Ahmedabad International Art Festival – 2011

Hi friends, the much awaited post ..we would like to share with you. This was done for Ahmedabad and  Amdavadis with all the love from our artists who came along generously to put up the show : The 2nd Ahmedabad International Art Festival 2011 (AIAF). With all the gratitude to one and all who contributed towards the colorful event. We are happy to celebrate posting this.

The large open space on hand was put to good use .. for an installation..

An old wooden Antique Darwaza (Door) and a Chabootra (Bird Feeder) were placed and around them we scattered grains for the birds ..and placed water bowls. 

The installation embodied godess Laxmi in hundreds  of  Paper Lotus Flowers, spread at the venue symbolizing the legend explained in following text.

Many of our winged friends did grace us with their presence… peacocks, pigeons and crows.. they were all part of the installation along with hundreds of paper lotuses in various sizes… 

The use of Chabootra and Antique Traditional Darwaza(Doors and Gates) is symbolic to life in and around the old city creating the social fabric- well integrated which was safe in the walled city with various Darwaza’s built along the city. The Chabootra(Bird Feeder) is an intrinsic feature of Ahmedabad community dwellings where people gather for various daily chores as well evening chit chats, thus keeping the harmony within the community healthy and well informed.

The story goes that a long time ago the 13 gates of the walled ahmedabad city were locked each night and the keys given to the Nagarsheth. One night a Muslim Dwarpal or gatekeeper saw a woman trying to leave the city .. it was Laxmi, the godess of wealth and prosperity. He tried to stop her and when she said she waned to leave the city he told her that he would go get the keys to the gate .. he made her promise that she would not step out of the city until he returnd. She gave him her word. he went and got the keys from the nagarsheth’s house but was sad that she would leave .. he would not let that happen .. he took his own life and Godess Laxmi still dwells within the city .. she never left because the gatekeeper did’nt return .. he sacrificed his life for the prosperity of the city , so that it would always prosper and grow.

Something about this story must be true… Ahmedabad is the fastest growing city in india today and it’s people and business continues to thrive. The installation touched on this aspect of the city ..It’s growth and journey from being a small hamlet called ashavali on the banks of the sabarmati ruled by a bhil king to what it is today.

Banyan Art an artist studio based in Baroda too showcased their work at the venue. Their event was an exhibition of paintings on the theme of Ahmedabad for the festival that celebrates the city.

The art works being well appreciated by the Amdavadi’s.

 Veteran Artist of the city Mr. Amit Ambalal, Mr. Manu Parekh and Ms. Madhavi Parekh with co-ordinator Deviba Wala.

We screened  Documentry  Movies on ahmedabad by young filmmakers from NID. These films were interesting and highlighted various aspects of the city culture and it’s people.

 Documentaries being watched by city folks.

In the evenings we had music by Ginny and Ravi .. “Free Improvisations” .. live  performance !!

 Man in Green T-Shirt is Folk Artist jamming along with Ginny and team.

 the view at night, indoors : preceding to the gallery and the installation.

 Installation by Shaam, traditional coal Iron used in the city..

Sculpture by Suraj Kumar…

 Children get amused by the installation, they were allowed to grab some lotuses to take home, as token of love and prosperity.

We co-ordinated for the C.N. College of Fine Arts last year and for this year We thought we’d put up an exhibition with our own artists from Studio Verve and artilatives (friends and relatives we made through art) those associated with us.

The event was held at the ‘Rang Bhavan’ or amphitheatre at the C.N Vidyavihar campus.

Few of the Studio Verve Artist members contributed to the event…Top L-R; Abhijit Paul, Zubair Ansari, Gayatri.D, Laxmi Kiran, Bottom L-R; Ramakrishna, V. Bhaskar, Akkireddy Prakash Naidu, Ronak Sopariwala, Rakesh Patel, Deviba Wala and Arpit Biloria, in the backdrop of  installation work.

