Bose Krishnamachari: Three years on, the magic of art festivals returns

Since the advent of the pandemic, public life has been deeply impacted. This has affected the cultural sphere too. The economic slump has been brutal for a large section of the population and one can just imagine how badly it must have impacted the livelihood of artists who are sadly considered an informal workforce. The lengthy experience of lockdown had stripped away all hope and inspiration.

Unlike Europe, where relief measures were also provided to the artists, we could not lobby enough to demand such beneficial monetary relief. Most of the art festivals, fairs and even the Kochi Biennale had to be postponed. Despite these adversities, art still has a transformative potential to connect to the masses. It provides an outlet to reflect on the crisis, it creates hopeful images, and it also makes us think critically about our collective failures.

With this hope, I curated the exhibition ‘Lokame Tharavadu’, organised by the Kochi Biennale Foundation in Alappuzha and Ernakulam (Durbar Hall), which featured more than 260 artists in eight different venues. The exhibition was a huge success in terms of footfall and was also able to revive the spirits of the artist community in the state of Kerala and in India. We organised this exhibition at a time when things were opening up generally, but the art world was very inactive. It inspired many people to organise exhibitions in their states. It also won awards for the best-curated exhibition and is proof that community building could be done via art. We were able to do such a large-scale event because of the unconditional support of the participating artists, local administration, fellow residents of Alappuzha and the government of Kerala.

Since then, the situation in the art world has been fairly positive and I am hopeful about how various events are unfolding. We are gearing towards the Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2022 curated by the renowned artist and curator, Shubigi Rao. The exhibition will feature artists from India and abroad. Kochi Biennale has been a people’s event and, over these years, it has witnessed magnificent support from the art community and general public. This is the 10th anniversary of the Biennale and we aspire to live up to the expectations of the viewers. The venues are getting ready and the production works have started. We receive thousands of viewers from across the world and this year, too, we are not expecting anything less.

It’s an occasion for art lovers to experience the beauty of global contemporary art in the pristine backdrop of Fort Kochi. Apart from the main exhibition, the Kochi-Muziris Biennale will also host, for the first time, the Invitations Exhibition Programme, and many other parallel workshops, performance arts, music, talks and collateral programmes that run through the four months of the Biennale. It caters to diverse stakeholders — from children to adults.

Art world is an ecosystem and it thrives through symbiotic activities. Cultural activities cannot be insular. It requires participation, encouragement, and mutuality. Since the last decade, various important art festivals and events have emerged in India. And one of the important ones is the Serendipity Arts Festival in Goa. Serendipity has a unique multi-disciplinary approach to art and features art, music, performance and food practices.

Another important commercial platform for contemporary art in South Asia is the India Art Fair, that happens every year in Delhi. The Fair could not be organised during the pandemic but since last year, they have launched a physical event which is a massive art event of Delhi, featuring many collaterals. Thousands of visitors flock to see the best of art displayed by various galleries from India and abroad in this event. There are also many important exhibitions that will be hosted by galleries across India that will feature curated shows and all these events require the generous support and participation of the public.

In India, we generally consider art as a non-essential part of our life and we need to change that attitude. Contemporary art is closely connected with art, science, design and technological advancements. It is located at the intersection of these domains. Therefore, visiting an art show will broaden the mindset of the visitors and it will also help one to take pride in the heritage and creative practices of our country. These events are also active creative spaces that help the public to engage in meaningful activities. They help the participants to think creatively and develop a community bonding through the platform of art.

— The writer is president of Kochi Biennale Foundation