When I meet Himmat Shah at Bikaner House in Delhi, I cannot guess from his demeanour — joking, laughing and gently flirting with the guests — that he has just turned 90. We are at Under the Mask, an exhibition that opened at Bikaner House last month before moving to Art Magnum. “I did all these drawings during the lockdown,” he says, pointing at the display of intricate non-figurative linear images in black ink and pencil on the walls. “It was difficult to step out to visit my studio in Garhi [20 km from his house in Jaipur], which is my daily routine, much like eating my breakfast.”
I can’t help but smile at the light-hearted expression on his face, as I move closer to the works. With over 300 drawings in the pandemic series, 40 originals are on display alongside smaller prints of the remaining art. “These drawings delve deeper into Shah’s understanding of the human spirit, of the ability to fight through difficult times, and to self-realise despite adversity,” says curator Jyotirmoy Bhattacharya. The exhibition is in collaboration with the Jaipur Centre of Culture and Arts.
