For the past few weeks, art lovers have been privileged to see the works of one of India's most acclaimed painters, Anjolie Ela Menon. Hosted by the Vadehra Art Gallery in New Delhi, the retrospective show titled Anjolie Ela Menon: Through the Patina, brings to the public eye the artist's works spanning five decades from the 1950s to the 2000s. Side by side, a book on Menon by Isana Murti offers a glimpse into the life of an extraordinary personality whose talent made itself felt at a very young age.

A true artist, Menon has over the years turned to different subjects and different materials, perhaps involuntarily, to try something new all the time. Esssentially a figurative artist, she is best known for her portraits of men and women, created in her own immediately recognisable style. While I have not had the opportunity of seeing her bigger works, except the one at the Kolkata Metro Station, the style is unmistakable. Her use of Murano glass resulted in some striking glass sculptures, and the painted furniture that she created was an indication that she was open to new mediums. I read somewhere that the artist's favourite medium was oil on masonite. I can completely relate to this as I have always felt that oils needed a firm surface to be effective. A wall might be a perfect base for her and Menon would undoubtedly have been in her element in the days when frescoes were the best form of art.

Unfortunately the exhibition at Vadehra Art Gallery is only on till August 14 and I would encourage everyone to see this exhibition to get a chance of seeing Menon's work, not much of which have been seen of late. There may not be a better chance of seeing the artist's work in such a varied collection. See her window frames through which you can see her somewhat melancholy women with their sunken kolh-rimmed eyes, animals, architectural features of havelis, the interiors of rooms, landscapes that usually have a few figures in the foreground and, perhaps the most interesting of all, the inquisitive crows who appear every now and then.

The 3rd India Art Summit scheduled between January 21 and 23, 2011, appears to be set for a great showing. At the latest count there are 84 galleries booked to participate. Of these 34 are leading international galleries -- double the number that participated in 2009. The international representation includes galleries from Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Singapore, Spain, UAE, the UK, the USA, and others.

Among the Indian galleries, all those who were at the 2nd Art Summit seem to be returning again. The upcoming summit will also see strong group shows in the General Exhibition section and individual artist displays in the new Solo Projects section. The Sculpture Park which was a very popular section in 2009, has been extended to surround the entire art fair venue. Art galleries will also appreciate the opportunity of being able to represent more artists and mediums through larger allottment of space. The exhibition space for the 3rd India Art Summit is over 8,000 sq mt, an increase of 78 per cent over the space available in 2009. Also, with the focus on video art on the increase, a larger dedicated space has also been earmarked for video and performance art. I would like to end this column with an impassioned plea to the art lovers to visit the new wing of the National Gallery of Modern Art. The NGMA director has worked hard to get this new wing completed and the least we can do is to make one visit a month to see that the gallery is being looked after. The entrance fee is a small price to pay for the wealth of India's best art, carefully selected and tastefully arranged for our viewing pleasure.