a curatorial
platform that seeks to play with the notion of 'emerging artists' and to re examine artist curator relationships

Monday, April 26, 2010

my interview on drifters

hi there
 
 
this link carries my interview on the notion of emerging artits and our show Drifters
 
best
 
rahul
--------
rahul bhattacharya
managing editor
Art&Deal Magazine, 23, Hauz Khas Village
New Delhi - 110016. Ph. 011- 26531819
www.artanddealmagazine.com
----------------------------------
Can it be Done in Any Corner You Like?
http://theblackyellowarrow.blogspot.com

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Fwd: Stop a nuclear disaster..read a review



drifter's review on the www.matterofsart.net site




NEW ART ON THE BLOCK
Art Konsult, New Delhi, recently showcased Drifters exhibiting works of 16 artists. The show was curated by Rahul Bhattacharya.  Alana Hunt reviews this curatorial experiment.
The Drifters, recently on show at Art Konsult in Delhi, emerged as a kind of 'curatorial experiment' put together by Rahul Bhattacharya with the involvement of 16 artists.
Entering, down a small flight of stairs, into a long narrow and low basement, in which artworks appear quite comfortable hanging not just from the walls but also the floors and ceiling, The Drifters can at first seem disorienting, overwhelming, almost claustrophobic. But after first impressions settle down the bursting gallery space itself becomes more like a cosy, busy and informal environment to be in – particularly in the midst of a cold Delhi winter.
Bhattacharya's curatorial experiment takes shape in a number of ways. The standard eye level has been shifted, images are hung on top of images, the traditional white cube is replaced by walls coloured specifically to suit each body of work, and the regular curatorial statement that tends to guide the viewer has been replaced by single words that appear plastered all over the exhibition space – providing an array of loose entry points into both the individual works and the show as a whole. It is an interesting attempt to move beyond the apparent didacticism of the conventional curatorial statement. However while the nature of the words' presentation, as relatively large bold black stickers, undeniably provided an entry point it was an entry point that kept me at the gate. The suspension of my own 'disbelief' or rather my ability to become absorbed by the works themselves became almost too occupied by the words as physical stickers which inturn made that initial sense of didacticism difficult to wholeheartedly escape.
The curatorial drive behind the exhibition was not so much based upon the conglomeration of a group of artists around a certain theme, but rather it was about bringing together artists whom Bhattacharya felt responded to the boom of the Indian art market in recent years with a certain kind of resistance; a resistance that entailed a determination to maintain, amidst the fervour of a booming market, what Bhattacharya has described as 'one's own artistic journey'. In the context of the global financial crisis of late and the slowing down of the Indian art market the timely nature of this curatorial move is no coincidence. In this sense the artists seem to be presented and held up as a group of practitioners who pertain the capacity to drift through the thick and thin and the highs and lows of it all, regardless.
Although I tend to shy away from the use of this term, "identity" nevertheless does seem to run as a strong undercurrent to many of the works in the show. From Puja Vaish's focus on childhood as a site of cultural and social conditioning in Masquerade, to Parinbantana Mohanty's video a lot of PRESSUR on CONFIDENCE whereby a young male torso becomes the site of experience – historical, fantastical and sexual – against a backdrop of consumer culture that includes Disney, Macdonald's and of course Che Guevara. A computer generated body, with rock solid breasts and a supple vagina that moves with each thigh as the figure walks richly evoked that awkward feeling of the abject in Kumar Kanti Sen's videoDemon Walking, while Megha Joshi's installation of giant human sized safety pins gathered together in front of a rich red velvet curtain in the work Family Photo was given a nice touch with the inclusion of small proof sheets inconspicuously pinned to the wall.
But it was the subtlety in Al Saidi Hasan's work, installed as a performance during the exhibitions opening and hence appearing almost out of place in the larger exhibition, that held a surprising degree of resonance. The performative ad hoc nature of the installation of Hasan's work was orchestrated as a means to reflect the way in which Hasan, an Iraqi, ended up living in Delhi as a displaced person due to the consequences of the Gulf War. In one of Hasan's works, which depicts small hand decorated ceramic angels, some of which appear as sculptures in the exhibition, have been superimposed over pictures of monuments in Iraq. The symbolic nature of these angels, both eternal and artificial, hovering over monuments that may well today, after the havoc of war, only live on in image form, speaks of the imagination of displacement and loss.
As a curatorial experiment The Drifters certainly succeeds in finding interesting ways to occupy space and hang pictures on walls, be them vertical or horizontal. However the works in the exhibition itself, while clearly moving across a range of artistic mediums, from digital prints and paint to sculptural installations, performance and video, are, in the context of what we have come to know as contemporary art, largely conventional artistic mediums and methods in themselves. This ultimately makes it difficult for the show as a whole to move into more really experimental realms of artistic and curatorial practices.
Drifters 
Curated by Rahul Battacharya
Al Said Hassan, Anindita Bhattacharya, Kanak Shashi, Kumar Kanti Sen, Megha Joshi,     Nidhi Khurana, Paribartan Mohanty, Pratibha singh, Puja Vaish, Rabindra Patra, Raj Mohanty, Rajib Pani, Saumya Ananthakrishna, Shantanu Lodh, Vinima Gulati and Vinita Dasgupta
December 18  - January 25, 2010
Art Konsult, New Delhi
--------
rahul bhattacharya
managing editor
Art&Deal Magazine, 23, Hauz Khas Village
New Delhi - 110016. Ph. 011- 26531819
www.artanddealmagazine.com
----------------------------------
Can it be Done in Any Corner You Like?
http://theblackyellowarrow.blogspot.com




