hiswork comes again and again. It inspired in his work

comes again and again. It inspired me. Produceddrawing, paintings, sculptures, in graphics: litho’s,silkscreens. I have worked regularly under certaincircumstances.At the period of travelling up and down to nativeplace many books had been read for thirst of knowledge Among them are Dilip Chire’s ‘PunhaTukaram, and its english version’ Says Tuka’ giveimpules to search Tukaram and his poetrycritically.I live in Europe last 25-twenty five years. Europe isdeveloped in visual art since fifteenth century.Holland is land or Rembrandt, Vermeer, Van Gogh,Piet Mondriaan and many other masters. I workhere and exhibit works simultaneously. Thecultural face of Europe is changing. The art worldcome to the point to nowhere. All the ism turningthemselves around. Flashing power emerginguniversly than continently. Malevich, Paul Klee,Picasso, Miro, Dali, Henry Moore, have passed by.They have brought people to the museums to havespiritual experience. Now art scene desperatelyseeking new streams.

I saw many images and forms in the dialoguebetween Tukoba and Vithoba. Those images andforms I put together with the colour in the project“Your form is my creation”. It does not belong to anyparticular ism or style; it stands for its own. It isprocess of meditation of a visual world.Visual art well-developed in Europe over fivecenturies, as per development and growth, it hasup and down. Somewhere change takes place, wenever know about in our life time but we walk near by.

In April 2008 I travel back to India by road fromHolland with an art carvan, On the Road of Indiancontinent I have exhibited work of 80 national in 10indian cities Amritsar to Banglore under titleSHOW YOUR HOPE with 80 questions aroundworld, I have decided to travel with Vari (pilgrimage) to have an experience of centuries oldtradition. with sketch book and camera to celebrateTukarams 400 years birth anniversary with hisPalakhi Just now I have been finished walking withpeople and witnessed celebration of life of

Mankind. It is more than all words of Tukaramand others too.What an experience!.Not to tell but only to have.

Bhaskar Hande







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Your Form is My creation