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Director, founder and producer of Panorama Editions, Sarah Singh talks about what to expect at its comeback edition

Being organised after a pandemic-induced hiatus, the cultural extravaganza that stands out from other festivals for its curation, will take place at Jaisalmer’s Golden Fort/Sonar Killa and the Fort Palace Museum on November 4

Farah Khatoon Published 26.10.23, 06:43 AM
Sarah Singh

Sarah Singh Pictures: Sarah Singh

Panorama Editions, an international art salon that celebrates different regions of Rajasthan with a curated lineup of cultural events, is back with its third edition. Being organised after a pandemic-induced hiatus, the cultural extravaganza that stands out from other festivals for its curation, will take place at Jaisalmer’s Golden Fort/Sonar Killa and the Fort Palace Museum on November 4. Supported this year by the Rajasthan Government’s Tourism Department and Jaisalmer Fort Palace Museum Trust headed by Maharawal Chaitanya Raj Singh, it will feature three internationally-acclaimed artists and a contemporary exhibition. We caught up with Sarah Singh, the founder and producer of Panorama Editions, for more details about the third edition of the event.

Den Sone Skole and Vertigo will put together an immersive performance

Den Sone Skole and Vertigo will put together an immersive performance

Panorama Editions is back after two years. How excited are you and what can we expect?

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I am very excited and I thank God that it’s happening again. It’s important to have communal engagements.

With an ambitious international public concert on November 4 evening, locals and tourists alike will have the chance to hear Hungarian gypsy music from WOMEX awardee Monika Lakatos and her band, alongside a duo of Tanoura-style Sufi dancers from Egypt. To close this unique evening will be the India premiere of one of Europe’s most acclaimed music collectives, Den Sorte Skole from Denmark. For their first performance in India, Den Sorte Skole has created a work with renowned lighting design team Vertigo, titled ‘Ghosts and Robots’. Also, for the first time in its history, the Museum in the 12th Century Fort Palace will host a contemporary art exhibit alongside its permanent collection. This pioneering exhibit opens to the public on November 4 and will run for a month. With the support of nearly 20 embassies and arts organisations, the work of a broad range of artists are featured as a showcase to explore the salon’s conceptual emphasis on sound as art and experience. Titled ‘Silent/Sound SAFARI’, this exhibition takes you on a journey through a diverse audio landscape: from field recordings across Mexico, to a black-and-white German film with a highly structured rhythm, to the distant sounds of an imaginary land as explored by work from Sweden, to the complex silence evoked by climate change from India.

Alongside this formal exhibition, there are playful sculptural interruptions scattered throughout the Museum which has prompted the opening up of rooms in the Museum not previously on view to the public. This is a rare opportunity to get a better sense of this architectural wonder.

Poster of Panorama Editions Vol 3, clicked by Sarah Singh

Poster of Panorama Editions Vol 3, clicked by Sarah Singh

What was the idea behind Panorama Editions?

Panorama Editions is not just another festival, rather it is a completely customised experience organised at locations that have less exposure to big cultural extravaganzas. The idea is to create meaningful engagement for the public as well as a curated audience.

What were the challenges this time?

There were multiple challenges — minor and major. The first major challenge was to reconnect with my old partners as I was returning to India after three years and a lot of my contacts had moved on. So, the challenge was to restart some of the relationships while it was also surprising to see many new relationships easily developing in the course of planning. Time was also a factor as I was working on a film and simultaneously working on Panorama Editions. Usually, I take a year to get things into place but I got eight-nine months for this edition. Another challenge was the venue. Being a remote area, Jaisalmer moves at its own pace and I had to match its rhythm and go slow. So, a lot of pre-planning was required to execute things. However, I am thankful to Maharawal Chaitanya Raj Singh for all his support.

As an artist who works with different mediums, I know how to put a multi-dimensional project like this together. I know a little improvisation can go a long way. It’s easier to handle if you have the ground vision and the smaller vision in place.

WOMEX awardee Monika Lakatos will be at Panorama Editions

WOMEX awardee Monika Lakatos will be at Panorama Editions

Tell us more about curating the exhibition at Fort Palace...

As I begin the project I start it as a film. I visualise the scenes and the characters and when I get close to finishing the project and the blanks get filled up, then I start to feel it as a theatre. Putting something like this together feels like the ultimate art form to me. It takes the experience to another level and that is why it is so attractive to me.

There are a few artists that I am excited to bring and the names include the Dominican Republic’s Oscar Chabebe, Greek artist Janis Rafa whose film Lacerate was shown at the Venice Biennale in 2022 now has its India premiere; field recordings from the national archive of Mexico that are more documentary style but give the window into a distant land through sound as if you are travelling there, and many more from different parts of the world.

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