Press Release The Word of God(ess): Chitra Ganesh
Chitra Ganesh, Tightrope (detail), 2011, courtesy of the artist
For immediate release
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Chitra Ganesh’s artwork combines different visual languages, canons and cultures, including comic books, Bollywood cinema and iconic goddesses from Hindu folklore. Ganesh creates cross-cultural narratives about sexuality and power that sit in comic book frames where interior thoughts are revealed in bubbles or – as in her wall installations – hover in psychedelic space with three-dimensional elements that protrude into contemporary reality. This exhibition includes artworks based on the comic, Amar Chitra Katha, which Ganesh read as a youth and that is still in print today. The enormously popular comic (over 90 million printed) began in the 1960s to teach children in India and the Diaspora about Hindu myths, Indian history and culture as well as to teach children proper behavior through specific characters.
The exhibition is curated by Tresa Varner, curator of education and interpretation. The Word of God(ESS): Chitra Ganesh is on view through September 4, 2011.
This exhibition is the third in The Word of God series, which examines major world religions and their texts through contemporary art. Sacred texts are considered by many to be the direct words of God to man. How this Word is passed down and received is dependent on the people, languages and cultures in which it is presented. This series explores the questions: what is the best version of the Word of God; and does the artistic rendering of it enhance understanding or is some essential truth lost in translation?
The Warhol has, in its seventeen year history, presented difficult or controversial imagery and art in order to spark community dialogue. The dialogues and visitor experiences from such encounters with art and images are powerful and potentially community changing.
Exhibition Related Public Programming
As part of The Word of God exhibition series, The Warhol is presenting The Word of God: Voices, an ongoing series of public dialogues and gallery talks by various scholars, community activists, artists, and religious leaders. These programs provide context for the artist’s work and spark dialogue about the issues raised in each exhibition. Please visit www.warhol.org for additional upcoming programming.
Opening Celebration – The Word of God(ess):Chitra Ganesh
Saturday, July 9, 2011
2 pm Chitra Ganesh Talk
3 pm Reception – complimentary coffee, tea and lite bites; cash wine bar Free with Museum admission
The Word of God Series
The Word of God: Sandow Birk’s American Qur’an
February 26 – May 1, 2011
The Word of God: Helène Aylon, The Liberation of G-d and The Unmentionable
May 8 – June 26, 2011
The Word of God(ess): Chitra Ganesh
July 9 – September 4, 2011
The Word of God: Max Gimblett’s Sound of One Hand
September 17 – November 27, 2011
The Word of God: Jeffrey Vallance
December 3, 2011 – February 12, 2012
The Warhol receives state arts funding support through a grant from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency funded by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; and The Heinz Endowments. Further support is provided by the Allegheny Regional Asset District.
The Andy Warhol Museum
Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the place of Andy Warhol’s birth, The Andy Warhol Museum holds the largest collection of Warhol’s artworks and archival materials and is one of the most comprehensive single-artist museums in the world. The Warhol is one of the four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh.
Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh
Established in 1895 by Andrew Carnegie, Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh is a collection of four distinctive museums: Carnegie Museum of Art, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Carnegie Science Center, and The Andy Warhol Museum. The museums reach more than 1.4 million people a year through exhibitions, educational programs, outreach activities, and special events.