Ravi Shankar: Ragamala to Rockstar
NOVEMBER 2021 - MARCH 2022
Ravi Shankar by photographer Francesco Scavullo
Year: 1977, Dimensions: 19 ¾” x 24”
South Asia Institute Presents the first US Exhibition of Concert Poster Art, Photography and Film celebrating Ravi Shankar.
Ravi Shankar:
Ragamala to Rockstar
A RETROSPECTIVE OF THE MAESTRO’S LIFE IN MUSIC
The exhibition provides a rare glimpse into the legendary music icon’s eventful life and his overwhelming impact on the music world and pop culture.
Legendary sitar pioneer Ravi Shankar, whom George Harrison called the “Godfather of World Music”, was instrumental in bringing Indian classical music to mainstream audiences in the west. Shankar became a pop culture superstar and a celebrity unlike anyone who looked or sounded like him before. South Asia Institute is very pleased to announce the debut of the art and music exhibition, “Ravi Shankar: Ragamala to Rockstar - A Retrospective of The Maestro's Life in Music”. The exhibition is an opportunity to experience the legendary musician’s groundbreaking career in music through an unprecedented collection of rare concert posters, psychedelic art prints, flyers, photographs, videos, record covers and personal artifacts from the archives of collector Brian Keigher. Mentoring high-profile artists like Phillip Glass, John Coltrane, and George Harrison of The Beatles, Shankar’s musical diplomacy brought Eastern music and cultural ideology to mainstream Western culture.
Shankar’s influence led to Indian musical instruments and styles permeating popular music throughout the 1960s as he toured the U.S. and Europe extensively. The extraordinary collection of concert art posters created by noted artists including Gary Grimshaw, Mort Drucker, Tom Wilkes, Gunther Kieser, Jan Steward, Dr. Ferdie Pacheco, David Byrd, Steve Sachs, Bill Otterback, Norman Orr, Eugene Hawkins, is a further testament to his “Rockstar” status. Popular portraits of Shankar by the famed photographers such as Francesco Scavullo, Elliott Landy, Eric Hayes, Frank Seltier, Yousuf Karsh, Alan Kozlowski are also being exhibited.
Curated by Brian Keigher and Gaurav Mazumdar.
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Exhibition supported by:
Tom Bridges
