A great art gathers together an entire culture in the affirmative celebration of its foundational truth. It is precisely why the ‘self’ can engage with Indian art for liberating itself not only from the overly restrictive conception of what we call a modern living but also the disastrous politics of the period. This is what has kept Indian art young, vibrant and relevant.
The present work Legacy of Indian Art: Continuity in Change, containing twenty seven well researched papers by celebrated scholars, all experts in the discipline, is the outcome of in-depth deliberations during the international seminar on the subject organized by the Department of Ancient Indian History, Culture and Archaeology, Panjab University, Chandigarh. It brings to fore as to how Indian art has succeeded in reconciling the ancient and the modern, how it has become a touchstone for the rediscovery of continuity and change in traditions, styles notions of the self, symbolism, construction of meaning and philosophical traditions. Together these elements would help to create a story of a civilization in which we can recognize the enduring quests and questions of humankind. |
