The past six weeks of COVID-19 induced lockdown have made us introspect and inculcate a sense of gratitude, so it’s apt that the virtual exhibition of art is titled ‘Introspection’, says Lakshmi Nambiar, curator and owner of Shrishti Art Gallery, Hyderabad. Introspection is an exhibition of 132 artworks (paintings, sculptures and installations) from more than 90 contemporary Indian artists.
The exhibition (on view at donate-shrishtiart.com ), from May 7 to 10, aims to raise funds to help underprivileged artists whose livelihoods have been severely affected owing to COVID-19 lockdown. The exhibition is in partnership with American India Foundation ( www.aif.org ).
Message beyond the canvas
Seeing the plight of migrant workers and others who’ve been affected due to lockdown, with no guaranteed source of income for the next few months, Lakshmi wanted to do something to help. As an art curator, she was also aware of the circumstances faced by underprivileged artists who have meagre income sources and now face unprecedented times.
She had organised a fundraiser earlier, a one-day exhibition in Hyderabad during the Kerala floods in 2019. The virtual fundraiser exhibition though, is a new arena for her and she admits it took time and effort. Support came from her husband Jay Krishnan’s firm Mantra Capital, for tech and other logistics. Then, Lakshmi spoke to artists who would be willing to share their artworks for the exhibition. “The artworks are all available at 15% discount. And 50% of the sale proceeds will go towards helping artists in need of financial help,” she says.
A painting by K G Subramanyan
Introspection features works of established, emerging and new artists. DLN Reddy, George Martin P J, Thota Vaikuntam, K G Subramanyan, Laxma Goud and S G Vasudev are among the reputed names.
After the sale period, a team of jury members will call for applications, and identify the artists who are in genuine need of aid. Artist Bose Krishnamachari will be part of the jury, along with Lakshmi, and a member of AIF. “We will also have representation of artists from different parts of the country, to ensure that the funds reach the right people,” says Lakshmi. AIF, she points out, has been working in India for 20 years in the fields of health, education and livelihoods of underprivileged communities in India.
So far, Lakshmi has shared the catalogue of artworks with 800 art patrons and the AIF has also reached out to their contacts in the United States. “It’s too early to gauge the response. We are accepting pre-booking, even before the sale begins,” says Lakshmi, hoping that the high networth art buyers will loosen their purse strings.
