Flower Shower: The Culture of Flowers in India (H.B)

DR ALKA PANDE is an art critic, cultural theorist, teacher, curator and author, who has been passionately involved with the world of art for nearly three decades. She has two postgraduate degrees in History and History of Art and a PhD from Panjab University. She was the Head of Department of Fine Arts and the Museum of Fine Arts, Panjab University, Chandigarh, as well as the Chairperson of the Chandigarh Lalit Kala Akademi. Recipient of the Charles Wallace Award in 1999–2000, Alka completed her post-doctoral studies in critical art theory from Goldsmith College, University of London. She received the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French government (2006), the Australian-India Council Special Award for her contribution to Indian art (2009) and the Amrita Sher-Gil Samman from the Chandigarh Lalit Kala Akademi (2015). Dr Pande’s focus is to promote art by combining art and education, with a continuing engagement with Indian aesthetics. Her curatorial projects include significant exhibitions in India and abroad. Her areas of interest within Indian cultural studies are the aesthetics of the erotic and gender. Reworking on important Indian museum collections is another area of her expertise. A prolific writer on Indology and art history, Dr Pande has authored several acclaimed books including, most recently, The Little Book of Pleasure (2017). Dr Pande is currently the Consultant Arts Advisor and Curator of the Visual Arts Gallery at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. She is also the curator of the exhibitions at Jor Bagh and Mandi House metro stations. She can be reached at: alkapande17@gmail.com.