This week, Paresh Maity in three square inches of a wine label is yours for Rs 440; his painting costs no less than Rs 3 lakh. A Bose Krishnamachari clutch goes up for sale for a couple of thousands, unlike his paintings that carry a 35 lakh price tag. Top artists are blending form, sculpture and fine art in the utilitarian world of affordable functional art, finds Kasmin Fernandes

In the real world, a painting by Paresh Maity will set you back by no less than three lakh rupees. In the world of functional art, his artwork is yours for Rs 440. As a 20th anniversary celebration, winemakers Grover Vineyards are slapping three square inches of fine art by Maity -- and four other biggies -- on the labels of a series of wine bottles that are part of the Art Collection. Maity depicts the complexity of Viognier with a face that shows a range of emotions. You'll find a Rekha Rodwittya on Shiraz Rose, a Jatin Das on Blanc de Blanc, a Sanjay Bhattacharya on Cabernet Shiraz, and a Rini Dhumal on Sauvignon Blanc -- all available between Rs 420 and Rs 560.


This bottle of Grover Vineyards Shirazu00a0 from the Art Collection has a label
created by artist Paresh Maity. Pic/Satyajit Desai

Says Kapil Grover, Director, Grover Vineyards, "These wine labels are works of art, conveying the vision, story and character of the winery in three square inches." The idea came from Mouton Rothschild Bordeaux which has commissioned the likes of Salvador Dali, Jean Cocteau and Andy Warhol to create an original work to illustrate the label, every year since 1946. Every artist is at liberty, following his own inspiration, to interpret the themes of the wine, and the pleasure of drinking.

Can you sit on a pen nib?
Next week, three-month-old Mumbai art hotel Le Sutra will host an exhibition where 29 artists and designers will present their seats of art -- chairs made of wood, fiber glass, steel, aluminum and gold foil. Anand Prabhudesai's Fountain Pen Nib chair uses the concept of free-flowing ink, which is drawn through a feed to the nib and then to the paper via a combination of gravity and capillary action. "Unlike the typical fountain pen which requires little or no pressure to write, free flow of thought for creativity is of utmost importance to human transcendence," is the artist's spiel.

Utility in art is not new, but the sense of utility in fine art was obscured by fine art's appeal to aesthetic beauty outside of physical utility. The peacock's magnificent plumage is an aesthetic statement of the bird's beauty and of nature's mysteries. However, the plumage would be useless if it didn't have a utility vital to the continuance of the species.

"There has to be a thematic connect between design, its artistic inspiration and functional use," says Delhi-based artist, filmmaker and revivalist Muzaffar Ali who has delved into this realm with a series of tables, each design only one of its kind. "It all depends on how the artist applies himself to the object. In India, design itself has to evolve, and we need good craftsmen to execute it since utilitarian art is the coming together of craftsmanship and art."