Meera Mukherjee’s lyrical sculpture Untitled (Benaras Ghat) captures in bronze a scene that has remained unchanged for centuries. A raised armature supports gently descending steps that.mes
rge into an undulating circular surface representing the rippling waters of the river Ganges, the whole composition encased within a delicate serpentine circumference. Within this microcosm the rhythms of life ebb and flow with a steady, harmonious cadence. Birds skim the water’s surface, ritual offerings immersed in the river jostle alongside boats moored at the bank, pilgrims offer prayers beneath the ubiquitous parasols lining the steps of the ghat, bathers engage in their ablutions. This self-contained universe is animated with an inner life of its own and imbued with a sense of everlasting serenity.
- Puja Beneath Parasols
The parasols lining the steps of the ghats are a quintessential element of the immortal image of Benaras. Worshippers seated beneath these parasols chant hymns as they offer homage to the departed souls of ancestors in the effort to enable their peaceful transition to the other world.
- Making Their Way Down the Slippery Steps
Upon the conclusion of rites, offerings are immersed in the river. Pilgrims treading gingerly on the slippery steps as they make their way down to the water is a commonly encountered sight.
- Birds and Boats
Birds skim the water’s surface, ritual offerings floating in the river jostle alongside boats moored at the bank, creating an affecting portrayal of the quotidian and eternal melding effortlessly.
- Taking a Holy Dip
A dip in the holy waters of the sacred river Ganges is believed to wash away sins and rejuvenate both body and soul. Here we see a half-submerged devotee taking a dip and offering oblations to the sun and to water – both sources of life.
- Ripples
The water itself, in spite of Mukherjee’s solid medium, is awash with movement, represented through the rippling coils of bronze. To create this effect the artist fashioned and incorporated individual strands of wax into the original model which then had to be manipulated with great skill and patience to achieve the desired effect.
Born in Calcutta and gifted with an artistic bent since childhood Meera Mukherjee received her early training in the precepts of the Bengal School at the Indian Society of Oriental Art. A stint at the Delhi Polytechnic was followed by study and travel in Europe, a seminal period during which she embraced sculpture as her chosen discipline. Upon her return to India she experienced an epiphany of sorts when she encountered dhokra sculptures made by the indigenous Gharua artists of Bastar in Chattisgarh. In her words this interface with folk art and the artisans themselves was an ‘awakening.’
She spent the entirety of her life working with Gharua artists, internalizing their devotion to their craft, observing the ingenuity with which they utilized rudimentary tools and techniques to create imaginative ‘living’ works pulsing with energy and animation, and most importantly understanding their struggle to preserve their skills and artistic traditions. It fostered in her the ethos that art was a spiritual exercise, that the ceaseless industry of the artisan was a part of the process of creation itself. In her book In Search of Viswakarma, she reflected:
“Kings have followed kings through the rise and fall of dynasties but the tireless hands of artisans have not stopped in their works. How could such a thing happen? Was it due to ‘Dhyan’ the unflinching concentration of the mind?”
Meera’s attraction to the folk art idiom can be viewed as part of the larger story of the influence of indigenous traditions on modern art trends in the twentieth century. However it is worth noting that she drew equal inspiration from a deep reservoir of other varied sources: textile patterns, alpona designs, ancient sculptures, nature itself. Conceived with spare lines and created using the labor intensive cire perdue or lost wax process (a wax form encased within coats of clay which is replaced by molten metal) her sculptures bear an archaic finish yet are imbued with grace and vitality. Above all they convey a sense of movement, which to her was an integral element of Indian art, an effect she achieved through the use of contiguous circular, linear and geometric lines.
The ancient city of Benaras is also known as Kashi which translates as brightness or radiance. Situated on the banks of the holy river Ganges the city has been a place of pilgrimage for millennia as it is believed to be a ford or a crossing between the tangible and the eternal. Slipping past the ghats, the river itself straddles these two worlds, where the past and the present are melded. Meera’s expressionistic rendition of Untitled (Benaras Ghat) poignantly captures the emotion of a moment where the sacred and the commonplace are effortlessly assimilated. Perfectly proportioned on a vertical-horizontal axis the sculpture is characterized by tactile, fluid volumes. Ridged striations on the water surface, created by individual threads of metal, impart rhythm and movement to the composition.
Meera Mukherjee’s art reflects her distinctive individual identity. To her the process of creation with its associated struggle was natural and organic yet at the same t.mes
one of discovery and inspiration. In her words, “There was no need to strain oneself to create beautiful forms. It is the love in one’s heart and dedication which creates such beauty.” (ibid, p. 13). Untitled (Benaras Ghat) is an affecting portrait of humanity and embodies her philosophy of the quotidian being no less mythic than the Divine.