How’s your Hindi? Shanti Town, from Canadian artist and illustrator Gary Taxali, plays on the contradiction of a double meaning: the Hindi word “shanti”, meaning peace or tranquillity, and the English word “shanty” describing the makeshift ghettos for the poor on the outskirts of some cities. Where these two concepts meet in the middle is where Taxali does a lot of his illustrating. His favoured style is heavily influenced by 1930s Depression era signs and posters, in which the cheeriness of the characters and their optimistic consumerist messages flew in the face, at times comically, with the economic reality of the time.
We last featured Taxali’s designs adorning some swish silk pocket squares from Harry Rosen, but this time they’re in the form of a selling exhibition of original work on vintage media, held in collaboration with auction house Waddingtons at its Toronto premises – the company’s first such show. Opening day is 30 January, and Shanti Town runs until 9 February.
