Latest news with #Kochi-MuzirisBiennale
New Indian Express
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Kerala's cultural, political ethos add depth to the Biennale, says curator Nikhil Chopra
After battling much uncertainty, the Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB) is officially making a comeback. Earlier this month, the Kochi Biennale Foundation announced that Nikhil Chopra, a multidisciplinary artist based in Goa, will curate the sixth edition of the much-celebrated art festival. The 110-day event, titled 'For the Time Being', will run from December 12 to March 31, 2026. Nikhil, associated with HH Art Spaces, a Goa-based artist-led organisation he co-founded, interweaves performance, drawing, photography, sculpture, and installation in his works. Between 2014 and 2017, he performed at the second edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, the Bienal de la Habana, the 12th Sharjah Biennial, and documenta 14 in Athens. In this interview with TNIE, Nikhil talks about his journey with the Biennale, his curatorial vision, and his identity as an artist. Excerpts:
United News of India
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- United News of India
Italian duos' Ravi Shankar piece at pre-Biennale concert wins huge applause
Kochi, July 19 (UNI) Half a century after maestro Pt. Ravi Shankar composed the iconic L'Aube enchantée (The Enchanted Dawn) as a two-instrument score in Raaga Todi, Tommaso Benciolini and Lorenzo Bernardi, two young musicians from Italy performed the 11-minute composition during a flute-and-guitar concert in the city. Flautist Benciolini blew out softly the morning melody while Bernardi plucked the strings of his guitar to further enhance the pathos of the classical notes tuned by the legendary sitarist in 1976. The piece won special applause at the gathering in Mattancherry, where the visiting duo presented a 75-minute performance, jointly organised by the Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF) and the Italian Cultural Institute, as part of the lead-up to the upcoming Kochi-Muziris Biennale. At the Indian Chamber of Commerce building, Tommaso and Bernardi tuned on an electronic tanpura ahead of playing L'Aube enchantée that evolved out of a meeting Ravi Shankar (1920-2012) had with French flautist Jean-Pierre Rampal and his compatriot Alexandre Lagoya (guitarist) in the mid-1970s. 'Of late, nine months ago, as we knew of this India trip coming, Lorenzo and I did some research, wanting to present an item for the audiences in this country,' said 34-year-old Tommaso, adding that they have been playing the piece in all venues of late. The duo's Kerala programme, titled 'Echoes of Italy' came after their concerts in Delhi, Lucknow and Dimapur in Nagaland. L'Aube enchantée begins with a brief alaap sketching the scale of the poignant Todi, largely developed by Mian Tansen who sang in the court of Mughal emperor Akbar in the 16th century. As Benciolini and Bernardi rolled out the piece, which was a part of the trans-continental 'East Meets West' album conceived by Ravi Shankar, the audience on Friday evening listened in rapt attention, only to explode in loud cheers at the end of the performance. The pair next contrasted the dawn raga with 'Nightfall', a contemporary composition known for its simplicity. Tuned in a minor scale that partly corresponds with the Indian classical raga Keeravani, the piece known for its minimalist brilliance is composed by Italian Roberto Di Marino, now 69. This came after a three-movement sonatina composed by New York-based Marco Beltrami known for his association with Hollywood and TV scores in America. 'This carries a lot of inner dialogue,' said Bernardi. The concert began with an Italian overture that used to typically open the operas during the Enlightenment period. The longest among the pieces the duo performed was a 22-minute centrepiece by 20th-century Argentine Tango composer Astor Piazolla of Italian descent. The sixth edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, titled 'For the Time Being', will be a 110-day show opening on December 12. Curated by artist Nikhil Chopra with HH Art Spaces, an artist-led organisation based out of Goa, the biennale will conclude on March 31, 2026. UNI DS GNK
New Indian Express
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Kochi Biennale Foundation screens ‘The Leopard's Tribe'
KOCHI: The Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF) screened the acclaimed documentary film, 'The Leopard's Tribe', on Wednesday evening. Directed by Miriam Chandy Menacherry, the 39-minute documentary essays the acquisition of the Aarey forest area adjoining the bustling Mumbai for building a metro car shed. It focuses on development versus conservation, and talks about environmental protection through the inhabitant tribal community. For the original population of Aarey in Goregaon, renowned for the Sanjay Gandhi National Park called the 'Lungs of Mumbai', the big cat is their god of daily worship. Even so, the forest belt is being destroyed for a facility to maintain and repair the local trains that form the core of the megacity's surface transport. The film pans out the message that sustainable construction activities can go hand-in-hand with economic rise and social well-being. KBF showed the film in Edappally, amid the active participation of Kochiites. The screening at the Kerala Museum comes five months ahead of the sixth edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB) by the KBF.
