Walking down the narrow bylanes of Mumbai’s Pali Hill in October, one stumbled upon a curious scene painted on the side of a cobbler's shop. It was about the opening of an art space—the guerilla marketing for the launch of Art and Charlie in one of Bandra’s busiest but also hippest neighbourhoods did not go unnoticed. The concept of having art encapsulated within four walls seems to be slowly getting dated, especially as a string of art-related events take it beyond the white cube—such as the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, an international exhibition of contemporary art that takes place every two years, to India’s first museum biennale at Bihar.
The size and location of a space or site are hardly a predisposition, as increasing footfalls at festivals such as the Irregular Arts Fair in New Delhi show. The recently concluded AF Weekender which was held from 23rd to 25th September, was an example of experiential events that used both digital and in-person platforms to unite art lovers and galleries across the country. A product of India’s first visual arts discovery platform, Art Fervour creates user-friendly experiences to make the arts accessible to all. Started last year as a virtual affair, AF Weekender now has over 60 participants from across the art world. What is unique about their collaborative approach is that they grew as an institution by building a community on social media platforms, especially on Instagram.
One might argue that art has always been accessible to all in India, given our historic community of artisans and handicrafts maestros and longstanding tradition of patrons and benefactors.
Historically, South Asia has seen less documentation and more storytelling, and art has been a way for us to bridge the past with the future. Indigenous art forms are still ever-present and festivals like Durga Puja in Kolkata have recently been included in UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. But other examples of art in public spaces in the Indian context can also be seen in institutions such as the Mehrangarh Fort and Museum by the royal family of Jodhpur, which was established in 1972 by the 36th Custodian of Marwar-Jodhpur, H H Maharaja Gaj Singhji, to make the fort come alive for visitors, to initiate cross-collaboration and invite new ideas.