A searing critique against govkitsch

Art lies in the eye of the beholder, especially if the art is avant-, not arriere-garde. So, when last week, at the inauguration of International Museum Expo 2023 in New Delhi, the expo mascot was unveiled, many arty types exposed their philistine side by gasping in horror. The mascot was a ‘reimagined’ form of the Mohenjodaro ‘Dancing Girl‘, the iconic copper-bronze statuette made around 2500 BCE and discovered by archaeologist D R Sahni in 1926-27. Instead of the defiant naked young woman, with one hand on her hip and the other resting on her thigh, seemingly ready to pick a fight, the ‘re-representation’ shows a demure, young lady in pose and ‘tribalwear’ – pink blouse and yellow wraparound – seemingly ready to perform a folk/’adivasi’ dance for a visiting VIP delegation.

While the new work of art is kitschy, what its critics are missing is the artistic intent of critiquing govkitsch – governmental kitsch. It is an ironic wink at a style we are all familiar with from official pamphlets to ‘expo’ decorations. If Andy Warhol‘s kitsch, in all its silkscreen gaudiness, is today up for mainstream appreciation, surely, one should recognise that by contrasting its blunt tawdriness with the raw beauty of the original, ‘Clothed Dancing Girl‘ is actually making a searing artistic comment about the all-too-familiar, ghastly govkitsch aesthetics.