forming in the pupil of an eye
December 12, 2016–March 29, 2017
The Kochi-Muziris Biennale is pleased to announce the curatorial vision for its third edition, entitled forming in the pupil of an eye, and names further participating artists. The Biennale, opening on December 12 and running for 108 days, closing March 29, is the largest contemporary art biennial in South Asia.
The main exhibition and an ancillary programme of talks, seminars, workshops, film screenings, and music will take place across a range of venues in Kochi, Kerala, India.
The third edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale is curated by acclaimed Indian artist Sudarshan Shetty. Long recognized as one of his generation’s most innovative artists, and best known for his enigmatic sculptural installations, the Biennale will be Shetty’s first curatorial project.
Shetty’s vision for the 2016 Biennale draws from mythical accounts of India as the “land of seven rivers.” The idea of streams flowing, converging and diverging underlies the curatorial questions which KMB 2016 will raise and the knowledge explored through the display and performance of the selected artworks. Looking at motifs such as tradition and community, the central question asks: what does it mean to be together in time—to be contemporary?
Curator Sudarshan Shetty explains, “My curatorial approach started as a conversation between different forms and approaches to art practice. I see the Biennale as existing in process, something which flows, and I wanted to engage artists whose practices will create works that exist not only for the duration of the Biennale, but into the time beyond.
“My core curatorial question explores what tradition means, tradition being a motif I specifically wanted to explore in this edition of the Biennale. We often talk about ‘tradition’ or ‘traditions,’ and through my curation I have aimed to address it from a fresh perspective—not as a stagnant or historical thought, but as an active concept integrated within contemporary reality. Tradition cannot be pinned down to a single set of actions or ideas, and I have enjoyed the challenge of bringing this multiplicity of perspectives to light, developing a Biennale which will be engaging to its visitors without becoming simplistic or reductive.
“Traditions develop over time within the context of a changing yet continuous community, and as Kochi-Muziris is first and foremost a ‘People’s Biennale,’ the idea of community and social engagement is also deeply embedded within the curation, with many of the participating artists presenting works motivated by political undertones.”
Artist list
Abhishek Hazra (India), Abir Karmakar (India), Achraf Touloub (Morocco/France), AES+F (Russia), Ahmet Öğüt (Turkey/Germany), Aki Sasamoto (Japan/USA), Aleksandra Ska (Poland), Aleš Šteger (Slovenia), Alicja Kwade (Poland/Germany), Anamika Haksar (India), Avinash Veeraraghavan (India), Bara Bhaskaran (India), C Bhagyanath (India), Camille Norment (USA/Norway), Carl Pruscha and Eva Schlegel (Austria), Caroline Duchatelet (France), Charles Avery (United Kingdom), Chittrovanu Mazumdar (India), Chris Mann (Australia/USA), Dana Awartani (Saudi Arabia), Daniele Galliano (Italy), Desmond Lazaro (India/United Kingdom), Dia Mehta Bhupal (India), Endri Dani (Albania), Erik van Lieshout (Netherlands), Éva Magyarósi (Hungary), Eva Schlegel (Austria), François Mazabraud (France), Gabriel Lester (Netherlands), Gauri Gill (India), Gary Hill (USA), Hanna Tuulikki (United Kingdom), Himmat Shah (India), Javier Peréz (Spain), Jonathan Owen (United Kingdom), Kabir Mohanty (India), Katarina Zdjelar (Netherlands), Katrīna Neiburga and Andris Eglītis (Latvia), Lantian Xie (UAE), Leighton Pierce (USA), Lundahl & Seitl (Sweden), Mansi Bhatt (India), Martin Walde (Austria), Mikhail Karikis (United Kingdom/Greece), Miller Puckette (USA), Naiza Khan (Pakistan/United Kingdom), Nicola Durvasula and John Tilbury (United Kingdom), Orijit Sen (India), Ouyang Jianghe (China), Padmini Chettur (India), Paweł Althamer (Poland), Pedro Gómez-Egaña (Colombia/Norway), Prabhavathi Meppayil (India), Praneet Soi (India/Holland), Rachel Maclean (United Kingdom), Ravi Agarwal (India), Raul Zurita (Chile), Remen Chopra (India), Sergio Chejfec (Argentina/USA), Sharmistha Mohanty (India), Sirous Namazi (Iran/Sweden), Sophie Dejode and Bertrand Lacombe (France), Stan Douglas (Canada), Subrat Behera (India), Sunil Padwal (India), Takayuki Yamamoto (Japan), Tom Burckhardt (USA), Tony Joseph (India), T.V. Santhosh (India), Valerie Mejer (Mexico), Voldemārs Johansons (Latvia), Yael Efrati (Israel), Yardena Kurulkar (India), Yuko Mohri (Japan), Zuleikha Chaudhari (India)
Inquiries:
Manju Sara Rajan: manju [at] kochimuzirisbiennale.org
Brunswick Arts: kmb2016 [at] brunswickgroup.com
