There is some great news for art lovers. Piramal Museum of Art, Lower Parel, Mumbai, has announced a series of events to accompany their ongoing exhibition, S.H. Raza: Traversing Terrains from 24 June to 28 October 2018. This is not all! The exhibition is accompanied by a diverse programme of events, including talks, film screenings and workshops designed to increase the accessibility of Raza’s work for a wide range of audience and the fans of the master’s art.
Depicting the career of one of the most significant artists in Indian Modernism and a founding member of the Bombay Progressives, S.H. Raza: Traversing Terrains is the first major retrospective of Raza since his death on 23 July 2016 and depicts the astonishing career of one of the most significant artists in Indian Modernism and a founding member of the Bombay Progressives.
The exhibition is engaging and immersive,as Piramal Museum of Art presents the story of Raza’s life from the early 1940s to the late 1990s through his paintings. Besides, there is a display of rare archival photographs, diary extracts, and written correspondence between Raza and his contemporaries. The museum space has been designed to mirror the distinct visual language of Raza’s artwork and the exhibition will be accompanied by a broad public outreach programme which will draw upon key themes in Raza’s work and the narrative focus of the exhibition. Throughout July and August, there will be events, performances, workshops and poetry readings, with a special three-part event series in July to commemorate Raza’s death anniversary. Besides, the exhibition features braille text and tactile representations of key works for the visually impaired too.
Programme Highlights:
- July 21: Paint a Raza A canvas-painting workshop inspired by Raza’s paintings. For all age groups, the workshop is in partnership with Bombay Drawing Room as part of a series of events to commemorate his death. Venue: Piramal Museum of Art, Lower Parel | Time: 4 pm – 6.30 pm
- July 23 & August 23: Film Screening – The Very Essence Presented in collaboration with Alliance Française and shot by French filmmaker Laurent Bregeat, The Very Essence is made up of a series of conversations with the artist and presents a window in to Raza’s life in France and how he kept the Indian element in his works alive. July 23 | Venue: Alliance Français, Theosophy Hall, Churchgate | Time: 6.30 pm August 23 | Venue: Piramal Museum of Art, Lower Parel | Time: 6.30pm
- July 24: Art Matters: Edition 59 Hindustani classical musician, Neela Bhagwat will join poet, cultural theorist and curator Ranjit Hoskote to discuss ideas of abstraction in music and visual arts. The session will be moderated by Ashok Vajpeyi and Vaishnavi Ramanathan. Art Matters is part of the Raza Foundation’s Delhi-based event series and is being introduced to Mumbai for the first time. Venue: Piramal Museum of Art, Lower Parel | Time: 6.30pm
- August 11: Moving into Freedom Much like how artists express abstract thought using paint and colour, this experimental dance therapy workshop by Renelle Snelleksz draws from memories and uses movement to revitalize, re-energise and refresh the body, mind and spirit. Venue: Piramal Museum of Art, Lower Parel | Time: 10.30am – 1pm
- August 14 to September 2: Piramal Art Residency | Cycle 16 | Re-Imagining Mumbai Piramal Art Residency will host five artists to make the city their muse and tap into its myriad facets, just as an entire generation of Indian modernists before them had. Please note this is at Piramal Art Residency, located in Thane.
- August 24: Walkthrough & workshop for art teachers Presented in collaboration with Rainbow Fish, Piramal Museum of Art will be hosting a guided walkthrough of the exhibition, followed by an interactive workshop that will open a conversation on creating content for introducing contemporary art in classrooms. Venue: Piramal Museum of Art, Lower Parel | Time: 3pm – 5pm
- August 25: Café Philo – The Raza Edition S.H. Raza’s was an artist whose work was deeply influenced by his engagement with philosophical questions. This special edition of Café Philo is an open discussion influenced by S.H Raza’s paintings and is open to all interested in philosophical questions. Venue: Theosophy Hall, Churchgate | Time: 1pm
- August 30: Conversations on Collecting A panel discussion with Kamini Sawhney, Mortimer Chatterjee and Lina Vincent Sunish looking at collecting practices from 1947 until 1980’s, a time when the art market was still at a nascent stage. The session will examine the reasons that motivated patrons to collect. Venue: Piramal Museum of Art, Lower Parel | Time: 6.30 pm
