A wider canvas for public art

02 May,2014 09:31 AM IST |   |  The GUIDE Team

2014 is being hailed as the year of public art, according to Mumbai’s city galleries and museums who have lined up big shows for aficionados. the guide picks the best shows to plot on your art itinerary



A file pic of a mural painting outside Naval Dockyard, Mumbai. Though the city has traditionally been a hub for Indian contemporary art, public art remains limited to a few venues. PICs/AFP

The National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), Mumbai will be showcasing some never-seen-before paintings of the Indian artist Amrita Sher-Gil by May end. Perhaps, one of the biggest shows by the gallery in 2014, the show, titled, Amrita Sher-Gil: The Passionate Quest, is curated by Yashodhara Dalmia and will have around 100 paintings including works like Brahmacharis and the Bride's Toilet. Watch out for outreach programmes including dedicated gallery walks and film screenings to re-introduce the artist to Mumbaikars.


A self-portrait of artist Amrita Sher-Gil. Pic courtesy/NGMA

ON May, 2014
TIME 11 am to 6 pm
(except Mondays and
national holidays)
AT National Gallery of Modern Art, Sir Cowasji Jehangir Public Hall, MG Road, Fort.
CALL 22881969

Experimentations with presentation
A couple of months ago, Gallery Maskara, located on the SBS Road in Colaba, had put a video art installation on display. The installation, The Trophy by Ruben Belllinkx, had six projectors screening the same image from six different angles.


Pic courtesy/Gallery Maskara

Sakshi Gallery: Surendran Nair
Look out for solo show by senior artist Surendran Nair, whose surrealistic works explore myth using symbols and tales from Indian and Western mythologies. Also planned are solo shows by Samanta Batra Mehta and Fariba Alam, and works of recipients of the Arte Laguna prize, later this year.


Hand to Mouth by Surendran Nair. File Pic

ON May 2014 onwards
TIME 11 am to 6 pm
AT Sakshi Art Gallery, 6/19, Grants Building, Arthur Bunder Road, Colaba.
CALL 66103424

CSMVS: Alice Boner
The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) will host sculptures, paintings and photographs of Swiss painter, sculptor and art historian, Alice Boner. The show slated for November, will feature the collection of Zurich's Rietberg Museum. Boner's link with India dates to the 1920s when she travelled with Uday Shankar.


A picture of Uday Shankar photographed by Alice Boner. pic courtesy/Rietberg Museum

ON November, 2014
TIME 10.15 am to 6 pm AT 159-161, MG Road, Kala Ghoda. CALL 22844519

Gallery Maskara: Max Streicher
Known for curating shows of lesser-popular mediums like video, Gallery Maskara will be hosting Canadian artist, Max Streicher, after June. Streicher is known for his volatile (floating) sculptures made from items like nylon, paper, vinyl and tight rope, etc. The nature of his works lend them a very interactive character, making them an apt form of public art.

Floating Giants by Max Streicher. Pic courtesy/Max streicher

Some of his most popular works include Endgame (Coulrophobia), Architecture of Cloud and Ashwamedh among others. The gallery will also host works of artist Mansoor Ali opening on May 8 and T Venkana's new series of paintings, later this year.

ON Post June 2014
TIME 11 am to 7 pm
AT Gallery Maskara, SBS Road, 3rd Pasta Lane, Railway Colony, Badhwar Park, Apollo Bunder, Colaba. CALL 22023056
LOG ON TO www.gallerymaskara.com

Art Musings: Jayasri Burman
Art Musings have curated a special show of works by the Indian artist Jayasri Burman in the month of November. The show, however, will open at the Jehangir Art Gallery, and after 10 days will move to the Art Musings gallery.

ON November, 2014
TIME 11 am to 7 pm
AT Art Musings, 1 Admiralty Building,Colaba Cross Lane, Colaba Causeway,
Cuffe Parade.
CALL 22163339

Tarq: Zishaan Akbar Latif
Tarq art gallery's photography show, 95 Mani Villa, is a personal memoir between artist Zishaan Akbar Latif and his grandfather. These moments were captured in the last three years of his grandfather's life, as it attempts to gauge this personality in Latif's family.


A photograph from the show 95 Mani Villa. Pic courtesy/Tarq

ON June 2014
AT Tarq, F35/36 Dhanraj Mahal, CSM Marg, Apollo Bunder, Colaba.
TIME 11 am to 7 pm
CALL 66150424
LOG ON TO www.tarq.in

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