I have just heard that one of Anjolie Ela Menon?s blue Murano glass sculptures showing at the Italian cultural centre in Delhi has been stolen. It follows fairly soon after the theft of a work of MF Husain from the World Social Forum venue in Hyderabad. Crime is on the upswing today only because it is seen to pay.

The pinnacle of criminality, of course, is the Iraq war. The US, the UK, Australia, Spain, Portugal and other states which claim they are part of the coalition, are international criminals. Whether they win their war or lose it, will not matter much. The eyes of the world have been opened by not only the popular protests against the war, but also by the way in which the criminality of the states concerned did not succeed in getting the stamp of legality from the UN, despite the best efforts of its Secretary General.

However, what really strikes one is the way in which in society at large crime is becoming more popular as it is seen to pay. Not only for the likes of Bush and Blair, but also for corporates like Enron. In crisis-ridden times then, it is seen as a good way of making a quick buck.

At such times people are forced to think of alternatives. Decentralisation of power is one, socialism another. But till such alternatives are realised, people have to put their savings somewhere.

They have to seek security of their assets. Art is one such alternative for people like these. Art is the best for people who do not wish to be taken for a ride by smooth operators who would sell us shares that are collapsing saying they have reached rock bottom and cannot go down any further. Nothing could be more dangerous than falling for such a ploy. So an alternative is called for.

An oil and gold leaf on board (36″ X 24″) by Anjolie Ela Menon

Art is one of those things that is intrinsically crime proof. Only the other day, Edward Munch?s work, Howl, stolen from a museum, surfaced once more. Stolen works are constantly coming to light, because they are worthless if they are not seen and appreciated. So art thefts are not very useful in the long run. This makes art a very good investment economically.

Socially too, investing in art is the best alternative. Whoever buys art buys honest comments on a number of issues and this transparency does not lend itself to criminal manipulation easily. So art is probably the best medium we have for exposing criminal actions and calling for the rule of law and the principles of humanity to be established. That is why even those who have made money in a quick way buy art to redeem themselves and be accepted by society. Art is trusted by society as few things are. And at times when the dishonest come to the top and the existing system loses its acceptance, art is sought out to determine standards. In today?s conditions, when other truths are hard to find, artistic truths are there in plenty. And they are being sought out and invested in. One of the reasons is that such art can never get outdated. This is especially true of our contemporary art which was born out of the anti-colonial struggle and continued to follow its own course in independent India.

Among the works I have seen recently even the laminated wall-hanging of Anita Dube, figuring the Prime Minister, his deputy, Gujarat victims and a VHP goon; Atul Sinha?s Bombing Baghdad at Christmas; Sidharth?s child with toys of war; Jai Zharotia?s missile-forms; Shobha Broota?s whirlpool of death; Sudhir Tailang?s Bush eating the world for a meal; Sandy Schweppe?s chariot wheel of death; Bhupinder Singh?s black peace paintings; Harsh Vardhan and Nupur Kundu?s abstracts; Sharad Kumar?s headless elephant; Meghanshu?s peace overlays; Pallavi Verma?s remarkable black bands uniting two pieces torn apart, all reflect an honesty with regard to the top-down criminality of those who call themselves the ?international community? today. They will pass; but these judgments of artists will survive. That is why we prefer to invest in them for our future. Works like these are selling. They will not be stolen. That would defeat their purpose.

Many of these artists intend to use these funds to send medicines to the people of Iraq. This is not only good investment from the angle of the market, but also for the future of humanity that is now being threatened by an unjust and unnecessary war. Some of these works have been shown already at the Academy of Fine Art and Literature. Others are to be shown at the Art Alive Gallery, The Art Konsult and the Delhi Gallery, so collectors can access them there even after the exhibitions are over.