As India strives to recover from the reeling impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the combined creative expressions of 1,300 Indians about their own experience of the pandemic, are finding their way across Mumbai as part of a unique art installation made of repurposed material ranging from repurposed fabric and gunny bags to table-cloths.
The Corona Quilt Project presents a diverse array of, site-specific installations, scattered throughout the city. It was conceived during the initial weeks of the pandemic as a way to connect people, discuss self-expression and mental health, and bring communities together.
The installations also include submissions by Bollywood personalities Neetu Kapoor, Namrata Shirodkar, Shweta Nanda Bachchan as well as well-known Indian artists and fashion designers including Monisha Jaisingh, Surily Goel, Anushka Khanna, Asad Laljee and Rekha Rodwittiya, among others.
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This project first began during the nation-wide lockdown with the aim of giving people across India a chance to share their pandemic experiences. A cloth square was the template; each person had to create a design to imbue this square with the intensity of her or his own experiences. Nearly a year later, it has taken on a tangible form with individual squares woven together.
The Project, curated by Dia Mehhta Bhupal and Neha Modi, kicked off earlier this March with a massive installation at Jindal Mansion. It will be unveiled across several locations in Mumbai, including the BMC School in Worli, the Haji Ali Pumping Station among others. Additionally, these Corona Quilts will be showcased as moving art installations on public vehicles along different routes in Mumbai. Together, all these Corona Quilts will cover more than 8,000 square feet.
Drawing from more than 12,000 digital and actual submissions that were sent to them, Dia and Neha worked to create a montage of these interpretations over nine long months.
"The Project draws inspiration from the vibrancy of Mumbai and seeks to delight and inspire joy with those who experience it. The location on the Worli-Peddar road junction is especially exciting. The locations connect high-traffic areas in Mumbai allowing us to bring this to the public and make this presentation highly visible," Neha Modi, Project Director, told IANSlife.