---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Anoop Kamath <anoop.kamath@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, Mar 14, 2010 at 6:03 PM
Subject: Re: Stop a nuclear disaster
To: Shantanu Lodh <artmaharaj@gmail.com>
Cc: "rahul. bhattacharya" <evilareve@gmail.com>, Anil Dayanand <anildaya@gmail.com>, jayaram poduval <jpoduval@gmail.com>, roy thomas <pulikunnel66@gmail.com>, baalalook@gmail.com




Dear Shantanu,
Please see the MOA March 2010 upload. Drifters review by Alana Hunt is in the review section. http://www.mattersofart.net/
:)ANOOP
On Sat, Mar 13, 2010 at 1:40 PM, Shantanu Lodh <artmaharaj@gmail.com> wrote:




---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <extallur@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, Mar 12, 2010 at 11:16 AM
Subject: Stop a nuclear disaster
To: artmaharaj@gmail.com




Hi ,
Our government is churning out one hazardous bill after another. This time it is a bill called the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage, and it's coming up for a vote in a couple of days.


The bill lets U.S. corporations off the hook for any nuclear accidents they cause on Indian soil. They'd only have to pay a meagre amount, and Indian taxpayers would be stuck paying crores for the nuclear clean up and to compensate the victims.


Without any public debate, the Prime Minister is appeasing American interests and ignoring our safety.


Greenpeace is launching a petition asking the PM to hold a public consultation before introducing the bill.


I have already signed this petition. Can you join me?


http://www.greenpeace.org/india/stop-the-vote2


Thanks!


extallur@gmail.com
You are receiving this email because someone you know sent it to you from the Greenpeace site. Greenpeace retains no information about individuals contacted through its site, and will not send you further messages without your consent -- although your friends could, of course, send you another message.



--
:)ANOOP KAMATH
534, Sector 29.
NOIDA 201301 (Uttar Pradesh)
India
Mob: 9811168775
Tel: 91-120-4210540, 4210539

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

rahul

i dont like the feel of this you can do what you like and think what you wish to, as a curator it is your responsibility to make sure your artist doesnt keep wasting her time in back and forth in receiving an official receipt of her works from the gallery,

you need the works by a certain date to have a show, why not send the challans also at time so we can also just file it and carry on. 

here is where we are even after repeated mails and reminders and calls on the same..

let it be..i dont have time for this kind of emotional baggage i rather be free and paint rather run after you guys for the challans which is any way your responsibility, shut the chapter, this was a head ache any ways, if this cant be done this week i wld like to withdraw from drifters show.

and if you dont waste all you time in thinking and drafting and highlighting these kind of mails may be you can be of some use 

up to you but i wld not get into this kind of shit such a bad feeling 

pratibha

Re: regarding a bit of curation.

