“An artist has to live a life like his pictures. So to see and capture the kind of pictures I take, I do not eat anything that moves, do not drink any intoxicant, do not smoke and even do not eat onion or garlic”.
Ashwin Mehta
Ashwin Mehta was a wind of revolution and evolution in the field of photography art. The transformations he brought in the art of photography is frequently compared with the influence of his work by Ansel Adams on the photography scene worldwide. An Indian is comfortable with seeing god in any stone, tree or animal. The same spirituality is evident in the images of the most eminent photographer Ashwin Mehta. One can say, the father of the abstract photography art in India. He interpreted the nature and its elements in his unique philosophy and exacting frames. Weathered stones, bark of trees, vehicles, sky, sea and city, all were the grist to his mill. Like the supreme creator himself, Mehta made images that fascinate, hold attention, fulfil and enlighten the mind. Ashwin Mehta saw the world, not divided by earth & sky, The mountains and trees, people & flowers, wildernesses & cities; but as a whole, as ‘his’, the creators limbs as the artist himself used to say.
His 19 one man shows and eight books printed & published to the highest international standards stand proof to his insistence demand for exceptionally high quality. About his books, Manhar M. Shah, Hon. HP, remembers Mehta saying, “These books are not vanity publications financed by myself. They are publications which have to be commercially viable in the international book market with very stiff competition”.
He shunned flattery and publicity & instead elected to move to a peaceful place, near Walsad in Gujarat, aptly named “Teethal” meaning a place of pilgrimage. This became a true pilgrimage to those fortunate few who he chose to meet. He had a simple abode amidst the unspoiled splendour of nature. He was very close to the good earth, the trees, birds and animals. This serenity of his simple almost hermit like living and a philosophy of a sage is seen reflected in his amazingly thoughtful images. When asked about the simplicity in his pictures, he answered, “An artist has to live a life like his pictures. So to see and capture the kind of pictures I take, I do not eat anything that moves, do not drink any intoxicant, do not smoke and even do not eat onion or garlic”.
This great artist passed away on 26th July 2014, leaving behind his rich legacy of spell binding work appreciated all over the world. Anil Risal Singh, President of Federation of Indian Photography and editor of Viewfinder, dedicated the November 2015 issue of Viewfinder , the official organ of FIP, “to the most illustrious and admirable photo-artist Ashwin Mehta Ji”He kindly allowed me to use the materials from this issue for my page, “Photography, Taking stock”. My sincere thanks for
the permission.
Salil Tripath laments about the ignorance and neglect of our masters “the man who was one of India’s most important photographers died as if unremembered and unlamented by a society with its obsession with the quotidian, revealing an a historic mind emptied by collective amnesia.”But then knowing Ashwin Mehta, he muses “Oddly, Mehta would have liked such a departure, not troubling anyone too much”He further says “In one of our conversations a quarter century ago, he told me of his belief in formless divinity: “My nature photography is an attempt at his portrayal, and I succeed to the extent that I am able to capture the elements not merely as objects, but as his limbs.” In that, Mehta revealed a spirituality built on humility— recognizing the infinitesimally small role an individual plays in trying to shape nature.
In nature, Mehta saw a continuum, an alignment of humanity with eternity: there were enough abstractions and patterns in his photography to make us look for a meaning—mystical or real—but such explanations fell short of what the photographs conveyed”. For Mehta, abstract forms of nature had a life of their own. A bark of a tree, a leaf on a trail, the silhouette of grass, the sheer drop of a valley—all those took a sensuous form, as if they had become animated.
Vithal C Nadkarni, a consulting editor and columnist with The Times of India Group of Publications tells about his first meeting with Ashwin Mehta, “I first met Ashwin Mehta while working for The Illustrated Weekly of India. By then he was already one of India’s most distinguished photographers. Still, despite his formidable reputation (or perhaps because of it), he came across as an extremely friendly and a down-to-earth man. His passion for Hindustani classic music, for example; or his devotion to matters mystical about which he was rather reticent at the start of our friendship. It was only after he moved away from Mumbai to Tithal in Gujarat that he began to share more freely with me his insights and deep readings from masterly works such as Sri Nyanadeva’s Bhavartha Deepika, which is more popularly known as the Jnaneshwari and the collected wisdom of that sage of the Dattatreya tradition, Sadguru Gondwalekar Maharaj.”
R. R. Bhardwaj, fondly known as Guruji, was an inspiration and mentor of many Photographers. Ashwin Mehta took his first lessons of photography from this worthy teacher. As an excellent nature Photographer himself, guruji instilled the love of nature in Mehta.
As Niyati Shinde tells us, “During the initial visits Mehta photographed like a “tourist”, reaching for the camera each time he was struck by another breathtaking sight. Later the images began to evolve from a deeper understanding of environment around sustained by a soul-searching that was to support and nourish, distinguish and incise all his future work”. “Sincere forays into philosophic understanding and reflecting on the universe and his own role or presence, and the presence of the omnipotent all became salient features that would prompt and steer his work.
