Serendipity Art Festival Goa 2017 became the reason of the facelift of the Old Secretariat which was laying barren after the legislatures deserted it for the new assembly complex in Porvorim. The festival brought the new life to Adil Shah Palace in a true sense. Situated on the bank of River Mandovi in Panaji, Adil Shah Palace used to house the Goa Assembly till the time new Assembly Bhavan was built by BJP government at Porvorim. The festival changes the feel and look of the this Palace. The whole palace was covered with the lights and converted into an Art Gallery. People coming from all over the world to witness the festival had appreciated the work of the organizers and except for the few hitches the Serendipity Art Festival was a great success in Goa.
The Serendipity Festival was curated by the panel of artists and institutional figures, well known in their respective fields. This year’s festival was the first edition in a long-term cultural project that created the hopes of positive change in the arts in India on a large scale. The selection of curators, the festival structure, and the programming represented a sincere effort to address the creative needs, aspirations and potential of contemporary India.
The festival venues were spread across the Panaji town at various locations starting from Miramar to Adil Shah’s Palace. It was the splendid display of the creativity which was never before witnessed by the Goan people and tourist alike.
Against the beautiful backdrop of a heritage bungalow in the city and the picturesque locale of Campal, the iconic artworks of Rabindranath Tagore, M F Hussain and Goan artists F N Souza and Laxman Pai were displayed at the DAG Modern’s exhibition of ‘Indian Modern Art’. The artworks have been put together for the Serendipity Arts Festival. With art and craft exhibitions, music performances, dance, theater, visual arts, and culinary arts, conclaves, and workshops, the festival has something for everyone. Practitioners and audience were able to interact with each other in an immersive space that seeks to create discursive opportunities, promote the exchange of ideas, and inspire the youth to access and engage with the arts at a larger level.
The serendipity festival was simultaneously exhibited at the various venues like Adil Shah Palace, Gracia de Orta garden, Old GMC Complex, Kala Academy, Football ground, SAG ground and Campal bungalow. The banks of river Mandovi has been envisioned as space which brings together the visual, performing, and culinary arts. Taking place in December when Goa is buzzing with activity, featuring more than 40 commissioned projects, this festival has something for everyone.
Rather than just being a showcase of great Indian art, this festival displayed a cultural experiment that hopes to, over time, affect the way Indians interact with art on a daily basis by addressing issues such as arts education, patronage culture, interdisciplinary discourse, and accessibility of the arts. An intensive, exciting program of exhibitions and performances spanning music, dance, theater, visual arts, and culinary arts, will be augmented by spaces for social and educational engagement.
Practitioners and audiences will be able to interact with the arts and with each other on a number of levels, in an immersive space that seeks to create discursive opportunities, promote the exchanging of ideas, and inspire the youth of India to access and engage with arts on a greater level.
The photos were exhibited with an aim to capture the Goan diaspora experience through photographs from their geographical clusters. The curated, interdisciplinary arts festival that aims to change the way art is viewed is witnessing a massive line-up of fascinating activities and eminent guests. The Adil Shah Palace continued to attract crowds to witness ‘Lucid Sleep’. Curated by HH Art Spaces Foundation, it is a series of unique theater performances by artists who perform unchoreographed, unique pieces composed live, in-situ. One of the show, ‘Chotu Virtual Migration’, dealt with the issue of migration, physical and imagined, across class and social divide. The artist made references to the folklore around Goa as a place where people come to be cleaned and refreshed by the sea and the sun, a place where social boundaries are crossed freely, and sexual or spiritual freedom is not compromised. The daily music and dance section saw specially curated performances included those by Sanjeev Bhargava, Pravaha — an amalgamation of dance styles performed by Parwati Dutta and her troupe, Nrityaruta.
There was a treat for lovers of classical music in the form of ‘Living Traditions’, a concert of Hindustani classical music curated by Shubha Mudgal. The performance featured Murad Ali, Kaushiki Chakraborty, and Mohammed Akram. ‘The Heart of Drums’ featured Sidi Goma Tribe, Electronica and Big Drums ensemble. The Serendipity Arts Festival in Goa concluded on December 23 with a stellar cast of artists hosted by Coke Studio, one of India’s most loved and popular fusion music properties. The beats going singer and multi-instrumentalist, Papon along with Parvaaz, a Bangalore-based rock band. Workshops, lectures, conclaves, and a host of pedagogical platforms was led by leading artists and educators to create exciting opportunities for learning.
Serendipity Arts Festival is expected to bring together hundreds of artists from various disciplines for interdisciplinary projects that will educate and open up space for creative dialogue with the intent to engage people with the legacy and future of arts and culture. Rather than just being a showcase of great Indian art, this festival is a cultural experiment that hopes to, over time, affect the way Indians interact with art on a daily basis by addressing issues such as arts education, patronage culture, interdisciplinary discourse, and accessibility of the arts. An intensive, exciting program of exhibitions and performances spanning music, dance, theater, visual arts, and culinary arts, will be augmented by spaces for social and educational engagement.
Practitioners and audiences will be able to interact with the arts and with each other on a number of levels, in an immersive space that seeks to create discursive opportunities, promote the exchanging of ideas, and inspire the youth of India to access and engage with arts on a greater level. The Serendipity Arts Conclave, which is an integral discursive feature of the inaugural edition of the festival, invited its participating speakers to engage, each from their own research preoccupations and ongoing work. This maiden event aim was to bring together a variety of arts, music, drama and food into one melting pot of culture and fun. A week-long bonanza of visual, performing and culinary arts, this promises to have something of an appeal for everyone. India’s favorite December destination just got one more colorful fest in its cap.
Twenty-four young artists from eight countries of south Asia expressed their idea of the subcontinent, its social issues, stories of culture, myths, conflicts and political and economic struggles in a project, titled Young Subcontinent, to be curated by artist and co-founder of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Riyas Komu. It was presented at the first edition of the Serendipity Arts Festival held in Goa.
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