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Several photographs of Saraswati arts are presented.

The paper tries to analyze the silk paintings of Maniklal Banerjee (1917-2002) who was greatly influenced by the artists of the so-called Bengal school of art. The school started by Abanindranath Tagore did not remain confined to its own time and space, but grew into dynamic new modernisms over a span of nearly a century. Art historian Sivakumar invoked a number of artists of Santiniketan and called it a "contextual modernism". The paper tries to re-read the spirit of Santiniketan artists on the more recent and unresearched art of Maniklal Banerjee- who contextualized in his own way the Bengal 'school' that had by now turned into a 'movement'. The spirit of freedom runs at the core of this movement and finds a new language in the late twentieth century artist's renderings of daily life and Puranic narrations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reviews the exhibition "Sultans of Deccan India, 1500-1700: Opulence and Fantasy" at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City from April 20-July 26, 2015.

The article discusses India's foreign relations from 1947 through 2014, with a particular focus on the relationship between globalization and India's soft power. An overview of the influence that Indian culture and civilization has on foreign countries, including in regard to Indian films, art and dance, is provided.

The article examines the history of and tradition behind kawandi quilts constructed by the Siddi people of Karnataka, India. Particular focus is given to how the aesthetics and techniques behind the quilts have been influenced by the African heritage of the Siddi people. Topics explored include information on the quilters who produce these items, the creative process behind the quilts and the various uses for kawandi quilts. The history of the slave trade in North Africa is also briefly discussed.

The author discusses the influence of the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) program in 2011 on the transformation of traditional practices of Kutiyattam in India. It notes the progress of the discourse regarding the increase in the performance dissemination of the art form from local to state, and globally. the author further highlights scholarly criticisms regarding the impact of the ICH program on cultural expression and promoting cultural fossilization.

Popular culture—the culture of mass appeal—that expresses itself through popular arts is the best index of a society's character and orientation. In India, no art form depicts Indian popular culture better than the highly culture-specific Indian popular cinema. Indian cinema evolved into what it is today owing to the cultural traditions of India, the complex composition of Indian society and the differing expectations of the heterogeneous cinema audience ranging from tradition-bound illiterate folk to well-educated and modernised Indians both of whom are products of their cultural tradition and the inevitable Western influence. The diverse media of entertainment and the genres of films are merged into almost every popular film with the view that different parts of the film will appeal to different sections of the audience. Although Indian films are screened in different parts of the world today, Indian cinema has not yet found its place amidst the `good' cinema of the world because it appears terribly flawed by the canons of global film theory and almost entirely disjunctive with the globally dominant aesthetics and concept of cinema. The overarching culture-specificity of Indian cinema restricts it to a popular art form which is both its strength as well as its weakness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The twice daily marking of thresholds with ephemeral chalk-powdered designs, executed by women, constitutes a unique, cross-caste form of 'traditional' visual practice. In contrast with the high level of visibility of the designs the the public domain of the Street, the practice is characterized by an astonishing degree of cultural invisibility, as evidenced by the lack of a body of literature on the subject. Given the popular appropriation of folk and traditional arts for representing 'Indianness', this striking oversight of threshold designs is not only surprising, but indicative, as I will argue, of he ambiguities and unresolved complexities of 'woman', art and culture in post-colonial India, which translate into a marked difficulty of placing the tradition within dominant constructions of Indian arts. This article hence seeks to locate the practice of threshold drawing, as encountered in Tamil Nadu, between tradition and cultural (post)modernity it the Indian discourses of art and culture. The proposed argument is that we need to turn to the loaded binaries of masculinity and femininity as operative in the gendered discourse of Indianness and culture, in order to understand the practice's low cultural visibility. This investigation is part of a wider study of post-colonialism, Eurocentricity ad the aesthetics of decoration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the aesthetics of painter and art promoter Lockwood de Forest, whose career emphasized the preservation and the promotion of Indic decorative arts, artisanal skills, and handcraftsmanship to American art patrons. His artistic masterpieces of architectural ornaments and house furnishings added a layer of complexity to the history of the aesthetic movement in the U.S. A map of British India in the year 1900 shows de Forest's destinations in 1881 and 1882. A photograph is presented of a stone tracery window.

The article focuses on the study of the life and history of India for the sixth graders. Mogul architecture will be studied and compared with other architectures the children are familiar with. The rise of the Mahratta power and British rule in the country will also be tackled. Her people and their religion, education, arts and manufactures as well as the geographical relation of India to the rest of Eurasia will be taken up. There will be modeling of tiles which represents Indian costumes and customs, sketching of a child in an Indian costume and drawing of ground plan of Taj Mahal.

The article discusses the impact of UNESCO's declaration of Kutiyattam in India as an intangible world heritage. It notes the established opportunities for performance, experimentation, and support for existing Kutiyattam training centers through the funds provided by the recognition to the art and artists. The author further highlights the history and creation of Kutiyattam by Painkulam Ramachakyar in 1949.

The article discusses the development of Kutiyattam at Kerala Kalamandalam in India after UNESCO recognized the art form in 2001. It notes the popularity of Kutiyattam among the public. According to the author, people are showing more interest towards the art form, particularly with Nangiarkoothu. The author further highlights the role of Sri Painikulam Ramachakiar in the recognition of Kutiyattam.

The article discusses the uncertainty in the preservation of Kutiyattam in India. It notes an action plan to enable the survival of the art form in the country. The action plan outlines the need for incorporating the performance study of Kutiyattam in the curriculum of colleges and universities. According the author, the recognition that the art has received from UNESCO would not ensure its survival.

A list of the established places where collections reserved for Indian photohistory research is presented. The places include Central Government Archives, Janpath, New Delhi, Federation of Indian Photography, Sri Rama Mandir Road, Banglore and Tamil Nadu Government Archives, Egmore, Madras in India while Boston Public Library, Boston, Massachusetts and National Army Museum, Royal Hospital Road, London in other countries. Data were presented as guidelines for Indian photohistory researches.