Seeking inspiration in the works of abstract painters like Gaitonde, Raza and such other contemporary artists and photographers, to make his work reflect meanings and significance far beyond the visually apparent, Mehta began his photographic existence.” The quality of his work was beyond comparison at the same time the sheer volume of his work takes ones breath away. In a career that spans several decades, he has excelled in various genres, including nature photography, destination photography, and the cityscapes. His work has been collected in a series of books including:
Himalaya : encounters with Eternity, (Thames & Hudson, London 1985), Coasts of India (Thames & Hudson, London, 1987), Gifts of Solitude (Mapin, Ahmedabad, 1991), Hundred Himalayan flowers (Mapin, Ahmedabad, 1992), and Happenings – Journal of Luminous Moments (Hindustan Inks, Gujarat, 2003). His work has also been shown in the group exhibitions curated by Raghu Rai (New Delhi, 1972); Creative Eye Indian Photograph 1844-1984 Another, curated by MitterBedi (Darmsadt, 1984); And Way of Seeing, curated by Circle of 24 (The Netherlands, 1992). Mehta has also been engaged in a number of prestigious collective projects, including A Day in the Life of India the Festivals of India(Collins, London, 1995), and in Britain (1982), Russia (1990) and Germany (1991). He has been commissioned as a destination photographer by Singapore Airlines, the Oberoi Hotels, and the India Tourism Development Corporation. He has also photographed the Indian medicinal plants for a monograph by chemical Export Promotion Council (Chemexil), and the spices of India for the Taj Hotels. Mehta, who first exhibited his photographs in 1966, has since held exhibitions at Jehangir Art Gallery, the Centre for Photography as an Art Form, and Gallery Chemould, Bombay; the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, and Max Mueller Bhavan, New Delhi, the Gardner Centre for the Arts, Brighton, Britain. His photographs are in collection of Metropolitan Museum of Arts, New York, BibliothequeNationale, Paris, Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts, New Delhi and Centre for Photography as Art-Form, NCPA, Mumbai. His photographs were used for corporate publicity of many big business houses, such as, Life Insurance Corporation of India, Air India, India Tourism Development Corporation, Royal Nepal Airlines, Karnataka Tourism Development Corporation and Singapore International Airlines. His photographs were also used for Four stamps on Himalayan flowers issued by the Government of India May 1982, and also a stamp in November 1987, in the series on Indian trees.
Manhar M. Shah, Hon. HP aptly describes him as “He could best be described as an eminent freelance photographer working professionally mainly in self assignment.” He literally worshiped nature through his camera. Regarding his frequent visit to the snow covered rangers. Mehta said :”with each trip my sensitivity grew and found its haven in photography.”
Jagdish Agarwal remembers the visit by Ashwin Mehta to Dinodia office. “Nearly twenty years ago, I got a call from Ashwinbhai “I am coming to meet you on Saturday at about 1 pm so please keep two samosas and one glass of sweet lassi ready for me.” He came exactly on time. We both sat down to have lunch. I opened my dabba. As usual, my wife always sent three rotis, two for me and one for the birds. I picked up one roti, opened my window and made small pieces of the roti so that many birds could eat and kept it in the bird tray. Ashwinbhai only spoke a few words. We both finished lunch. Then he just got up and started leaving. I went after him and asked, but Ashwinbhai what was the reason for your visit? He just said “Mera kaam ho gaya” and he went away. I was very puzzled. After a few weeks, he came with a bag full of his slides and became a member of Dinodia Picture Agency. Later he told his friends, “I gave my slides to Dinodia because a man who takes care of birds, will surely take care of my photos.”
Mahendra Damle, a Painter, Art critic and a fine arts teacher says, “…. I could see his works in the NCPA Piramal gallery, abstract visions of day to-day life, things, colour and textures. The sense of discovery filled in the images, bringing you the pleasure of seeing something new, unseen for the first time. Artists vision guided by his philosophical perception of life giving the ‘meaning’ to the visual, defined by the visual experience in the photographic image.”He remembers his discussions at the art school “..about his decisions, of leaving Mumbai and staying like a hermit in a village. This decision was looked at as if it defined his aesthetics.”
I was part of a group of photographers who visited him at his home in Teethal in Gujarat. The visit was arranged by Jagdish Agarwal, Founder of Dinodia Photo Library, to interact with Mehta and understand the deeper meanings and philosophy about making such exceptional works of art. Ashwin Mehta’s sage like persona, his soft spoken words of deeply thought out wisdom and understated passion for the art of photography left an undeniable imprint on my mind. Listening to him in that calm and pristine place surrounded by nature was no less than a satsang. His pictures are a great source of inspiration as well as a milestone, difficult to reach but still worth striving for. I have learned from him that ‘sadhana’ is utmost important in any art form to reach the peak of creativity & achievement. His work speaks more eloquently than any words could ever describe. The only way to understand the phenomenon that changed the art world of photography called Ashwin Mehta could only be truly experienced and understood through his meaningful, soulful, somewhat mystical images. He celebrated life through his photography and imbibing his images we become part of the celebration.
Aniruddha Cheoolkar
AFIPAniruddha Cheoolkar is doing photography, some commercial but mostly pictorial for last five decades. His special interest in photomicrography, taking photos through the microscope, has helped many post graduate and doctoral students in the field of biology. Working at an environmental research laboratory he found time to teach photography, to write about his tours and experiences. He loves to read. He expresses himself fondly in poetry. His book titled “30@30” showcasing the interviews of 30 photographers was published by Jagdish Agarwal, founder of DPL.