REVISITING THE 10 YEAR FEAST
Kiran Nadar Museum of Art Noida re-opens with, Narrating from the Museum Archives and Collection: 10 years of KNMA
It was a slightly overcast morning when on the 13th of July the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art in Noida, threw open its gates to visitors once more! The museum is of course keeping in mind social distancing, masking, sanitizing and the gathering of only small groups of 5 to 8 people at a time. In respect to health and safety requirements, there are strict Covid protocols in place to ensure the wellbeing of visitors at the Noida location. The Museum will be open Tuesday to Friday, in accordance with weekend lockdown as proposed by the state government.
On view at the museum is the exhibition, Narrating from the Museum Archives and Collection- 10 years of KNMA. Celebrating a decade in existence in 2020, this extraordinary exhibition was cut short due to the various lockdowns. This is another chance to catch it, and enjoy an extraordinary glimpse into the KNMA archives.
This exhibition itself offers a snapshot of KNMA’s archive and collection, built over the course of ten years with very careful consideration by renowned collector, Founder and Chairperson, Kiran Nadar. Her contribution to the art world has helped realize her vision of providing a platform to recognize talented artists, allowing them to access larger audiences and build appreciation for their artworks within India and abroad.
“After the devastating second wave, we are so grateful to be able to open our doors once again to continue our exhibition ‘Narrating from the Museum Archives and Collection – 10 years of KNMA,’ says director Kiran Nadar. “We hope that audiences take advantage of this and come by to visit and view the art at the museum. I personally feel that the act of experiencing art can provide an opportunity for calm and reflection. Something no doubt many of us are searching for after the upheaval and lockdown of the last few months,” she adds.
Sponsored by the Shiv Nadar Foundation, KNMA Noida is focused on bridging the gap between art and the public and fostering a museum-going culture in India. KNMA aims to become a place for confluence, dialogue and collaboration through its curatorial initiatives and exhibitions, school and college workshops, art appreciation discourses, symposiums, and public programs.
This exhibition includes the work of renowned Modern artists like J. Sultan Ali, Ranbir Kaleka, V.S. Gaitonde, S.H. Raza, Ram Kumar, Akbar Padamsee, F.N. Souza, Tyeb Mehta, M.F. Husain, Krishen Khanna, Ida Kar, K. P. Krishnakumar, Surendran Nair, Himmat Shah, N. N. Rimzon and many more.
Also on display are contemporary artists like Navin Thomas whose weather report in three parts features a phantom orchestra, G. R. Iranna, whose installation of the Buddhist Padukas titled Naavu (We Together) was displayed at the 58th Venice Biennale, in 2019 can be viewed in a different configuration. Alongside are works by A Balasubramaniam from his Body as Shell Series and artist Jitish Kallat’s works that explore many processes, themes and ideas born of the interaction of the self and the universe to name a few.
Video works by artists like Pushpamala N. and Clair Arni, Sonia Khurana, a stunning installation by Nalini Malani, titled Twice Upon a Time, prints by Anupam Sud and works by Anju Dodiya, and Rekha Rodwittiya besides others.
“What is exciting about viewing the physical exhibition is not just the 10-year collection, but also Jayashree Chakravarty single monumental work – Unfolding’s: The Route Map of Experience that is in the adjacent space,” says Karode, Director and Chief Curator of KNMA indicating that work will be there on display for another two more weeks. Chakravarty was transiting from painting on the fixed boundaries of a canvas. “She was finding it limiting to work on the canvas, and so she had to invent or devise a way to have a continuous surface, like a wall. She worked on pieces of paper and fabric a composite of it, glued together, superimposed and layered together, which then become resilient and firm and stand as a structure, like a wall…” says Karode, who has previously curated the practice of Jayashree Chakravarty at the Musée des arts asiatiques, Nice, and at the Musee Guimet in Paris.
If one is unable to visit the physical exhibition one can visit the collection virtually at VIRTUAL TOURS | Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (knma.in) Also one can view the rest of the collection at www.knma.in/
Text by Georgina Maddox
Image courtesy: Kiran Nadar Museum of Art
Find more about KNMA and Artists:
https://www.knma.in/narrating-museum-archives-and-collection
https://www.knma.in/knma-noida
https://www.knma.in/artist/sonia-khurana
https://irannagr.com
