Untitled 

This untitled painting was created by Jagdish Swaminathan, an artist who contributed to the radical transformation of Indian art after independence. As part of the Group 1890 art collective, Swaminathan sought to create a visual language free from both European academic styles and the Bengal School's nationalist nostalgia. Here, Swaminathan's abstracted forms draw inspiration from tribal art and children's drawings, reclaiming these visual languages from the condescension of colonial ethnography. He presents them as a universal, accessible visual language for a modern India. To truly understand Swaminathan's project, one must consider the cultural politics of post-independence India, where artists grappled with defining a national identity beyond colonial influences. Art historical resources and critical analyses of the Group 1890 manifesto are crucial for understanding Swaminathan’s place in this history. The meaning of art shifts depending on its social and institutional context.