Curator: Akkireddy Prakash

Coordinators: Deviba Wala & Arpit Biloria

ARTISTS from Verve :

Abhijit Paul, Asha Rawat, Atul Kumar, Snehal Kashikar, Bijoya Haldar, Rakesh Patel, Mukund Patel, Ramakrishna Kongalla, Prabuddha Paul, Vikrant Barmate, Sahebram Tudu, Suraj Kumar, Mrugen Rathod, Ridhi Shan, Shaam, Mayur Kadu & Sheena Deviah

Video Documentries by :

Manish Saini, Anoop Sathyan, Shishir Jha, Shradha Sakhalkar, Lavanya Naidu, Prayas Gupta & Sketchbook : 2009 animation batch

ARTISTS from Banyan Art :

Shatrughan Thakur, Rajesh P.S., Vinod Patel, Shubhendu Mishra, Swetha B.V., Durga Prasad Bandi, Pulak Sanpui, Jagadish Dhyan Shreyas, Arunima Sanyal, Vibhuti Sharma, Manjunath Honnapara, Debashish Datta, Alok Bal, Lokesh khodke, Sharat, Rahul Mukharjee, Rakesh Patel, Roma Patel, Suraj Kumar, Ronak Soparivala, Jigna Gaudana,Vipul Prajapati, Vipul Rathod, Jignesh Panchal, Nilesh Suthar, Prashant Sitapara, Rachana Badrakhia, Prashant Nageshkar, Bharvi Trivedi, Samvedana, BhavinVaishnav, Tarun Gajjar & Dushyant Patel

The Ahmedabad International Art Festival 2011  was once again a great experience. We Thank Anupa Mehta and her team for this opportunity. This event definately acts as a catalyst in furthering art in the city and brings together various organizations like; 

· A Fine Line · Ahmedabad Heritage Cell · Alliance Francaise, Ahmedabad · Amit Ambalal’s gallery and Haveli · Anart Foundation · Archer · Banyan Art · British Council Division · Darpana / Natarani · Upasana school of Performing Arts/Gujarat University · Five Issues/Gopika Jadeja · House of MG, Ahmedabad · Huteesing Visual Art Centre · Kanoria Centre for Arts · Lemongrasshopper · Max Mueller/ Goethe Institute · MIRIAD, Manchester · Paulomi Lalbhai Studio · PLATYPUS · Pro-Helvetia · Sheth C N College of Fine Arts · Nazariya

With all the memories, looking forward for next year AIAF and collaborating with more artilatives,

saying bye, more from Studio Verve soon..

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Banyan Art at Ahmedabad International Art Festival 2011

AIAF – 2011

TIMELESS ECHOES

Ahmedabad depicted through art by artists from “Banyan Art” Baroda.The living city of Ahmedabad is rich in diverse culture. People here lead a simple and quite lifestyle, but during any festival the city transforms into a rich colorful event. Like in Navratri, people gather and dance for nine consecutive nights; “garba”, a dance form in convoluting circles, similar to how the very city of Ahmedabad is growing around the walls. In Garba, people are free to join the dance and thus the circle grows larger, and the energy flows till the midnight Aarti. The circles of this city itself have an ability to overlap creating beautiful patterns that are resilient and have stood the test of time, echoing through the ages.
Time keeps moving around a lamp, a lamp that has burned for centuries at the Delhi Darwaza, the heart that keeps the city prosperous. The city flows seamlessly from the remnants of a beautiful old walled city with 12 gates to the river front that will soon be lined with beautiful.  coffee shops, parks and theatres . There is now a distinct visual culture in Ahmedabad and the city leaves an image, a visual imprint
Besides these the city boasts a multiple cultural influences. These influences extended beyond religion, to architecture, literature, art and crafts etched in society.
Today the city has a modern facet in the form of its world acclaimed buildings, educational institutes, entrepreneurs, industries and infrastructure ever growing into a prolific city of international repute keeping its heritage intact for generation next. Come to Ahmedabad to witness modernity and traditions coexist hand in hand.

Studio Verve Website     |     Artist Residency     |     Subscribe Newsletter

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