Over three generations in India, members of the Jogi family have preserved their culture with unique and detailed ink works, now on display in Melbourne<\/p>\n
Sangita Jogi\u2019s illustration Women Partying, a joyful depiction of an all-girl disco nightclub, looks very much like something you might see in Teen Vogue. In reality, it\u2019s on the wall at the National Gallery of Victoria, as part of a new exhibition highlighting new acquisitions from contemporary Indian artists in rural, regional, and Indigenous traditions, some handed down for centuries. What is unique about 19-year-old Sangita is that she works in a style practised only in her family: Jogi art, an energetic drawing style using in black ink on white paper, featuring detailed patterns and large, complex composition. It\u2019s been practised for three generations of the Jogi family \u2013 which is to say, it\u2019s startlingly modern.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s distinctive about this family, as opposed to others, is that they haven\u2019t inherited this style,\u201d says Wayne Crothers, senior curator of Asian art at the NGV. \u201cIt\u2019s come out of them preserving their narrative traditions or their singing and performing traditions.\u201d<\/p>\n