The Last Harvest: Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore

The Last Harvest was an exhibition of Rabindranath Tagore's paintings to mark the 150th anniversary of Tagore's birth. It was commissioned by the Ministry of Culture, India and organised with the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA). It consisted of 208 paintings drawn from the collections of Visva Bharati and the NGMA. The exhibition was curated by art historian R. Siva Kumar. Asia Art Archive later classified the exhibition as a "world event".[1]

The Last Harvest - Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore

Within the 150th birth anniversary year it was conceived as three separate but similar exhibitions, and travelled simultaneously in three circuits. The first selection was shown at Museum of Asian Art, Berlin,[2] Asia Society, New York,[3] National Museum of Korea,[4] Seoul, Victoria and Albert Museum,[5] London, The Art Institute of Chicago,[6] Chicago, Petit Palais,[7] Paris, Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna, Rome, National Visual Arts Gallery (Malaysia),[8] Kuala Lumpur, McMichael Canadian Art Collection,[9] Ontario, National Gallery of Modern Art,[10] New Delhi, National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai.[11]

An illustrated catalogue, titled The Last Harvest: Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore, with essays by international Tagore experts was published to accompany the exhibition. The book covered Tagore's art and other aspects of his work and life.

The International tour of Rabindranath Tagore's Paintings
  • Last Harvest in Chicago
    Last Harvest in Chicago
  • The Last Harvest at Berlin
    The Last Harvest at Berlin
  • The Last Harvest at Petit palais
    The Last Harvest at Petit palais
  • The Last Harvest in Rome
    The Last Harvest in Rome
  • Last Harvest in Berlin
    Last Harvest in Berlin
  • Last Harvest at V&A
    Last Harvest at V&A

Reception

The Last Harvest received highly appreciable reviews across the globe. The British newspaper Daily Telegraph reported,"Tagore is such a fascinating figure that for the fans of his work the art will illuminate his poems and fictions; and for those coming cold, this (The Last Harvest) serves as a delightful introduction." The Independent rated the exhibition as one of the five best shows to have opened in London in 2011.[12] Mumbai Boss declared it the best museum exhibition saying, "At this gathering of about 100 works, one of the largest since his death, fluidly curated by historian R. Siva Kumar, the viewer was given a peek into a less assured Tagore, as a 60-something artist, who used his innate sense of linguistic artistry to permeate his at-times fantastical works. There were animals invented, idyllic landscapes, portraits and drawings that showed him to have an astonishing grasp of what it meant to endow a visual expression with the same raw beauty as its written equivalent."[13] Daily News and Analysis reported, "Tagore's imagination created paintings that underline his sheer genius. Yet, they were untitled, left to viewers to interpret." According to The Times of India, The Last Harvest was "A rare display of artworks by Tagore". "Like a skipping stone, Tagore’s style glanced off a variety of inspirations – wood-cuts, surrealist imagery, North American folk art – and yet was sharply distinctive. The Last Harvest, curated by Professor Raman Siva Kumar of Visva-Bharati University, presents one of the most elaborate exhibitions of Tagore’s paintings that we’ve seen." reported Firstpost.

See also

References
  1. "The Last Harvest - Asia Art Archive".
  2. "Staatliche Museen zu Berlin - Kalender". Smb.museum. Archived from the original on 2012-12-16. Retrieved 2012-12-18.
  3. Current Exhibitions Upcoming Exhibitions Past Exhibitions (9 September 2011). "Rabindranath Tagore: The Last Harvest | New York". Asia Society. Retrieved 2012-12-18.
  4. "Exhibitions | Special Exhibitions". Museum.go.kr. Retrieved 2012-12-18.
  5. "Rabindranath Tagore: Poet and Painter - Victoria and Albert Museum". Vam.ac.uk. 6 March 2012. Retrieved 2012-12-18.
  6. http://www.artic.edu/sites/default/files/press_pdf/Tagore.pdf
  7. "Le Petit Palais - Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) - Paris.fr". Petitpalais.paris.fr. 2012-03-11. Retrieved 2012-12-18.
  8. "Welcome to High Commission of India, Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)". Indianhighcommission.com.my. Retrieved 2012-12-18.
  9. "McMichael Canadian Art Collection - The Last Harvest: Paintings by Rabindranath Tagore". Mcmichael.com. 2012-07-15. Archived from the original on 2013-12-13. Retrieved 2012-12-18.
  10. http://www.ngmaindia.gov.in/pdf/The-Last-Harvest-e-INVITE.pdf
  11. "Mumbai gallery to exhibit Tagore's 'The Last Harvest' - Times of India". articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Archived from the original on 16 June 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  12. http://ngmaindia.gov.in/pdf/NGMA-E-newsletter-option17.pdf
  13. "Mumbai Boss - Making Sense of the City".
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