Baiju Parthan (born 1956 in

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

), is a

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

intermedia Intermedia is an art theory term coined in the mid-1960s by Fluxus artist Dick Higgins to describe various interdisciplinarity art activities that occur between genres, beginning in the 1960s. It was also used by John Brockman to refer to works ...

art in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Curated by

Ranjit Hoskote Ranjit Hoskote (born 1969) is an Indian poet, art critic, cultural theorist and independent curator. He has been honoured by the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, with the Sahitya Akademi Golden Jubilee Award and the Sahitya ...

, ''Baiju Parthan: A User's Manual'' takes the reader on a tour through the artist's diversely populated imagination. It maps Parthan's journey from his childhood in Kerala, through his student years in

Goa Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...

, to his struggle to find a niche in the contemporary Indian art scenario. This book records Parthan's participation in the last years of the countercultural hippie scene, his encounters with spiritual teachings and shamanic lore, his experiments with form, and his engagement with media flows and alternative reality environments. ''Baiju Parthan: A User's Manual'' includes a monographic essay on the artist by Hoskote, as well as a freewheeling conversation between artist and author, extracts from Parthan's journal, a section on his intermedia works, a selection of the artist's occasional writings, and a biographical essay.

References

External links

baijuparthan.info
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Nancy Adajania Nancy Adajania (born 1971) is am Indian cultural theorist, art critic and independent curator. Early life and education Nancy Adajania was born in 1971 in Mumbai, India. She was educated at the Princess Alexandra School, Elphinstone College, wh ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parthan, Baiju 20th-century Indian painters Indian contemporary painters 1956 births Living people Painters from Kerala