Edible Archives
Rice is the focus of this project curated by caterer-author Prima Kurien and chef Anumitra Ghosh Dastidar. “Food is such an important part of our lives, but it also vanishes quickly. On a personal level, every time we eat something, it becomes a part of our personal archive, which is constantly being created, recreated and then vanishing,” says Shalini Krishan, who is part of the project. At The Rice Stories stall at Cabral Yard, they will showcase over 16 varieties of rice — like kagisale from Karnataka, kalonuniya from Bengal and thavalakkannan from Kerala — that are not commercially available. “We’ll talk about it at a conceptual level, but we’ll also feed people so it is part of their edible archive.”
Sister Library
After years of running reading spaces in Mumbai, Aqui Thami, an artist and activist from Darjeeling, realised not many people read works by women. “We are surrounded by works that have been created by men,” she says, adding that Sister Library crystallised from this realisation. The travelling library — it has been to Goa and Delhi — is a collection of 300 books that is “an evolving and generative artwork that engages in in-depth reflection on the visual and reading culture of our times”. At Pepper House, visitors are welcome to engage with the installation, which will include fiction, non-fiction, graphic novels, zines and more.
Srinagar Biennale
Veer Munshi, a contemporary artist and the curator of the Srinagar Biennale, recreates a Sufi dargah for this travelling art project. “The shrine itself is marginalised and here I will use the space, both inside and out, to showcase the works of 14 artists who were either born in the conflict or have been affected by it,” he says. A “middle space”, it explores how the “boundaries between ideas shift constantly and get challenged endlessly”. The opening week will include a 12-hour performance that will delve into how surveillance can induce trauma and violence. At TKM Warehouse, Mattancherry.
VyamProject
“The project is the depiction of a Gond fable told in a visual language that we’ve developed over the years, drawing from our traditional styles,” says artist Subhash Vyam, who has come from remote Bastar, Chhattisgarh, with his wife Durgabai, to create the work. The duo will paint an entire room at Aspinwall, addressing themes like disappearing sources of water and defects in the human character”. Done in the Gond style, he says, “The Biennale’s theme prompted us to use this fable, which talks about inclusion and acceptance without conditions.”
