Art Mart to raise funds for Kala Ghoda district

AUGUST 8: The art fraternity's efforts to carve out the Kala Ghoda precinct as an art district did not end with the art festival organise...

AUGUST 8: The art fraternity8217;s efforts to carve out the Kala Ghoda precinct as an art district did not end with the art festival organised there early this year. The Kala Ghoda Association KGA which is spearheading the concerted campaign to convert this south Mumbai address into a district for artist and art lovers has organised a fund-raising exhibition for an art festival to be organised in February 2000.

The Kala Ghoda Art Mart is the second public event to be organised towards this end after the February festival. Co-ordinated by Gallery Chemould and the Jindal Art Foundation and supported by Jehangir Art Gallery and Cafe Samovar, the exhibition will take place at Jehangir Art Gallery from August 10 to 15. The KGA hopes to make the art festival an annual feature.

Ten of the city8217;s leading galleries Apollo Apparao Galleries, Cymroza Art Gallery, Fine Art Resource, Gallery Chemould, Gallery 7, The Guild Art Gallery, Kanoria Centre for the Arts, Lakeeren Gallery, Pundole Art gallery and SakshiGallery have contributed paintings and sculptures by 31 acclaimed artists for the exhibition. Artists like Anjolie Ela Menon, M F Husain, Laxman Shreshtha, R K Dhawan, N S Bendre and P Kolte will be up for grabs during the Art Mart. The works have been priced at Rs 6,000 and above.8220;The fund raiser has been organised to gather enough funds to support the next art festival. However, part of the funds are also going to be used to sponsor artists as well as pursue the KGA8217;s agenda on the art precinct,8221; Shirina Advani of the KGA told Express Newsline. The KGA has two main thrusts: bringing about physical improvement in the Kala Ghoda precinct and promoting the area as an art district of both national and international significance.

Kala Ghoda, which extends roughly from Shaheed Bhagat Singh Road to the Bombay High Court and from Hutatma Chowk to the Institute of Science, has several heritage buildings. The area also boasts of as many as 1,10,000 square feet of indoor gallery space and pavementgalleries.

The KGA, therefore, wishes to convert this area into a permanent art district which will be the first of its kind in the country, where artists can work as they exhibit their creations and art lovers can patronise them. Accordingly, the KGA8217;s plans include changing the street furniture of the area around Jehangir Art Gallery. 8220;We have already approached civic authorities and the A ward officer for official permission to let us bring about the changes. For instance, feedback from artists points to the fact that one needs more lights on the pavement gallery outside the Jehangir, and we have asked authorities for permission to put them up. We have provided them with drawings of what the pavements would look like after the changes would be undertaken. In fact, we have even arranged for site visits for civic officials to pavements that could be converted to galleries,8221; revealed Advani.