Kapoor Galleries Presents – Images of the Exotic: Posters of India from the Golden Age of Travel

Art gallery exhibition – Opening reception is September 5th from 6-8 pm, show runs through September 27th.

Press Release:

This fall, Kapoor Galleries is thrilled to present Images of the Exotic: Posters of India from the Golden Age of Travel, on view at 34 East 67th Street from September 5th to 27th, coinciding with the September edition of Asia Week New York. The exhibition will showcase an array of 20th century posters created to entice potential travelers with the mysteries of the Subcontinent, typically issued and distributed by commercial aviation companies to market their international destinations to the elite.

Ranging from the 1930’s to 1970, these posters feature real world oases and monuments along with portrayals of “native” people, in the hope of accumulating interest for newly available travel routes. The images boast lush landscapes of Kashmir along with scenes of snowy northern regions like Kanchenjunga, contrasting the vast natural resources India contains with exciting urban events grounded in tradition; such as the car festival at Puri. Other works included in the exhibition employ sculpture and architecture as an aspect of intrigue to the traveler. A print published and circulated by the Government of India depicts two Indian women on an intricate covered terrace overlooking the Taj Mahal, placing the viewer in the foreground as if they, too, were experiencing the vista on the same terrace. While the majority of these prints were designed by unidentified artists, a number can be attributed to the American artist David Klein, the Danish artist Otto Nielsen, and the Swiss artist Donald Brun.

From a charming image of a tree climbing primate to a stylized representation of a bright eyed belly dancer, these travel posters transport onlookers not only to a foreign place, but to a different time. In an age where most travelers are familiar with heavy security and economy seating, past illustrations of luxurious, exclusive adventure mesmerize in a nostalgic manner, coercing viewers to imagine a world without the internet, when the only way to foster understanding of other cultures was to visit them yourself.