Bridging two sacred cities through art

Photo Credits: PG1. LEAD_3

An exciting world unfolds within the confines of the Adil Shah Palace in Panaji. Part of the Serendipity Arts Festival, A Tale of Two Cities is a tale of wonderful and creative experimentation, an effort to form an artistic bridge between India and Sri Lanka through the eyes and hands of their cultural ambassadors.

“Varanasi and Anuradhapura form the site, the stage, the place of artistic interpretation and intervention in this cross-cultural artistic exchange. It is a place of meeting that brings into focus, while interrogating, narratives of archaeological ‘truths,’ of complex, contested ideologies juxtaposed with the metaphysical and the poetic.” This is an excerpt from the catalogue of the art exhibit and describes the basic premise behind this effort, to view two cities that form the bedrock of culture and religion in their two countries. So began the project, where a group of artists, each with their own core competence, visited the two cities and began to draw inspiration from them. “This project started as a series of conversations at Gallery Espace, and with the Theertha Artists Collective in Sri Lanka. The support of the Serendipity Arts Trust was integral and made it possible for us to show the works as part of the festival in the unique historical setting of Adil Shah Palace,” says Gallery Espace founder Renu Modi, who is the figurehead of the project.

At the Adil Shah Palace, there are multiple works by each artist - a mixture of mediums including painting, installation art, film, sculpture, textile, photography and digital art. This exhibition runs for a month until January 15, 2017.

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"A Tale of Two Cities is not just an art exhibition, it's about artists coming together and starting a conversation in response to their own country, and each other’s. Between India and Sri Lanka there are a lot of similar and often interconnected cultural, religious and political issues. Each of the artists involved in this project have a distinct voice and aesthetics. They are each established in their own practice and known internationally. Each artist has made multiple works for this project and it's a great opportunity for art lovers in Goa and visitors to see the works of some of our region's most important artists. "

Renu Modi, founder, Gallery Espace

In the different stages of my process, the visuals of the thrown, crown and sword occurred to me - referencing the history of 'protecting' Buddhism as a history of violence and war. They became a reminder of the power dynamics that frame the spiritual unknown - Pala Pothupitye, Sri Lankan artist

One other thing that has stayed with me from my recent travels to Kutch and Varanasi is the seamlessness of the textile arts of these places, their capacity to absorb, assimilate and disperse, like the river itself in a sense. I think this is the reason I chose to use the textile arts to execute these works that speak of contested histories - Paula Sengupta, Indian artist