Still Moving Image, at The Devi Art Foundation (Gurgaon, India)

Thomas, Navin. Still asleep, 2006. Digital print on archival paper, 130cm(w) x 89cm(h). Series of 10 prints Courtesy The Devi Art Foundation

September 1st - November 2nd, 2008

The Devi Art Foundation opens with its inaugural exhibition “Still Moving Image,” a selection of video and photography made by 24 Indian artists. The exhibition, curated by Deeksha Nath and Shweta Wahi, brings to view key artworks and highlights the aesthetic innovations made by visionary artists as they grapple with situating works within the context of society, its advancements and concerns.The exhibition uses the familiarity of the moving image within the Indian social life as a starting point for its many explorations. It uses an open ended exhibition design that allows for multiple entry points for viewers and for their own experiences to dictate their understanding of the works.

Broadly speaking, the blocks of ideas that emerge in the exhibition may be characterized as an exploration of the axial position of the person in all experiences; a strident engagement with socio-political discourses; identity and how it is constructed through historical reading and the post-colonial situation; an examination of the role and meaning of globalization in India today, and finally the honest documentation of the present which is also an aspiration of a better future. “Still Moving Image” mobilizes ideas - those that have reached maturity, those ready to germinate and those yet to be conceived.

The exhibition brings together the works of Aastha Chauhan, Amit Dutta, Atul Bhalla, Avinash Veeraghavan, Bharti Kher, Kiran Subbaiah, Mithu Sen, Nalini Malani, Navin Thomas, Pushpamala N., Ram Rahman, Rameshwar Broota, Ranbir Kaleka, Ravi Agarwal, Sheba Chhachhi, Shilpa Gupta, Sonia Khurana, Sudarshan Shetty, Surekha, Susanta Mandal, Tejal Shah, Tushar Joag, Valay Shende, Varsha Nair and Vivan Sundaram.

The Devi Art Foundation is one of the first not-for-profit spaces dedicated to showcasing contemporary art from the Indian subcontinent. It is envisioned as a space that will enable wider audiences to interact with cutting edge and experimental art works. Along with providing a platform for contemporary artists, The Devi Art Foundation encourages young curators by inviting them to curate exhibitions from The Lekha and Anupam Poddar Collection.

As one of the most comprehensive compilations of contemporary art in India, the Lekha and Anupam Poddar Collection is comprised of significant artworks in media as varied as painting, sculpture, interactive installation, video, and photography, reflecting the collectors’ cross-disciplinary interests.

For further information: www.deviartfoundation.org