Independent art curator and writer Ayan Mukherjee, like always, is currently experimenting with various mediums, and curating projects using narratives and experiences based on life. After achieving success at Bourbonne Les Bains in France with his work, Kuch Toh Log Kahenge: The Violence of Words, Ayan shares insights about his future projects, scope of work and more.
What are the projects that you are working on?
There are a few projects that are in the pipeline, one of the most important being Raconteurs (meaning
storytellers in French), which I am doing with a group of new and midcareer artists. It will be Raconteurs’ second edit. Raconteurs is a project that was done in an episodic manner in its first edition back in 2016-17. The project had five episodes, with each telling a different tale, influenced by the anthologies that were growing popular in those days. The second edit, which we plan to showcase next year, will have 4-5 artists displaying their artwork in each episode, with one particular narrative and storyline. This will mainly be a visual arts project with about 15-16 participants. We are likely to showcase this in mid-2024. I also have an Indo-Bangladesh project in the pipeline. There might be other collaborative projects with art practitioners abroad, along with an onsite project near Taki.
What inspired you to experiment with multidisciplinary art forms?
I don’t believe in the concept of media any more. We usually use terms like multidisciplinary forms to make the audience understand, but as an artist, I genuinely think nothing can depict a medium specifically.
The kind of projects I do, it is more important to see if our message reaches the audience, irrespective of the medium, which is a flexible space.
Working abroad, what do you find Indian artists are lacking in?
While working with artists from France, Colombia, Asia, Belgium, Poland and a few other countries for the last project, I observed they have various avenues to fund their works. Even if all the ideas don’t get funded, there are still some places to apply for funds, which is a huge challenge for not just Indians but also South Asian artists and art curators. Most of the time we have to take a step back in bringing our thoughts into reality!