Works by over 350 students of 55 art schools from across the country will be featured at the Students' Biennale (SB), an event running parallel to the third edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, that is scheduled to begin from December 12 this year.
A core art educational initiative by Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF) to promote contemporary art practice in India, SB in its second edition will serve as a platform for aspiring artists to showcase their works to an audience of roughly half a million people.
It will be inaugurated on December 13 by C Raveendranath, Minister for Education, Government of Kerala, and will be hosted across seven venues in historic Fort Kochi.
As part of the initiative, 15 emerging curators reached out to art schools throughout the country, "to encourage art students to reflect on their practices and showcase their works on a international stage".
"The SB channels the energies of a global art event into the art education system, challenging students to go beyond the constraints of both curriculum and exhibition," organisers said.
The curators for SB this year, who were selected by mentors like Bose Krishnamachari, Riyas Komu, Meena Vari and Vidya Shivadas, will include Adwait Singh, Aryan, Ajit Kumar, Faiza Hasan, CP Krishnapriya, Harshita Bathwal, Naveen Mahantesh, Noman Amouri, Paribartana Mohanty, Rajyashree Goody, Sarojini Lewis, Shatavisha Mustafi, Shruti Ramlingiah, Sumitra Sunder and Vivek Chockalingam.
"Over the course of the year, they reached out to 45 government and 10 private art schools - about three-four schools per curator - across India, conducting institution visits, organising workshops and interventions, and interacting with BFA and MFA students.
"The immediate intent is to expose its participants to processes that go into making and presenting a world class art event and the nuances of curatorship. It also gives them an opportunity to acquire skills to pursue a career in the contemporary art world and encourage discourse on the state of art education in India," organisers said.
The show will offer insights into each artist's individual journeys and interests, besides exhibiting several collateral projects by the initiative.
Local exhibitions of the initial outcomes from curatorial interventions and a schedule of programmes will also be presented during the exhibition.
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