Are you someone who loves wandering through art galleries and dreams of owning a piece of art, but finds the price intimidating? The CIMA Art Mela might be a good place to start at.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Running from November 12 to 17 at the India Habitat Centre, the exhibition brings together works by established masters and emerging artists, with a focus on making art collecting more accessible to first-time buyers. Featuring over 80 artists, including Arpita Singh, Ganesh Pyne, Jogen Chowdhury<\/a>, Lalu Prasad Shaw and Swarna Chitrakar, the mela offers artworks across a wide price range, from \u20b95,000 to \u20b96 lakh.<\/p>\n \n Artwork by Manish Moitra The 2026 edition will also feature works by modern masters such as Ramananda Bandyopadhyay, Paresh Maity, and Jayasri Burman. There will also be works by emerging artists and traditional art practitioners from Bihar, Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha.<\/p>\n A significant part of the selection comes from the CIMA Art Awards, which take places every three years and provides a platform for identifying emerging artistic talent. Across five editions, the awards have identified approximately 1,000 finalists, with around 200 artists shortlisted in each edition. The jury has included some of India\u2019s leading artists and art practitioners like Arpita Singh, G Ravinder Reddy, RM Palaniappan, NN Rimzon, and Prabhakar Kolte.<\/p>\n \n Artwork by Jogen Chowdhury The idea, says Rakhi Sarkar, director and curator of the Centre of International Modern Art (CIMA), Kolkata, came from a concern about the changing economics of art collecting in India. Looking back at the history of modern and contemporary Indian art, she points out that its early patrons were often doctors, lawyers and other professionals who had an interest in art and the means to acquire it.\u00a0<\/p>\n However, as the Indian art market grew, particularly from the 1970s and 1980s onwards, prices began to rise gradually, pushing many of the enthusiasts out of the market. \u201cBut if you can get something for a few thousand rupees, perhaps you will come forward and buy it,\u201d says Rakhi.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt is important for the art to go to your place because you understand the nuances of art much more than a person who is just doing it to decorate his house,\u201d she further adds.<\/p>\n \n Artwork by Arpita Sengupta The inspiration for Art Mela came from an interesting chapter in Indian art history. Rakhi recalls how Rabindranath Tagore started an art mela in Shantiniketan in the 1920s, bringing together artists associated with the Kala Bhavana. For two or three days, they would create works that were different from their usual mainstream practices. \u201cThen there were people who would come from abroad and buy these artworks. This was a wonderful idea which we thought we should rejuvenate,\u201d\u00a0says Rakhi.<\/p>\n Later, it was called the Nandan Mela, started by the students and faculty of the Visva-Bharati University, in Shantiniketan.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n Artwork by Swapnesh Vaigankar Art Mela was launched in 2008, with its first edition focussing on artists from Bengal. Rakhi recalls people queuing up as early as five in the morning to purchase these artworks. \u201cOne of the particular memories that has stayed with me is when a buyer had withdrawn money from their provident fund to purchase a Ganesh Pyne<\/a> artwork priced at \u20b915,000 to \u20b920,000 at that time.\u201d<\/p>\n She also recalls meeting a young couple at the Delhi edition in 2024. Newly married and working as teachers, they told her that they lived in a barsati<\/i> (a small rented rooftop room) but were very fond of art. After discussing their options, they bought a Bengal patachitra work by a national award-winning artist for \u20b93,000.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n The CIMA Art Mela 2026 is on from November 12 to 17 at the Visual Arts Gallery, Gate No. 2, India Habitat Centre, 10am to 8pm.<\/i><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/th-i.thgim.com\/public\/life-and-style\/pj8rt3\/article71682474.ece\/alternates\/SQUARE_80\/Arpita%20Singh.png\")
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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nFrom Shantiniketan to Delhi<\/h4>\n
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\n SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT\n <\/p>\n![\"Artwork](\"https:\/\/th-i.thgim.com\/public\/news\/national\/karnataka\/u3zfy\/article71660286.ece\/alternates\/FREE_1200\/SWAPNESH%20VAIGANKAR.jpg\" "\\"Artwork")
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