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Fränzi
Fränzi More than a century ago, the painter Ernst Ludwig Kirchner was part of “Die Brücke”, a small group of German artists that with their work wanted to form a bridge (Brücke) between the old art and a new style of painting which became known as expressionism. For a few years around 1910, a young…
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Young and lovely
Young and lovely Apart from the fact that these girls have clearly been sent by their parents to find something edible to put in their baskets, they are young and radiant, just as we like to see children of this age. This is how the story for these girls might well unfold in just a…
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The best of youth
The best of youth I came upon them down in the valley. They interrupted their play for a moment to gather round me for a photo. Their looks are open, positive, curious, without a trace of suspicion. A confluence of barely restrained joy of life. Life at its best. Life as it will not go…
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Cramped for room
Cramped for room You wouldn’t think looking here at houses in one of the most posh parts of Mumbai. Still that’s what it is. And that’s how it is. The luxury mansions are just around the corner. At home you may be cramped for room but outside there is still space to fly your kite.…
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Banganga
Banganga The neighbourhood of Walkeshwar on Malabar Hill harbours a rare 1000 year old water tank called Banganga. The tank and its peaceful surroundings let you almost forget that you are in the heart of the city of Mumbai in the 21st century. A man – or his wife – has washed his underpants in…
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Bastion walls
Bastion walls This is not the image that comes into your mind when you think of cosmopolitan Mumbai, brimming over with life. It looks more like a closed bastion that has armed itself against the seething waves of dangerously high tides. I love old walls with their weather-beaten faces. They breathe history, tell stories, let…
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Spitting image
Spitting image That is to say, the spitting image of the pan chewer who embellishes with his creations the pavements, roads, platforms, corridors, staircases, and, if you are lucky enough in passing a chewer at the right moment, your clothes or shoes. Temples and shrines are generally spared. That’s why tiles with images of gods…
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Holy tiles
Holy tiles Compared to the ISKCON temple of last week’s post, this nearby little roadside shrine looks rather cheap and shabby. Still, it probably represents Indian popular aesthetics better than its majestic neighbour. It has taken me awhile but I have come to appreciate this kind of simple religious display. The daring colour combination (like…
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AESCON
AESCON When I walked into the compound of the ISKCON temple at Chowpatty in Mumbai, I must confess I was pleasantly surprised by what I saw. I don’t think much of ISKCON’s aescon but this temple is worth looking at. Beautiful materials, good craftsmanship, no trouble or expense spared. It activated my own aesthetic consciousness…
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Temple tree
Temple tree A banyan tree does not begin its life from a seed in the ground. Its seed needs another tree, a rock or some other structure on which to take root and develop. It is therefore not a parasite, but an epiphyte. If the tree grows on top of another tree, over time the…
καιρός remembered
… the right moment, position chosen, shoot …
καιρός remembered 