Creative City Bengaluru: Dialogues & Discoveries aims to spark conversations

As a part of BLR Hubba, the Art Mantram Trust presents a ten-day festival called Creative City Bengaluru: Dialogues & Discoveries — celebrating art, ideas and civic imagination, featuring curated exhibitions, cross-cultural exchanges, performances, talks and public conversations — across the city, from January 15.

“As part of this initiative, we are also focusing on creating awareness about Drishyam, because all the activities will be housed within Drishyam — the art village. Bengaluru currently does not have a comprehensive art village that brings together all elements of art and culture. It follows the guru–shishya model, where gurus can reserve the space for a day to a week each year and engage with it as they wish. It is a space for creative people from around the world to come, perform, learn, teach and hold interactive sessions with adults, students and the general public, while enriching the place and themselves. We are planning to open the Drishyam Centre of Excellence with a soft launch on the 18th as part of this festival,” reveals Jija Hari Singh, Art Mantram.

On the opening day at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), Art Mantram will host celebrations be ginning with the formal inauguration of the festival and commencement of the International Art Symposium and Residency, bringing together eight artists from Russia (four), Austria (two) & India (two) for an intensive cross-cultural exchange

In the following days, the event moves across town, to the Roerich Estate, Bannerghatta Biological Park, for example, to host an expressive spoken-word event — featuring poetry and oral performances. “There is a tree park in Kadugudi. Although I was posted there as an ASP in 1978 — my first posting in Bengaluru district — I wasn’t aware of it. I will be joining a walk that will be conducted with WWF at the park. There is also the Malleswaram Hogona walk conducted by Gully Tours and both of these are quite significant.

We also have a day in the park, mostly structured as halfday programs. The day will begin with Prabhat Sangeet — morning ragas in the hindustani classical tradition — performed by pandit Muddumohan, followed by art activities such as Art in the Park supporting new artists. One can also enjoy folk dances of India, plays and more at the festival,” she tells us.

On till January 25. Across venues.

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