A new digital collection promotes visual artists from South India to gain a foothold in the art market
An artist and his efforts to create space for his peers lay the foundation for A Moxy Tale, a digital collection promoting visual artists from South India.
Now, in its early stages, the platform seeks to train spotlights on South Indian practices, especially from Tamil Nadu, and doubles as a digital space for performances that connoisseurs can browse through and support. option can be selected.
Chennai-based artist and curator Moksha Kumar is behind it. Shape, architecture, and art have been constant companions to Moksha, and so A Moxy Tale, feels like a natural destination to her.
“My focus was not only on providing space for others, but also on championing the arts,” says the artist, who has a BFA in painting from the Pratt Institute, New York, after which he pursued a degree in art history at Maharaja Sayajirao University. gained expertise. Why Baroda? He is currently a practicing artist at Lalit Kala Akademi, Chennai.
During his years in New York he realized that Indian art needed space – “Even today, the Asian market is not recognized. There will definitely be a push,” says Moksha.
After interacting with artists in South India, he found that although he has expertise, marketing is an intimidating process for many.
This aspect is not included in art education. He believes this to be one of the biggest drawbacks of India’s art market. So she decided to create a collection especially for artists who weren’t getting the steam they needed. This prompted him to focus on South India. “We can see that artists have a unique voice. But expressing that unique voice requires a certain expertise in communication.”
A Moxie Tale, conceptualized earlier this year, seeks to bridge these gaps. “I started visiting studios and talking to artists about specialties of their work,” she continues.
“The distinction is made based on how experimental they are and how much they want to push themselves. When I curate, I automatically see how these artists approach their work and their philosophy. are.”
She points to examples. “Artist Kumarasan Selvaraj does the paperwork and you wouldn’t expect paper to be used the way he does: layering paper and patterns to create geometric structures. Gurunathan Govindan applies pigment onto canvas to create a texture.” use – and in turn an emotional connection with the audience – as contrasting colors are found.”
“There is also an educational aspect. When a person looks at the medium, they are curious to know about the artists who use these mediums. I want to include actors with neurodivers (those on the autistic spectrum) and there are three on stage right now,” Moksha says.
Priyanka Muthuraman, a Chennai-based artist specializing in sculpture and public art featured in the collection, says, “My main aim is to integrate art and architecture. Such websites are especially essential for artists who are just starting out. the fact that any [a practising artist of this generation] Really thinking about your teammates, makes it important and personal.”
Moksha believes that innovation in marketing can change the entire art landscape in Tamil Nadu.
Will the initiative see physical space someday? Moksh says that right now his focus is on building trust and enabling community building. But having said that, physical space isn’t entirely out of the question.
Visit www.moxie-tales.com
.