The second edition of Art Mumbai kicked off on November 14 with such success and shared joyfulness that the only wonder is why this city of hard work and hard play took so long to create their terrific four-day art party. It even has a great ready-made location, Mahalakshmi Race Course, a beautiful tree-lined centre-city space with fresh air thanks to its proximity to the Arabian Sea.
It took the energy of co-founder Dinesh Vazirani and his team to create what seems so obvious. He and his wife, passionate art collectors since the ’90s, founded Saffron Art in 2000 with the core belief that art can be a vehicle for education and raising awareness of social issues — it already supports Mumbai’s Urban Art Festival and Kochi Biennale. Yesterday, wearing a powder blue waistcoat, he was glowing with pleasure. “It’s more immersive this year, two and a half times bigger,” he grinned. “There’s more outdoor sculpture, galleries for rising young artists.” Then, there is the Mumbai effect: “In Mumbai, you can do your own thing, you don’t have to follow. And the city’s spirit makes this like a festival. We hope people will make several visits, and bring their families for a fun outing. The fair is a celebration of the city and its art.”
As I diligently explored a good number of the 71 gallery spaces, 21 outdoor sculpture locations, and a handful of special pavilions, Dinesh’s views were confirmed and amplified by gallerists, artists and visitors. Indeed, it was universal — a rare achievement as the art world is not short on bad-mouthing.
Senior artist K.S. Radhakrishnan was ambling from space to space, taking in the art while greeting friends. “I missed the last one,” he told me, as his own retrospective was on show in Delhi — a good reason. What impressed him was “the young people starting galleries with young artists and buyers. Not we old ones!” He continued: “We must have this kind of fair. Local people are less frightened to come here than into galleries. They are curious, anyone can come and be on the same platform, buy a small piece. There is a togetherness here.” Comparing it with the long-established Indian Art Fair in Delhi, he observed sharply: “Here there is more money but less home space, so pieces need to be smaller.”
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Anahita Taneja, director of Shrine Empire founded in Delhi in 2008, was emphatic. “This fair is going to bring Mumbai art out of the woodwork and bring the city together.” She explained that it is the logical development from Mumbai’s monthly Art Night Thursday, when galleries stay open until 9pm.
Portraits by Lalit Mohan Sen Courtesy Emami Art Gallery
Ushmita Sahu, director of Emami Art Gallery in Kolkata, is taking the opportunity to show a wider audience lesser-known artists from eastern India, including Lalit Mohan Sen and Prasanta Sahu. Anubhav Nath, founder-director of Delhi’s Ojas Art, also exposes the lesser-known and filled his space with indigenous artist Abhishek Singh’s storytelling pictures remembering a more harmonious world.
Artwork by Abhishek Singh
About a third of the exhibitors are Mumbai-based. Geeta Mehra of Sakshi Gallery, tucked into Pasta Lane in downtown Mumbai’s Colaba area, was already experiencing the fair’s potential: “It’s a great way to connect with fellow gallerists and new collectors. You may come to see one gallery but find me, too.”
Khorshed Pundole, whose father-in-law founded one of Mumbai’s first art galleries in 1963, by Flora Fountain, was pleased about the core Mumbai presence, adding “it’s also drawn galleries and collectors from across India because people love Mumbai and want an excuse to come here. So, the whole art community of India has come together”. Comparing it with Delhi’s fair, she believes there is room for both, “but pollution is a deterrent for Delhi, now”. I met one keen collector whose flight from Delhi had been delayed because of exceptionally high pollution.
Chetnaa, an artist who shows with Delhi and Mumbai galleries (and is with Sakshi Gallery at this fair), gives the final endorsement. “I feel Mumbai galleries are more professional in terms of work ethics,clarity. They are all about work, not politics. And having a good time, too.”