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Bihar Museum Biennale to kick off in August

The renowned Brazilian modernist architect, Oscar Niemeyer, skillfully captured the inherent beauty of Brasilia by integrating Costa’s meticulous urban layout with distinct buildings that exude functional, rhythmic structures, intricately designed facades, and minimalist, clean, and linear designs…reports Asian Lite News

The second edition of the Bihar Museum Biennale will be inaugurated on August 7 at the Bihar Museum in Patna.

Organised by the state government’s Department of Arts, Culture and Youth Affairs, the first-ever Museum Biennale in the country and the world was opened in March 2021 in a hybrid format providing a gateway to the richness and treasures of Indian museums and also bringing together a highlight of key collections from various museums across the world.

The biennale aims to sensitise the public to the importance and significance of museum culture in India and facilitate an understanding of the Indian culture, building a strong sense of identity, nationhood, and the self. Dr Alka Pande will be the chief curator for the forthcoming event.

As a Curtain Raiser to the Biennale, the museum will present a photography exhibition titled “Brasilia 60+ and the Construction of Modern Brazil” from June 21 to July 22. This exhibition pays tribute to the notable achievements of Brasilia, the capital city of Brazil, as it celebrates 200 years of independence.

Brasilia, an idea that emerged in the early 19th century, gained immense significance over time and was eventually inscribed in Brazil’s constitution. In 1956, President Juscelino Kubitschek recognised this idea and selected Lucio Costa’s urban plan, the “Plano Piloto”, as the winning concept for the new capital.

The renowned Brazilian modernist architect, Oscar Niemeyer, skillfully captured the inherent beauty of Brasilia by integrating Costa’s meticulous urban layout with distinct buildings that exude functional, rhythmic structures, intricately designed facades, and minimalist, clean, and linear designs.

The exhibition showcases the artistic documentation of Brasilia, capturing its unique character, essence, and architectural intricacies. It features a collection of photographs that depict symbolic palaces such as the Parliament, the President’s residence, the President’s office, the Ministries, and a significant number of apartment buildings. These architectural marvels paved the way for the capital’s transfer from Rio de Janeiro to Brasilia in 1960, forever shaping the urban landscape of Brazil.

Another exhibition titled ‘Nature Strikes Back’ by the Ambassador of France to India, Emmanuel Lenain will be on view from June 22 to July 21 inviting visitors to explore the darker side of nature and its delicate relationship with human existence. While documenting the deterioration of the environment, the haunting beauty of his images captivates viewers, inviting them to contemplate the intricate balance between man and nature.

The exhibition features a series of evocative black-and-white photographs, each offering a unique perspective on the decaying remnants of our environment. Both exhibitions have been curated by Dr Pande.

Anjani Kumar Singh, Director General of Bihar Museum, talking bout the forthcoming biennale said, “We promise a transformative experience as this new iteration aims to surpass its predecessor, presenting a better-enriched form to connect people, connect cultures, and interrogating museums. With a broadened scope of programming, the grand event will commence with the prestigious G20 exhibition, catapulting the biennale onto the global stage of artistic excellence.”

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Arts & Culture Lite Blogs

Nature, life reflect in Alam’s art in Biennale

Shikh Sabbir Alam, a contemporary artist from Bangladesh, has now recreated this incident, which received worldwide attention…reports Asian Lite News

An emotive artistic work that has an underlying reference to violence stemming from man-animal confrontations, exemplified by the brutal killing of a pregnant elephant by feeding it with explosive-laden pineapple, is getting noticed at the Kochi Muziris Biennale.

The tusker met with a horrific death at Ambalappara in Kerala’s Palakkad district on May 27, 2020, after eating the fruit filled with country-made crackers which exploded in its mouth.

Man-animal conflict confrontation gets noted at Kochi Biennale

The blast was so powerful that the poor animal ran around the village in searing pain, unable to eat for days.

Finally, it entered a river and stood there with its trunk and mouth immersed in water till it breathed its last two days later.

Shikh Sabbir Alam, a contemporary artist from Bangladesh, has now recreated this incident, which received worldwide attention.

Shikh Sabbir has put up a total of six acrylic paintings on display at the Biennale, including the works about the Garden; Magic House 1,2,3; Elephants and Fruit; and White Rabbit.

The creations which showcase the flora and fauna from tortoises to elephants and fruits resemble much like a dream. At the same time, it is mystical as well.

“My pictures resemble the vision that slowly materialiaes before you when you open your eyes after a long sleep. The attempt is to guide viewers through the display of pictures using pastel colours to experience the wonders being depicted on the canvas. The colour of a flower or a fruit is enough to inspire original creations,” said Alam.

Nature and life are the main elements reflected in Alam’s creations for the Kochi Biennale.

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Biennale raises thought-provoking questions on life and society

The fifth edition of the Biennale which started on December 23, is set to conclude on April 10 and is on the verge of breaking its previous record of 6 lakh visitors in the previous editions…reports Asian Lite News

Amazing artworks at the Kochi Muziris Biennale raise pertinent and thought-provoking questions on life and society at a global level, says T.M. Krishna, noted Carnatic vocalist, composer, and author.

“The Biennale poses difficult questions about society, our choices in the way we live… I think the inspiration comes from the difficult questions that many artists have asked. The state of the world today is being brought out through the personal reflections of these artists coming from different social, political, and geographical conditions,” said Krishna after visiting the Biennale venues, here.

