Of desire and denial in fluid city

Seven contemporary artists have got together to focus on the conflicting role that water plays in the city, through bizarrely interesting activities that range from installations to nautanki

Seven contemporary artists have got together to focus on the conflicting role that water plays in the city, through bizarrely interesting activities that range from installations to nautankiu00a0

In a city of contradictions, we either have too much or too little. Too much pollution, too little space, too many people, too little housing. But what we continually have too much and too little of is water -- at times submerging us and otherwise making us pine for it, forever forming a tussle between desire and denial.


Parag Tandel will create fish-shaped sculptures made from garbage
collected by him and the fishermen in Thane Creek

The second edition of [en]counters takes on The Fluid City as its theme. Curated and organised by ArtOxygen in collaboration with the Mohile Parikh Center, the project invites a group of city-based artists to investigate and interrogate the meaning of water in the city. Events will take place all over the island city.
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In Kubera Nige Niru Beku (The Sea God wants more water), artist Uday Shanbhag puts his physical and spiritual self within a Koli family in Juhu Beach: for four days he will be living their life and carrying out a ritualistic performance of writing on the beach sand.

Parag Tandel, a Koli, will reiterate the community's peripheral positioning and disintegration in Big Catch, by creating fish-shaped sculptures made from the garbage collected by the artist and the fishermen at Thane Creek. Pradeep Mishra's Flowing Freedom will see him hoist a series of animal-embroidered flags on the iconic Sewri Fort that overlooks a rich mangrove forest attracting exotic species of migratory birds, while Tushar Joag's human fountain -- Hypohydro Hyperhighrise -- is a parody of the city's excessive urbanisation, where high-rise towers asserting a new style of living are being built, but without any access to water.

Vijay Sekhon's Paaninama -- Stories from the City is about those who are forced to use sewage water to cleanse themselves. Through his nautanki performances, he will attempt to revive people's awareness of their rights and claim their self-respect back.

Through Migjral -- the Mirage, Sharmila Samant will uncover particular areas under which water still lies, now veiled over by buildings, roads and encroachments. She will do this with the help of a forked rod. Her 'divine intervention' will reveal how simple solutions can resolve the city's impending crises. In Tracing a Disappearance, Prajakta Potnis will map the original lake's boundaries on what is now the 'developed' area surrounding the Siddheshwar Talao in Thane.

See how these artists deal with and interpret everyday problems of contemporary society. There are accompanying on-site lectures too. It will make you question about the place you have been living in and have become apathetic to.

Till January 9
Log on tou00a0www.mohileparikhcenter.org for more details
Call 9867293648 / 9870292736

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