Dear Rahul ,
                     Its simple why Pratibha called you, as you are the link between gallery beyond and artists, I dont see any reason why u getting so anxious about such an issue, you took responsibility to deal with 16 artists and this is what dealing is all about.
  Now as Pratibha raised issue and you re-defining curator's job, i would like to put forward some points which i would like to raise, now it depends on you, how u wana address them. because there are certain matter which are out of your control, like why art work dispatched so late when it was decided that it will leave on 22evening?, but rest other things which shows that you were not careful.

1. From the very beginning I have been telling you about my surname spelt wrongly, "sashi" instead of
    "Shashi",
   
I really dont know how loud u need to be, to fetch some attention regarding such an important issue. And  
    then I saw "paribartan's" name as "Paribartab" on Mumbai exhibition poster, I enquired with gallery beyond
    and they said, this is the same list we have received from delhi gallery, now we need to ask who takes
    responsibility for the names not spelt correctly, does it come under curation or not?

2. The second thing, which is really annoying. Gallery Art Konsult asked for the write up and 20 work images for
     the marketing people, i repeatedly asked you, if its just for marketing team not for "catalogue" or wall text,
    and you have made it clear that this was just for the marketing team, I felt good and secured.
         around 24 of Jan i called you and discussed you, that i feel like putting a write up along with my work in
    mumbai, but u suggested me, a write up will make my work too literal, it will block work. Good enough reason, i
    got fully convinced, and chapter closed.
               10 feb evening we all had fun with the photo session, lots of chit-chat, then i was talking to this girl, and
    she started asking me something about my "transition", and i was wondering how she got to know so much 
    about me, i asked her...and she showed me these papers..which attached with curator's note, and there was
    write up which i have given for marketing people, i was shocked to see that, i came and talk to you about 
    this, u simply said sorry...but rahul does that sorry really mean anything to you? for me my identity, and how i
    come out, is very important, and i do that at my own pace, it took me three years to come in terms with things
    to come out in artists circle, and when i asked you that i want to put a write up, that means i wanted to write a
    particular note about this work and how i reach here etc, not just about my "transexuality".....Dude you really 
    need to be bit more sensitive and careful, i think  here you are lacking in your job.

Regards
Kanak
    
On Wed, Feb 17, 2010 at 12:13 PM, rahul bhattacharya <theblackyellowarrow@gmail.com> wrote:
dear all,
just got a call from pratibha regarding mention of some works missing form the consignment note she received from  gallery beyond. the mention of yeshwa's works and one large paper work is not there. 
i was told by pratibha that it was by job to look into this kind of stuff. obviously there is a vacuum in understanding the role of a curator...specially one who dopes not deal with art or make money form the sale of art in his/her curated shows. 
my role is to conceptualize the show and execute the conceptualization in terms of catalogue and display. of course on the side (at a personal level) i would not like my artists to be safe in terms of post sales money and consignment.....but sorry to have to assert that this is not my job.

right from the beginning i was clear where the work was being shown...and then when we had a chance to travel, there was a meeting held to say to what extent i was responsible etc.
what pratibha faces (till now) is a minor problem...one phone call and email away to solve...and am more than willing to help her solve it....but to be told am lacking in my job to solve it is personally unacceptable to me. 

best

rahul


--------
rahul bhattacharya
managing editor
Art&Deal Magazine, 23, Hauz Khas Village
New Delhi - 110016. Ph. 011- 26531819
www.artanddealmagazine.com
----------------------------------
Can it be Done in Any Corner You Like?
http://theblackyellowarrow.blogspot.com

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

regarding a bit of curation.

dear all,
just got a call from pratibha regarding mention of some works missing form the consignment note she received from  gallery beyond. the mention of yeshwa's works and one large paper work is not there. 
i was told by pratibha that it was by job to look into this kind of stuff. obviously there is a vacuum in understanding the role of a curator...specially one who dopes not deal with art or make money form the sale of art in his/her curated shows. 
my role is to conceptualize the show and execute the conceptualization in terms of catalogue and display. of course on the side (at a personal level) i would not like my artists to be safe in terms of post sales money and consignment.....but sorry to have to assert that this is not my job.