New Indian Express
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Sixth Kochi-Muziris Biennale curated by Nikhil Chopra to begin from Dec 12
NEW DELHI: The 6th edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale will begin from December 12 across various sites in Kochi, the Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF) announced on Wednesday. Titled "For the Time Being", the biennale will be curated by artist Nikhil Chopra with HH Art Spaces, a Goa-based artist-led organisation. The 110-day international contemporary art exhibition will feature a diverse programme of talks, performances, workshops, and film screenings, as well as programme verticals including the Students' Biennale, Invitations, Art By Children, the Residency Programme and the Collateral. Even though the full list of artists will be announced in October, a curatorial note by Chopra said that the KMB will embrace process as methodology and position 'friendship economies' as the very scaffolding of the exhibition. The biennale will move away from the convention model of a singular, central exhibition-event. It has been envisioned as a living ecosystem "one where each element shares space, time, and resources, and grows in dialogue with each other". "In Kochi, a historic port city where trade once connected distant worlds, we begin with our site and region to engage in dialogue with emerging global perspectives. This rootedness allows us to resist the pressures of the conventional biennale model as a finished spectacle, and instead shape something that is evolving, responsive, and alive," Chopra said in the note. The multidisciplinary artist said that the biennale will be shaped by the generative force of the "ecological, political, and emotional precarity of Kochi", as he invited artists to seek resonance across geography and time, "to trace shared memories, mirrored struggles, and new affinities rooted in empathy and deep listening". "We would much rather learn from the complexities of human history, choosing to confront the contradictions and fragilities of our present. While we recognise that art alone may not change the world, we believe when cultures collide, that encounter can, at the very least, provoke conversations," he said.
The Hindu
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Sixth edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale titled ‘For the Time Being', to get under way on December 12
The sixth edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB), organised by the Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF), will be titled 'For the Time Being.' Curated by artist Nikhil Chopra with HH Art Spaces, a Goa-based artist-led organisation, the biennale will run for 110 days, from December 12, 2025, through March 31, 2026. Curatorial framework The KBF also announced the curatorial framework for KMB '25. Alongside the international exhibition, the biennale will feature a diverse programme of talks, performances, workshops, and film screenings, unfolding across various sites in Kochi. Key programme verticals include the Students' Biennale, Invitations, Art By Children, the Residency Programme and the Collateral. The curatorial note by Nikhil Chopra states that the sixth edition of the KMB will embrace process as methodology and position 'friendship economies' as the very scaffolding of the exhibition. Moving away from the conventional biennale model of a singular, central exhibition event, the sixth edition is envisioned as a living ecosystem 'one where each element shares space, time, and resources, and grows in dialogue with each other,' a release issued here said. KBF Chair V. Venu said the biennale, over its past editions, has consistently risen in stature, attracting artworks from both celebrated and emerging talents from India and abroad. 'Organising such an event needs meticulous planning and strategies. We have introduced important organisational changes in the Kochi Biennale Foundation and we are confident to make a grand success of the sixth edition of the biennale. For both commoners and connoisseurs, it will offer a dynamic experience,' he was quoted as saying in the release. Bose Krishnamachari, president of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, said that Nikhil Chopra's emphasis on durational exhibitions and performances will be a highlight of the sixth edition. 'Those visiting the biennale will be introduced to an immersive atmosphere, featuring spectacular artworks and site-responsive installations. The event will also offer abundant opportunities to engage with artists and fellow art enthusiasts, and witness the layered cultural life of Kochi, a city where global and local currents converge and diverge all at once,' he said.
