Over forty years ago, Chand worked as a road inspector in northern India. Each evening after work, he mounted his bicycle and carried - by the hundreds - stones that he found in the foothills of the Himalayas. In an abandoned jungle clearing, He built sculptures by combing these stones - which he believed possessed a soul - with urban debris: corroded wires, used sheet metal, detached bicycle parts, broken bracelets, and abandoned tubes and tires. He created a "kingdom of gods and goddesses," peopled by characters and animals. Today this kingdom covers more than thirty acres.--Back cover.
The incredible story of the world’s largest visionary environment: the Rock Garden of Chandigarh, kept secret by outsider artist Nek Chand for fifteen years. After the partition of India in 1947, Nek Chand Saini settled in the city of Chandigarh, with nothing but stories brought from his homeland. Dismayed at his stark new surroundings, Nek began collecting river rocks, broken glass, and cracked water pots found on the roadside. He cleared a section of jungle and for seven years he stockpiled odds and ends. They were castoffs and rubbish to everyone else, but to Nek, they were treasures. He began to build a labyrinth of curving paths, mosaics, and repeating patterns: his very own tribute to the winding village of his youth, a hidden land of stories. Nek kept his kingdom secret for fifteen years, until a government crew stumbled upon it and sought to destroy it. But local fans agreed in awe: the Rock Garden had to be protected. Author Barb Rosenstock introduces readers to the outsider artist’s stunning creation, while Claire A. Nivola’s illustrations bring to life the land’s natural beauty and the surreal world Nek coaxed from his wild landscape.
In the early 20th-century, European avant-garde artists began to look beyond the accepted canons of Western art in a search for new sources of inspiration. "Primitive" art, drawings by children, the art of the insane, and graffiti all opened up new avenues for experimentation and artistic creation. At the end of World War II, leading French artist Jean Dubuffet became interested in the works being produced by psychiatric patients and by other social outcasts. In 1948 he founded the Compagnie de l'Art Brut to document the collections he had begun, and in 1976 the collection moved to its permanent home in Lausanne. This critically acclaimed book traces the history of the concept of Art Brut, a movement which has had a profound effect on artistic and social history. The account is completed by biographical notes on the featured artists and an extensive bibliography. This revised edition contains up-to-date information about modern exponents of Art Brut and the collection itself, including two new images of artist Judith Scott's work. All the works reproduced, most from the collection created by Dubuffet, have retained their subversive freedom, which continues to fascinate and inspire artists and collectors today.
Outsider Art is a name for the often mesmerizing creations of those who live and work at a distance from prevailing notions about mainstream artistic trends, individuals who are frequently unaware of themselves as artists or their works as art. This book presents and discusses some of the 20th century's most significant examples of Outsider Art. artists from around the world, including Gedewon, a cleric from Ethiopia who made unique and psychedelic talismans; William Hawkins, an African-American self-taught artist with a unique pop sensibility; the Mexican artist Martin Ramirez, creator of large-scale works that tell tales of mestizo life; Nek Chand Saini, whose Rock Garden in India is a leading visionary site; Hung Tung, whose colourful scrolls reflect both traditional Taiwanese culture and fantastic imagination; former Navajo medicine man Charlie Willeto, carver of raw, expressionistic figures and animals; Anna Zemankova, Czech maker of dreamy, biomorphic drawings, perhaps done in a trance or mediumistic state; and Italian artist Carlo Zinelli, whose bold graphic compositions display incredible patterns and energy. of international Outsider Art and demonstrates the importance of place and time - as well as internal genius - in these artists' creative processes.
ROCK GARDEN IN CHANDIGARH - A Critical Evaluation of the Work of Nek Chand is original research thesis for which its author SS Bhatti was conferred the degree of Master of Architecture [M. Arch.] in 1983 by The University of Queensland, Australia. As one of the three examiners had succinctly observed "The book is valuable one which records and analyses the work of a great, courageous and enormously energetic artist. Mr Bhatti has recorded his painstaking examination of Nek Chand's creation, the Rock Garden in Chandigarh." It is a definitive treatise on what is now called "Outsider Art," so much so that articles based on it and published internationally by the distinguished scholar eventually made Chandigarh's Rock Garden world-famous and its creator Nek Chand a global celebrity. For its sheer thoroughness, insightful analysis, perceptive synthesis, and pragmatic comprehensiveness this book is the first one of its kind, and provides enormously delightful and profoundly enriching reading. It embodies what, according to another examiner, is "A positive reaction to a book that has been written with a thoroughness that makes it a most valuable record and commentary on an exceptional work of art." It would be wrong to regard the relevance of this (pioneer) work as being confined to the field of architecture and landscape architecture. It has something to say to urban and social planners as well as to artists of all kinds. The major thrust (of investigation) is in the objective recording, and this is both a valuable task and one performed with great care and comprehensiveness by the researcher.
A global history of self-taught artists advocating for a nuanced understanding of modern and contemporary art often challenged by the establishment When the art world has paid attention to makers from outside the cultural establishment, including so-called outsider and self-taught artists, it has generally been within limiting categories. Yet these artists, including many women, people with disabilities, and people of color, have had a transformative influence on the history of modern art. Responding to growing interest in these artists, this book offers a nuanced history of their work and how it has been understood from the early twentieth century to the present day. Nonconformers includes work by well-known figures such as Henry Darger, Hilma af Klint, and Bill Traylor alongside many other artists who deserve widespread recognition. After reviewing how self-taught artists factored into key movements of twentieth-century art, the book shifts to highlighting the voices of contemporary practitioners through new interviews with artists William Scott, Mamadou Cissé, and George Widener. An international group of contributors addresses topics such as the development of the Black Folk Art movement in America and l'Art Brut in France, the creative process of self-taught artists working outside of traditional studios, and the themes of figuration, landscape, and abstraction. Global in scope and with chronological breadth, this alternative narrative is an essential introduction to the genre long known as "Outsider Art."
Acknowledged by many as one of the modern wonders of the world, the twenty-five acres of sculptures that make up The Rock Garden in the Indian city of Chandigarh has received worldwide attention through a number of exhibitions in Europe and the USA. Published to accompany an exhibition of the same title at the Royal Institute of British Architects Gallery in Liverpool, this beautifully illustrated and meticulously researched catalogue brings to light Nek Chand's incredible artistic and cultural achievement.
On Board! offers assistance and guidance to students preparing for the CBSE Examination. It gives tips on how the questions in each section should be attempted in the examination. SECTION A: READING The passages acquaint students with a range of texts. SECTION B : WRITING It offers formats and samples for each type of writing task in the CBSE syllabus and tips for developing writing skills. SECTION C: GRAMMAR It supports the students with practice material based strictly on the examination pattern. SECTION D: LITERATURE It offers a variety of questions from poetry, prose and drama. TEST PAPERS Some actual tasks from the CBSE Board Examination papers have been included. ANSWERS Value points have been given for the Reading and Literature sections to facilitate peer-correction and self-correction. WORD POWER Students are encouraged to use the dictionary and infer the meaning of words and phrases from the context. LISTENING & SPEAKING In order to develop proficiency in the English language it is imperative that all the four skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking are honed.
