Experimental art gets a new platform The Greenhouse in Hauz Khas Village Located in a nondescript corner of an otherwise bustling Hauz Khas Village,is Delhis newest art space,The Greenhouse. At present,it is hosting an unusual exhibition of flyers collected from various music bands,including Midival Punditz and Jalebee Cartel. If the exhibition doesnt stake The Greenhouses claim as an alternative space,its glass exterior certainly does,painted green by a German graffiti artist called Bond. The space is open to anyone who wants to experiment. It is a hybrid space where cultural activity alternates with alternative education and market dynamics. The graffiti and the ambience suit the theme of the place,which is primarily to act as a platform for multiple disciplines, says Avinash Khanna,a member of B.L.O.T (Basic Love Of Things),a multimedia outfit,which is one of the founders of The Greenhouse,a three-storeyed,1,500 sq ft space. Besides B.L.O.T,The Greenhouse has been founded by a number of other city-based groups photo commune BlindBoys,multidisciplinary design studio Quicksand and CoDesign and UnBOX Festival that promotes interdisciplinary collaborations. While the project was conceived almost a year back,the plans got underway only after the Goethe Institute,a German cultural institute in Delhi,allocated funds in September 2010. Soon,the Hauz Khas address was finalised and a calendar was drawn. In January,the walls of The Greenhouse wore photographs taken by 15 women from across Asia,in an exhibition curated by Yumi Goto,an independent art and documentary photography curator,editor,researcher and consultant. There were yoga nights in February,and Disposable Film Festival in March,where film enthusiasts watched short films made on everyday equipment. The Make-a-Thons encourage participants to make innovative designs from small books to boxes. The aim is to encourage out-of-the-box thinking, says Kumar. About the ongoing exhibition,he adds,Flyers are a fascinating artifact and a collectible . Unfortunately,they are treated as mere pieces of paper that are thrown after the event. The Greenhouse is still getting its finishing touches. A cafeteria will be added next month and there will soon be a store selling knick-knacks and T-shirts. People should feel at home. We dont intend to make it an overwhelming art space, he adds. The line-up this month includes a Street Art and Stencil Workshop and another Make-A-Thon.
