Malayali artists to set the tone for Biennale-THE HINDU

Deceased maverick sculptor K.P. Krishnakumar will top a list of seven Keralite artists featured in the upcoming edition of the Kochi Muziris Biennale.

An assemblage of masterpieces by Krishnakumar (1958-89), who led the pan-Indian radical art movement, will be on show in the fourth edition of the art event, getting under way on December 12. The 108-day event overlaps with the 30th death anniversary of the Kuttipuram-born Krishnakumar, who had led a Radical Group that attempted an art revolution in the 1980s.

Anita Dube, curator of the edition, was associated with that famed Kerala-Baroda movement, which denounced commodification of art and sought to forcefully address its political as well as aesthetic issues. “It seemed natural to me to have a fantastic group of Kerala-based artists in the Biennale. There is such great talent in the State,” says the Lucknow-born Dube, an alumnus of the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda.

She recalls the “immense pleasure” she felt in meeting and talking with Kerala-based artists as part of her curatorial assignment ahead of KMB 2018. “Each of them is working with utmost care and rigor for their projects,” she adds. The fourth edition has 94 artist-projects exhibited at 10 venues till March 29 next year. A sculpture of Krishnakumar’s was exhibited in the inaugural Biennale (2012) at Durbar Hall Gallery, Ernakulam.

The Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF) says that the Biennale has been nurturing both the aesthetics and infrastructure of contemporary arts in Kerala since the first edition. “This has meant developing strong bonds with young as well as established artists from the State,” notes Bose Krishnamachari, KBF president. “We foster a network of art institutions and provide talents a platform to showcase their work on an international platform,” he says.

Among the Malayali artists this time is Satheesh P.R. As a painter of landscapes, Satheesh says his images are no mere representation of nature but interpretations of the world around him.

Vinu V.V., a graduate in sculpture from RLV College of Fine Arts, Thripunithura, often works around caste injustices and violence. “I don’t believe in posturing on taking positions,” he says.

A fourth Malayali presence is Oorali, a music collective that travels around in a bus to engage various communities.

Among the younger lot, Vipin Dhanurdharan is a Kochi-based artist associated with the foundation since the first Biennale.

Another Kerala artist is Santha K.V., co-founder of TASARA of upstate Malabar. Dedicated to creative weaving, the 1989-founded centre based at Beypore near Kozhikode endeavours to deliver a contemporary touch to this age-old art.

Aryakrishnan, who was a curator for the previous two editions of the Students’ Biennale, is a Malayali based in Delhi, where she researches and works.

Experimental filmmaker-writer Mochu as well as artists Jitish Kallat, Annu Palakunnathu Matthew, K.P. Jayasankar, and Veda Thozhur Kolleri are also participants of Kerala origin at KMB 2018.