Serendipity
Arts Festival 2018, India’s first multidisciplinary arts event, begins in Goa
from 15 – 22 December and is with over 90 dynamic projects showcasing the
visual, performing and culinary arts. 10 venues across Panaji will transform
Goa into a vibrant cultural space with multiple exhibitions, performances and
experiential arts experiences involving over 1300 artists.
This
was announced at a press briefing recently at the Goa
Institute of Management. ICICI Lombard
is the presenting sponsor for the 2018 edition of the festival.
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Addressing the press conference, Smriti Rajgarhia,
Director, Serendipity Arts Festival introduced this year’s Festival to the Goan
press emphasising the importance of arts and culture in India’s society, and
the Festival’s commitment to accessibility and arts education, as well as the
diversity and artistic integrity of this year’s projects. The event also
included the first screening of the Festival curtain-raiser film presenting
vignettes of 2017’s projects for the Goa press.
The
other panellists included Subodh Gupta,
Visual Arts curator, Vivek Menezes and
Swati S Salgaocar, co-curators, Panjim 175 exhibition and Odette Mascarenhas, Culinary Arts
curator.
Speaking at the event Smriti Rajgarhia said,
“We’re delighted by the huge support
we have received from the people in Goa, and are excited to showcase the
diversity of projects we’ll have in Goa this December. The festival truly celebrates our rich
artistic heritage, and we hope that this will foster cultural growth and
energise contemporary practice not just in Goa but across the country. ”
An
initiative of the Serendipity Arts Foundation, founded in 2016 by Sunil Kant
Munjal, the Festival’s third edition is focused on fostering cultural
development, supporting emerging artists across South Asia and is unique as the
only arts event in the country that unites the creative disciplines.
The
first two editions of the event transformed Goa and received an extremely
positive reception from the public, redefining perceptions of the arts whilst
also fostering arts production, awareness and practice across the country. The
event has activated Goa’s cultural milieu, attracting more than 400,000
visitors, with dynamic projects that have included internationally acclaimed
performances highlighting India’s rich traditions of music, dance and theatre,
alongside culinary arts, craft, and visual arts exhibitions.
Unique
activations in the core disciplines of Craft, Culinary Arts, Music,
Photography, Visual Arts, Dance and Theatre, intend to invigorate dissipating
and marginalised traditional artforms, whilst the more contemporary projects
will address significant social issues. This year’s event will also have
increased international participation aimed at furthering global dialogues with
Indian culture.
Addressing the press Vivek Menezes said,
“Serendipity Arts
Festival has been a tremendous force for positive developments in Goa’s
cultural landscape, and immensely innovative in its use of Panjim’s desperately
neglected and underutilized heritage infrastructure. I am so glad this event
has given us the chance to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the capital city,
which the state itself has largely ignored.”
Swati S Salgaocar added,
“I am proud to be
associated with the Serendipity Arts Festival, a truly multidisciplinary effort
by a committed team striving to showcase Goa in the best possible way.
SAF has really pushed the boundaries of what an art festival is and its
all-inclusive nature (whether it’s the unconventional venues, free entry or
variety of art disciplines), For us in Goa access to the top visual, musical,
theatre, dance and culinary artists of the highest international standard is
unprecedented and I hope SAF finds a permanent home in Goa.”
Odette Mascarenhas said, “ This is my third year as a Curator of food and
every year I have seen the festival grow in size and stature. I have seen
visitors and locals come back time and time again because of the variety of
options/experiences offered audiences marvel at the fact that so many
disciplines are showcased, each one has its own concept and diversity. With
regards to food, there is so much to share and the creative thread that runs
through each experience is what Serendipity Arts Festival is about.
Subodh Gupta said, “It’s been a pleasure and honour to
work with the Serendipity team. It is exciting to see the kind of support and
platform being provided for contemporary art in India. My aim when putting
together the exhibition for Serendipity Arts Festival was to provide a snapshot
of the range of conversations happening in contemporary art about pertinent
social and political issues around the world; essentially outlining the various
roles of an artist in public discourse. People will see a wide range of
contemporary art from India and the world.”
Serendipity
Arts Festival is the only art event in India which unites the creative
disciplines, committed to creating tangible change across the country’s
cultural spectrum by engaging the public and increasing awareness of how art
can impact society. Projects at the Festival will be further activated by
diverse collateral programming including panel discussions, children’s
programmes, and workshops for the differently abled.
The 90
projects this year will be accompanied by a series of Special Projects including St+art
Goa, curated by St+art India Foundation, Out of Turn curated by Asia Art
Archive and Meenakshi Thirukode and a Film Programme by Sabeena Gadihoke.