The fifth edition of the Biennale which started on December 23, is set to conclude on April 10 and is on the verge of breaking its previous record of 6 lakh visitors in the previous editions.

“Creations that communicate with each other and those which do not, provoke thoughts in equal measure. The element of contrast found between contemporary and historical arts is another important feature. The artworks at the Biennale take the limits of imagination beyond all anticipation. The most important highlight of the Biennale is the inclusion of everyone without any kind of discrimination,” he added.

“I think what’s really struck me is the number of videos or moving picture presentations this year. It’s far more than what I have seen before, which I think is so interesting. The multimedia mix of visual imaginaries, moving pictures, texts, and sound. I think that was a pleasant and interesting surprise. The way narratives have been presented is beyond just paintings, sketching, or etchings. I think to me, that’s what struck me, this entire fluidity between different forms of visual media, that’s quite a highlight to me,” Krishna reflected.

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Arts & Culture Lite Blogs

Echoes of Tibetan freedom at Biennale

Tsundue was in the limelight in January 2002 when he displayed a banner with the words “Free Tibet: China, Get Out” and a Tibetan flag by climbing the scaffolding outside the hotel in Mumbai where People’s Republic of China Premier Zhu Rongji stayed…reports Asian Lite News

“Every evening I return to my rented room, but I am not going to die this way. That has got to be some way out here” read aloud poet-activist and Tibetan refugee Tenpin Tsundue from one of his poems.

Tsundue said this while taking part in ‘Let’s Talk’, an interactive poetry reading session organised by Kashi Townhouse, a Kochi-Muziris Biennale Invitations Programme.

The wandering poet who combines activism and academia to share his thoughts on exile, writing, resistance, culture, and identity, says independence is only a status that is different from freedom.

“In 70 years of Tibetan freedom struggle, we have realized that we need to think for the world, not just one country. When it comes to the Tibetan freedom movement, we know that it may take time but we are confident. Be it fifty or a hundred years, we will continue to fight. We also know that we are not going to lose anything anymore and we will return to Tibet, one day,” said Tsundue.

He went on to add that Tibetans keep their culture and identity alive from generation to generation through stories and art on Tibet.

“We sustain our life in the land we left behind through the elders’ tales. I lived in a refugee camp on the edges of the Sathyamangalam forest in Karnataka but our lives were filled with vivid images of snow mountains, apples, peaches, apricots, and a magical land named Tibet. This continues in our refugee camps even now. We may have been born a refugee but we are destined to be free,” he asserted.

Tibetan freedom also reverberates at Kochi Biennale.

Tsundue was in the limelight in January 2002 when he displayed a banner with the words “Free Tibet: China, Get Out” and a Tibetan flag by climbing the scaffolding outside the hotel in Mumbai where People’s Republic of China Premier Zhu Rongji stayed.

Of all the places he travelled, Tenzin finds peace in Kerala.

“Coming to Kerala is always a romantic trip for me. Here, I see people at ease in their own land and language. It relaxes me and gives me hope. As a refugee, my tribe is forced to learn multiple languages for survival and none could be called one’s own,” said the wandering poet.

Kashi Townhouse is currently showcasing a project by Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam in collaboration with Natasha Ginwala titled Shadow Circus: A Personal Archive of Tibetan Resistance (1957-1974).

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Arts & Culture Kerala Lite Blogs

Zina Saro Wiwa recalls inspiring memories of her father

The illustration comprises five segments which symbolically reflect the different faces of the cultural and social conditions in the lives of the minority tribal sect Ogonis, who are natives of the Niger river valley in the South of Nigeria.…reports Asian Lite News

A contemporary art illustration by the daughter of noted writer and environmental-human rights activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, who was hanged by the Nigerian military dictatorship nearly three decades back, raising inspiring memories of her father is among the notable works on display at the fifth edition of the ongoing Kochi Muziris Biennale, here.

Zina Saro-Wiwa is a firm follower of her father who was martyred on November 10, 1995, for his uncompromising loyalty towards nature and the exploited.

This is evident in the illustration ‘Holy Star Boys’.

The illustration comprises five segments which symbolically reflect the different faces of the cultural and social conditions in the lives of the minority tribal sect Ogonis, who are natives of the Niger river valley in the South of Nigeria.

The Niger river valley is notorious for the destruction that came as a result of extreme environmental pollution and exploitation.

Zina brings out the condition of Niger river valley inhabitants through two human forms bearing the mask of the Ogoni people, resembling that of a deer, through her work ‘Holy Star Boys’, many varied notions and intuitions take shape in the minds of the viewers.

The illustration in Lightbox C-print provokes thoughts on the impact that modernization has on traditional culture, the dilution it causes, the dual standards, estrangement, and the universal biological principles.

“Holy Star Boys’ is a blend of those estranged in their homeland,” says Zina Saro-Wiwa.

While the memory of Ken Saro-Wiwa lives on through his work as an environmental-human rights activist, poet, writer, and journalist, daughter Zina has attained fame through her video installations, documentaries, music videos, and experimental films.

A former journalist with the BBC, the 47-year-old carries on her activities based out of Brooklyn.

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Africa News Gallery

Dakar Biennale

Senegalese President Macky Sall (L, front) visits the China Pavilion of the Dakar Biennale of African Contemporary Art in Dakar, Senegal, May 19, 2022. The 14th Dakar Biennale of African Contemporary Art kicked off on May 19. China participated in the biennale as the guest country of honor for the first time.

(Xinhua/Wang Zizheng)

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