The Somaiya Vidyavihar University (SVU), building on an eight decade-long legacy of educational and cultural stewardship, proudly announced the fourth edition of its flagship art initiative, IMMERSE. This year marks a special milestone as IMMERSE is presented under the newly established Dr. Shantilal K. Somaiya School of Art, a reflection of the University’s strong commitment to nurturing art and culture.
In its fourth edition, IMMERSE has come of age and gone from strength to strength. Conceived during the COVID-19 pandemic as an initiative that would showcase the talent and effort of artists with sparse opportunities, it has developed into one of the most important art residencies in the country, providing opportunities to deserving artists from different regions to hone their practices, meet established metropolitan practitioners, and visit an array of galleries and studios.
Mounted in April-May this year, IMMERSE involved several workshops, studio visits, lectures, panel discussions and a grand exhibition mounted on the breezy ground floor of the Aurobindo building. Inaugurated by Mr. Bhushan Gagrani, the Municipal Commissioner of Mumbai, and presided over by Shri Samir Somaiya, Chancellor of SVU, the show was put together by three curators who along with eleven artists constituted the residency cohort this year. Sach Kahe Toh (Truth Be Told), as the show was titled, was an attempt at uncovering and recovering the diverse truths that constitute our lives. The month-long residency was in association with Siddharth Somaiya, Al-Qawi Nanavati, Natasha Jeyasingh and Shaleen Wadhwana.
The exhibition was a meeting ground for a range of sparkling themes – Ajay Kumar Sahoo from Odisha, for instance, used thatch, wood and mud to create objects and images that framed an effective indictment of the environmental degradation of the Chilika Lake. While Hasanali Kadiwala of Baroda addressed the experience of loss and longing in his text-infused prints and painted wooden panels, Riya Chandwani from Katni, Madhya Pradesh, revisited the searing fractures of the Partition in paintings and flowing cloth installations.
Says entrepreneur Siddharth Somaiya, “As a figure of courage, an artist essentially has the stubbornness that drives her to express lived reality in her own special way. IMMERSE is a means to a larger cause – of democratizing the art space.” About the immense possibilities open to IMMERSE on the campus, curator Shaleen Wadhwana observes, “Varied interactions, ranging from curators, artists, academics, faculty, to students, everyday staff, among others, provide a terrific learning environment for the Fellows.”
At a panel discussion in collaboration with Chemould Colab, moderated by art entrepreneur Natasha Jeyasingh, a discussion about the art of pricing art featured gallerists Hena Kapadia and Sahil Arora, artist Al-Qawi Nanavati and collector Nitin Bhayana. The Residency participants presented their work here in front of a packed hall. In the course of the month, continuous sessions on writing and thinking, presentation and production, helped guide the Fellows. Visits to Sameer Kulavoor, Parag Tandel and Dhruvi Acharya’s studios, and visits from respected personalities like Shireen Gandhy, Pheroza Godrej, Ranjit Hoskote, Nancy Adajania, Jitish Kallat, Reena Kallat, Ganesh Devy, among others, also boosted their confidence. The Vice-Chancellor of SVU, Prof. V. N. Rajasekharan Pillai, generously felicitated the Fellows under the auspices of the Dr. Shantilal K. Somaiya School of Art.
As an endeavour, IMMERSE is a rare initiative that is born out of SVU’s desire to strengthen the infrastructure of the art ecosystem – the proceeds of the sales of the artists’ works go entirely to them.
As a resource person who workshopped with the participants, one of the greatest sources of satisfaction for me, was to observe their transformation over a month – the confidence levels had surged, the desire to meet challenges had grown and the capacity to learn from different sources had expanded. As ambassadors of IMMERSE and of SVU, the artists and curators carry forward our institution’s legacy of drawing constructive inspiration from the past and the present, to look forward with hope and strength at the future.
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