New digital festival from Bengaluru’s Museum of Art and Photography merges art, learning and melodies
When I was at the College of Fine Arts, MSU, Baroda, the museum was a place where students used to go to play hookah. It was never a sight to behold the beautiful replica of the Dancing Girl of the Indus Valley Civilization, the splendid collection of Chola bronzes or the giant skeleton of a whale hanging from the ceiling. This was only appealing to nerds like me.
Fortunately, things have changed in the last 20 years. Museums are no longer dusty and desolate; They are well-lit, multisensory interactive spaces led by an enthusiastic team of curators and collaborators who are coming up with new ways to engage their audiences. And it is heartening that this change is taking place in both the public and private sectors, working across artistic disciplines.
Internationally, the Louvre and Tate are working with augmented reality to allow for immersive experiences. Recently, Victoria and Albert in London invited visitors to walk down the rabbit hole with them curious alice Exhibition working with virtual reality. In India too, museums such as Bhua Daji Lad (BDL), Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, CSMVS (Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya) and Goa Art Museum have upgraded and updated their approach and programming.
Grammy winner (and recently nominated for the second time) Ricky Kejo
“Museums have become vibrant institutions of learning and entertainment. In India, this potential is only being recognized, and we have a lot more to do,” says Tasneem Mehta, managing trustee of BDL, who added that he “all Age groups have created an extensive cultural complex that includes not only arts and culture, but natural history, environmental and a range of socio-economic disciplines”.
sound check
At the Museum of Art and Photography (MAP) in Bangalore, the experiment is accompanied by music. This weekend, it’s hosting Art is Life: Soundframes, The three-day digital festival – in association with the Berklee College of Music, Boston – will feature more than 25 music-inspired events, including concerts, performances, panel discussions, film talks, educational workshops and exhibitions. It will feature over 65 artists from India and around the world such as Subramania’s Ambi and Bindu Subramaniam, Grammy winner (and recently nominated for the second time) Ricky Cage, the musical genius of IndianRaga, young Hindustani maestro Pandit Sanjeev Abhyankar and Darbari Qawwal. Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya Dargah.
The festival is jointly curated by Kamini Sawhney, Director, MAP, and Annette Philippe, Artistic Director, Berklee India Exchange, and an award-winning musician, educator and art entrepreneur. “Art is at the heart of any community. The digital museum intends to bring together not only the visual arts but its various aspects,” says Sahni, adding that the Art is Life festival, which was launched last year, had received an overwhelming response. “We are celebrating its anniversary with the theme of music as a positive response to the pandemic.”
Annette Philippe, Artistic Director, Berklee India Exchange
MAP will also host five workshops that will include voice therapy, and a section on capturing the contours of the city through its sound (the sound of the ocean in Mumbai, the hustle and bustle of Old Delhi). “We made a public call encouraging producers to work with Ableton Software [a digital audio workstation for both macOS and Windows] This will help them integrate the voices of their cities.” There are entries from Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Delhi.
looking beyond the artifacts
“At MAP we have always been about re-imagining the museum so that it is not only a storehouse of objects, but also of ideas, conversations and interactions. A community cannot be cooperative without harnessing its creative aspect, which is why we must be inclusive in all aspects from folk to classical, popular to traditional. We should help people demystify the hierarchy,” says Sahni.
The idea is one she shares with Philip. “Not only do both of our institutions hope to preserve and maintain cultural dialogue about the arts and through the arts, we both actively engage and welcome community participation in the creation of art and music,” Philip tells me by email. “I believe this is the first of many dynamic collaborations that Berkley will pursue with MAP.” While the entire program is “astonishing”, she concludes that she is particularly excited about Women of the World, Ricky Cage and Sounds of the City.
From 3-5 December. The digital festival is also accessible to the visually impaired and includes Indian Sign Language.
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