ORISSA REVISITED , MARG HARDCOVER , 2001

Marg’s association with Orissa has a long history. Back in the 1950s issues of the magazine were devoted to the arts of the region and to Konark, in 1960 a magazine on Odissi, and more recently a book on this classical dance form were published. The artistic traditions of Orissa are among the oldest and richest in the subcontinent. Recent archaeological field work has revealed several sites from the Stone Age to the Early historic period. The history of Buddhism in the region goes back to the time of Emperor Ashoka (3rd century BCE) with a continuous art heritage up to the 13th century. Apart from sculpture and rockcut caves, Orissa developed a distinguished tradition of temple architecture. The Orissan genius has also been manifest in painting, crafts, and dance, including the varied tribal cultural expressions. Despite such extraordinary achievements, no single volume provides an overview of the diverse contributions of generations of Orissan artists. As the contents demonstrate, this book is wide-ranging in scope, covering all periods and many forms of art. Apart from emphasizing the past; the essays focus on present artistic activities, traditional as well as modern.

Pratapaditya Pal is the General Editor of Marg. An internationally eminent art historian, he is also Fellow for Research at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, California and Visiting Curator of Indian and Southeast Asian Art at the Art Institute of Chicago. Author of over fifty books and exhibition catalogues, he is the most prolific writer in the field.