Homelands Exhibitions Open in Delhi; Also to Travel Kolkata, Mumbai, Bengaluru

Report by Santanu Ganguly, New Delhi: One of the year’s most anticipated exhibitions, Homelands will travel to four cities (New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Bengaluru) across India in 2013.

The exhibition will open to the public in New Delhi on January 24, 2013 at Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), in Kolkata on March 1 at The Harrington Street Arts Centre, in Mumbai on April 28 at the Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum and in Bengaluru in the last week of June.

Cutting to the heart of 21st century cultural relations, Homelands grapples with the relationship between self and place in a world of transitory identities and contested geographies. Culled from the art collection of the British Council, the exhibition is a unique take on contemporary British art by the Indian curator, Latika Gupta. Including more than 80 works by 28 leading modern and contemporary artists, Homelands excavates the idea of a ‘homeland’ to reveal a rich plurality of meaning; ideas of belonging, alienation, history and memory.

Homelands will roll out a multi-layered program that includes public exhibitions in four major metros (New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Bengaluru), artist talks, seminars, curator-led walks, outreach activities and workshops.

Homelands is supported by an innovative network of public-private partnerships developed by the British Council, and epitomizes a new and exciting funding model for public art in India. Key partners helping to bring the pan-Indian exhibition together include Jaguar, Christie’s and Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited. The outreach program, additionally supported by Outset India, is also focused on developing and cultivating unique, local partnerships and encouraging dialogue and collaboration between Indian and UK institutions.

A private preview of Homelands was held at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) on January 22, 2013. The preview was well attended by art enthusiasts, collectors, artists, gallerists, curators and a number of fashion and business personalities which included names likes Robin Mallick, Mithu Sen, Rajshree Pathy, Anupam Poddar, Girish Shahane, Amol Vadehra, M.K Raina, Feroz Gujral, Mukesh Panika, David Abraham, Kamlesh Rao, T.N. Ninan, Pushkar Shahi, Kamal Chabbra to name a few.

A post preview reception was also held at the British Council Charbagh on January 22. The Homelands post preview reception was well attended by art enthusiasts, collectors, artists, curators, critics, and people from the fashion fraternity which included names like Vishal K Dar, Jeebesh Bagchi, Shuddhabrata Sengupta, Vibha Galhotra, Nida Mahmood, Rahul Chandra, Simon Maidment, Pooja Sood, Rohit Gandhi, Atul Bhalla, Shivan and Naresh, Ram Rahman, Surbhi Modi, Dadi Pudumjee amongst others. The night included music by Wild City DJ and a surprise dance performance by Danceworx.

Works by 28 of the world’s leading contemporary artists from the British Council Collection will be showcased at the exhibition.

Angus Boulton | Fabien Cappello | Lisa Cheung | Nathan Coley | Jeremy Deller | Suki Dhanda | Jimmie Durham | Paul Graham | Graham Gussin | Mona Hatoum | Anthony Haughey | Tim Hetherington | Susan Hiller | David Hockney | Anthony Lam | Langlands & Bell | Richard Long | Rachel Lowe | Haroon Mirza | Raymond Moore | Cornelia Parker | Martin Parr | Grayson Perry | Zineb Sedira | George Shaw | David Shrigley | Bob and Roberta Smith | Gillian Wearing.

From this esteemed group of contemporary artists, there are 8 Turner Prize winners and nominees namely Jeremy Deller (winner, 2004), Richard Long (winner, 1989), Grayson Perry (winner, 2003), Gillian Wearing (winner, 1997), Mona Hatoum (nominee, 1995), Langlands & Bell (nominee, 2004), George Shaw (nominee, 2011) and Cornelia Parker (nominee, 1997). Tim Hetherington was the winner of World Press Photo in 2007.

Four of the showcased artists are being invited to visit the exhibition in India, including Mona Hatoum, Anthony Haughey, Zineb Sedira and Suki Dhanda. During their stay, the artists will engage with audiences, give public talks and conduct workshops.

“The Homelands exhibition will showcase the very best art being produced by leading contemporary artists in Britain – a fitting juxtaposition to our international sales of works by their South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art contemporaries. The exhibition is an opportunity for us to lend our support to cultural and educational opportunities which are important milestones in the Indian cultural agenda for 2013”, said Menaka Kumari-Shah, Christie’s Head of India.

“Jaguar cars are renowned the world over for their contemporary designs and stunning great looks and I believe that art can have the same impact on people's lives. The Homelands exhibition will provide the Indian art connoisseurs with an opportunity to access great work from globally recognised artists, and we are delighted to support that” - said Rohit Suri, VP, Jaguar Land Rover India.

Feroze Gujral of Director, Outset India said, “Outset India was set up to provide a platform for contemporary art in India. By supporting the extensive Homelands outreach programme - which includes workshops, public talks, and education initiatives – we will be able to offer much needed support to both artists and arts organisations across the country, during this truly exciting time for contemporary art in India.”.

“Today, many of us move across national boundaries. We are born in one country, we make another our home. In the criss-crossing of political, social and cultural borders, we live our lives through hyphenated identities: belonging here and there; inhabiting multiple places - both physical and metaphorical. Geographies that can be mapped as inter/national boundaries and as places conjured up by through remembering and imagining. What constitutes a homeland? Is it ethnicity? Language? Religion? Customs and beliefs? Are homelands those in which our ancestors were born? What of outsiders who live and make other lands their homes? Where do we really belong? Where is it that we hope to one day return?” said Latika Gupta, Curator.

Rob Lynes, Director, British Council India, said “Homelands is the British Council’s flagship arts project of 2013. It’s exciting because it introduces work by 28 brilliant British artists to India; because it will reach tens of thousands of people, especially young people, with the best contemporary art; and because it demonstrates the value of international collaboration, with an Indian curator Latika Gupta offering a unique slant on a British art collection. But most of all, it’s exciting because it asks such fundamental questions about a world that’s changing in front of our eyes, about the sometimes bewildering identity crisis that, for so many of us, constitutes modern life. Homelands demonstrates that art can help us learn about the world around us: but also, that it can help us learn about ourselves.”