Everyone nurtures dreams for the future. Sometimes, people’s aspirations are taken up by others in their absence. This is what curator couple Geetha and Sathya Sai chose to do after the untimely demise of their friend Manoj Nair, a popular art writer and critic who was also the editorial director of the Kochi Muziris Biennale 2018.
“Manoj had always shared this idea of putting together a large-scale show featuring many artists. He even had a few name suggestions for the show including the one we’ve currently used. As he was a friend who was involved in curating shows at our gallery, we decided to do one such showcase as a tribute to him,” says Geetha, about Between The Lines, a series of exhibitions spread over four months featuring over 80 painters, photographers, sculptors and performing artistes.
The blueprint for the event reveals a three ‘wave’ schedule, with the last one running till January 31, 2020.
Gathering the tribe
Curating such a long list of creative people is no menial job. If anything made it easier, it was the strong familiarity that Manoj enjoyed in the art circles. “Along with the list of names that he had curated, we added a few more people onto our roster after conversations with his friends. Since we’re doing this as a series, we can add more names in later stages,” informs the gallerist.
Besides popular names from the Indian circles like Vivek Vilasini and Zakkir Hussain, the lineup also has painters from across the globe such as Aditi Lago (Spain) and Gabriela Garcia-Luna (Canada). Many of the displays also have a strong influence from Manoj himself like in the work of Australia-based Marnie Dean whose painting has the critic’s inputs and also one by John Xaviers,which has Manoj as the protagonist in the backdrop of Kerala floods.
Diverse memoir
The exhibition’s initial stage will feature paintings, photographs and a sculpture by 30 professionals. Besides acrylic, mediums like pastel, charcoal, pencil, watercolour and oil also find a place in the works currently put up in the halls.
The last leg will also have performances including mimes by Bilas Nair and Manu V R and a music showcase for which artistes are still being curated. “Since Manoj has worked in places including London and Delhi, we wish for Between the Lines to be a travelling show, if we can source help for the same. We’re also considering a series of talks involving writers,” informs Geetha.
First wave of exhibitions till November 16.
At Gallery 27, Mattancherry.