Visitors at the newly opened Museum of Art and Photography. Image by Murali Kumar K. Source: Internet
A new venue for art lovers: MAP, Bangalore is open for public
The newly opened Museum of Art & Photography (MAP) in Bengaluru welcomed its first visitors in Feb, offering a glimpse of around 60,000 works that would refresh the subcontinent’s rich art history.
Supported by cutting-edge technology, the museum is constructed on the pillars of an innovative digital format. Set across a new five-storey building, the private museum focuses on pre-modern, modern and contemporary art, and photography as well. The archive of textiles, craft and print advertising speaks of dissolving the distinction between fine art and everyday creativity, as the museum describes.
MAP’s founder, Abhishek Poddar, who happens to be among the country’s most prominent art collectors said, “The entire differentiation between ‘high’ art and ‘low’ art, decorative arts and fine arts, is not an Indian concept. It’s a very Western construct. That’s how we’ve grown up looking at it in museums, but that’s not how it is in life.” Bollywood memorabilia and traditional woven fabrics share the spotlight with ancient bronzes and carved deities.
The private museum on Kasturba Road opened its doors with the inaugural series, ‘Art is Life: New Beginnings’. The series featured four exhibitions and several new commissions. Curated by the director of MAP, Kamini Sawhney, ‘Visible/Invisible’ includes works by leading artists such as Jamini Roy, Bhupen Khakhar, Arpita Singh, MF Hussain and showcases the role of women in art. Renowned Indian artist Jyoti Bhatt’s collection ‘Time and Time Again’, with more than 160 images, traces his path as a photographer. In the words of Sawhney, MAP’s collections are spread over six categories — premodern, modern and contemporary, textiles, photography, indigenous art, and popular culture such as Bollywood posters and film scripts. They tell the stories of various communities that make up India.
The MAP also featured LN Tallur’s series of sculptures and movies called ‘Chirag-e-Al’, which explores the link between artificial intelligence and ritualistic belief systems, appealing to viewers to consider humanity’s increasing reliance on technology. Before starting the physical museum this year, MAP was launched in digital avatar in 2020. In collaboration with Accenture, MAP launched India’s first digital persona of the celebrated artist, MF Husain, giving a unique digital experience using artificial intelligence to audiences of all ages.
Visitors at the newly opened Museum of Art and Photography. Image by Murali Kumar K. Source: Internet
By Rohan Mohanty Published on March 10, 2023
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