right from the beginning i was clear where the work was being shown...and then when we had a chance to travel, there was a meeting held to say to what extent i was responsible etc.
what pratibha faces (till now) is a minor problem...one phone call and email away to solve...and am more than willing to help her solve it....but to be told am lacking in my job to solve it is personally unacceptable to me. 

best

rahul


--------
rahul bhattacharya
managing editor
Art&Deal Magazine, 23, Hauz Khas Village
New Delhi - 110016. Ph. 011- 26531819
www.artanddealmagazine.com
----------------------------------
Can it be Done in Any Corner You Like?
http://theblackyellowarrow.blogspot.com

Monday, February 15, 2010

the drifters: following up

hi vibhu-prema,
it was great being with you guys. hope the goa camp has taken off well. for right now just a small reminder for the show images and consignment notes to the artists. please look into this as soon as you you can.

best

rahul

ps.: the day i left i was told that puja's text has gone for photocopy...please ensure that it is with the artists' statements...and do take care of the fallen words from the wall.


--------
rahul bhattacharya
managing editor
Art&Deal Magazine, 23, Hauz Khas Village
New Delhi - 110016. Ph. 011- 26531819
www.artanddealmagazine.com
----------------------------------
Can it be Done in Any Corner You Like?
http://theblackyellowarrow.blogspot.com

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Future Generation Art Prize: Call for Applications


--------
rahul bhattacharya
managing editor
Art&Deal Magazine, 23, Hauz Khas Village
New Delhi - 110016. Ph. 011- 26531819
www.artanddealmagazine.com
----------------------------------
Can it be Done in Any Corner You Like?
http://theblackyellowarrow.blogspot.com


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: e-Flux <info@mailer.e-flux.com>
Date: Wed, Jan 20, 2010 at 9:21 PM
Subject: Future Generation Art Prize: Call for Applications
To: evilareve@gmail.com






January 20, 2010








Share this announcement on:  Facebook | Delicious | Twitter





Call for applications

The Future Generation Art Prize is a world-wide art prize of 100,000 USD open to all artists up to the age of 35. .

Online application from 18 January till 18 April 2010
http://www.futuregenerationartprize.org

The jurors are:
• Daniel Birnbaum (Sweden) – Director of the Städelschule Art Academy, Frankfurt am Main; Director of the Venice Biennale 2009
• Okwui Enwezor (Nigeria) – Director of Documenta XI; Former Dean of Academic Affairs and Senior Vice President at San Francisco Art Institute
• Yuko Hasegawa (Japan) – Chief Curator of the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (MOT); former Chief Curator of the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa
• Ivo Mesquita (Brazil) – Chief Curator at the Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo; Curator of the 2008 São Paolo Biennial
• Eckhard Schneider (Germany) – General Director of the PinchukArtCentre
• Robert Storr (USA) – Dean of the Yale University School of Art; Director of the Venice Biennale 2007
• Ai Weiwei (China) – artist

20 shortlisted artists will show their work in an exhibition at the PinchukArtCentre. The jury will select one main Prize winner who will receive a total of 100,000 USD (60,000 USD as a cash award, and 40,000 USD toward the production of new work). An additional 20,000 USD will be allotted to fund artist-in-residency programs for up to five other special prize winners. Images of works by all the shortlisted artists will be posted on the PAC website, and members of the public will be invited to vote via the Internet for People's Choice Prize.

The prize is established to discover and provide long-term support for a generation of emerging artists, wherever they may live and work, this unique artist-focused prize aims to make a major contribution toward the production of new work by young artists.

To encourage the assistance of one generation of artists to the next, a group of renowned Mentor Artists has committed its long-term participation in the Prize and will provide in-person counsel and support to the Prize winners. The Mentor Artists are Andreas Gursky, Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons and Takashi Murakami.


Partner platforms:

• LA><ART (Los Angeles, USA), http://www.laxart.org
• Capacete (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), http://www.capacete.net
• Viafarina (Milan, Italy), http://www.viafarini.org
• ArtHub (Shanghai, China), http://www.arthubasia.org
• L'appartement 22 (Rabat, Morocco), http://www.appartement22.com
• Artis - Contemporary Israeli Art Fund (New York, USA / Tel Aviv, Israel) http://www.artisrael.org










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