THE FOURTH EDITION OF THE KOCHI-MUZIRIS BIENNALE IS CURATED BY EMINENT ARTIST ANITA DUBE. THAT’S THE WAY SHE SEES IT!
In its title, the Biennale is an invocation of the latent cosmopolitan spirit of the contemporary metropolis, Kochi, as well as its mythical past - the ancient port of Muziris, a centre of trade and cultural exchange that is still an active archaeological site. In spirit, the Biennale seeks to explore resonances of this past alongside the pluralities of the present in the current global context to posit alternatives to dominant political and cultural discourses. Kochi-Muziris Biennale is an invitation of dialogue for new aesthetics and politics -rooted in its socio-geographical setting, but receptive to winds blowing in from other worlds.
ANITA DUBE - Born in Lucknow in 1958, Anita Dube completed her BA (History) from Delhi University in 1979 and her MVA (Art Criticism) from the Faculty of Fine Arts, Maharaja Sayajirao University, Baroda in 1982. As a member of Radical Painters and Sculptors Association, she wrote the manifesto of the seminal exhibition ‘Questions and Dialogue’ in 1987. Dube is the co-founder and board member of KHOJ International Artists’ Association, and has contributed texts to many publications on contemporary art. Anita lives and works in Gr. Noida, India.
The fourth edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale is curated by eminent artist Anita Dube. Her appointment as curator, unanimously decided upon by an Artistic Advisory Committee put together by the Kochi Biennale Foundation at the beginning of last year, stays with the Biennale’s tradition of being an exhibition helmed by an art practitioner.
On curating an exhibition of this scale, Dube notes: “My earliest intuitive vision for this edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale to explore the possibilities for a non-alienated life has remained with me. The need to listen, think, and learn with each other, particularly voices from the margins—of women, of the queer community, the oppressed castes, the whispers and signs of nature—with a spirit of freedom and comradeship is vital. In both the exhibition and the carefully designed interactive spaces, I hope the incredible range of exhibiting artists and visitors will become active participants and co-producers of the Biennale as a knowledge laboratory.”
As part of her research and curatorial process, Dube visited a total of 29 countries where she was hosted by a wide array of arts institutions and independent supporters of the Biennale. Her artist list, reflects the dynamic range of practises and conversations she shared along the way.
THE KOCHI BIENNALE FOUNDATION (KBF) is a non-profit charitable trust engaged in promoting art & culture and educational activities in India; primary amongst them the hosting of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale. KBF works around the year to strengthen contemporary art infrastructure and to broaden public access to art across India. The Kochi Biennale Foundation is also engaged in the conservation of heritage properties and monuments and the upliftment of traditional forms of art and culture. KBF was founded in 2010 by artists Bose Krishnamachari and Riyas Komu.
Seeks to invoke the cosmopolitan spirit of the modern metropolis of Kochi and its mythical past, Muziris, create a platform that introduce contemporary international visual art theory and practice to India.
Traveling from EU to India for Ayurveda
Foreign nationals as individual tourist will be able to travel to India from 15 November 2021. India has created air bubble arrangement for EU (Schengen area) with Germany, France and Netherland. Let us help you to find a way back to India.
At some point, everyone must encounter life, what we in India call ‘ayus’. My first experience with real life came from meeting with various spiritual teachers. After many years, I found out that the best piece of wisdom I had learnt was; “Do not hurt yourself…”
Narendranath is the guardian of a dying heritage. At his tiny shop in Fort Cochin, shrunken in the course of time, he reigns as the devoted practitioner of an age-old system of medicine, a rich and valuable legacy left with him by his forefathers.
Diwali is the festival of lights, it spiritually signifies the victory of light over darkness, good over evil, knowledge over ignorance, and hope over despair. It is is celebrated by Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs and some Buddhists.
Cliff View Ayurveda Retreat is built in the Bauhaus style, which aims to reunite fine art and functional design, creating practical objects with the soul of artworks. The resort embrace the philosophy of traditional Ayurveda in modern style.
Fishermen Rituals In Kerala I.
Fisherfolk in Kerala come from three different religious groups, Hindus, Muslims and Christians. Each of the groups has its own social organisation and mostly occupies separate places in a typical fishing village, although they do share some commonalties.
From the interconnected backwaters, the forests of Wayanad, the beaches of Alleppey, the temples of Thrissur, and the streets of Kochi, Kerala is right the place with the right traditions to embody what we’ve come to know as Human by Nature.
01: Ayurveda in Travancore Kingdom
If you expect stories which starts: Once upon a time, there was a princess... stop reading. Her Highness Princess Gouri Parvathi Bayi of the Travancore Royal Family will introduce us very modern and open minded view on today's Kerala society and ayurveda.
Malayalam Actresses & Raja Ravi Varma's Paintings
In a befitting tribute to one of India’s greatest painters, Raja Ravi Varma, a Chennai-based photographer G. Venket Ram has recreated 12 of Varma’s iconic paintings into photographs, in line with the theme of celebrating the spirit of Indian Womanhood.
NAVARATRI
Festival of Nine Goddesses
Navaratri is a nine night festival that honors the Mother Goddess in all her manifestations. The worship, accompanied by fasting, takes place in the mornings. Evenings are for feasting and dancing. Each day has a different ritual associated with it.
A journey in to an ancient world of India, divided in 10 short-films. It was not only a journey to India but more a journey in to another world. For some reason I was literally falling in to an unknown world touched by all that beautiful things going on in this world.
Deities associated with sacred forests transformed and evolved according to different historical eras. It is believed that the main original forest deity was Mezguasche (Forest-lady). Mezguasche was responsible for the forest and fauna.
The human spirit has the extraordinary capacity to find positivity during hardships. Some have found it in reading, others in cooking or gardening. Dear Future Me, is a virtual time capsule on social media that lets us look back and remember the good.
Narendranath is the guardian of a dying heritage. At his tiny shop in Fort Cochin, shrunken in the course of time, he reigns as the devoted practitioner of an age-old system of medicine, a rich and valuable legacy left with him by his forefathers.
RISHIKESH: Breath Of Himalayas
Rishikesh, a town in the foothills of the himalayas. It's a pilgrimage place since thousands of years, where the yogi's gather before they continue their journey in to the mountains on their path to the ultimate liberation.
02: Circassian’s Belief System
Since time immemorial, the Circassian native tribes did not follow a script or a holy book, nor erected praying temples, but rather, they have formed an unwritten philosophy based on their collective outlook on life, and worshiped in the arms of nature.
