Art curation workshop by Anja Ellenberger

In a first-of-its-kind initiative to foster intense discussions for curators in India, 50 artists and art researches participated in the three-day ‘Art Curation’ workshop on Tuesday.

The workshop, which is being conducted by German Curator and Associate Professor at the Institute of Media and Communication, University of Hamburg, Anja Ellenberger, is supported by the Ministry of Culture, Hamburg, and organised by ‘Kalakriti Art Gallery’ and ‘Goethe-Zentrum’, Hyderabad.

Bringing together curators from twin cities, the topic discussed on the first day was ‘Formal Training of Artists and Art Historians’. Upcoming topics include ‘Social Context of Art: What Makes Artists Tick in India and Germany?’

Speaking at the inaugural day, Amita Desai, the Director of Goethe-Zentrum, said, “In our country curation is mostly a hands on experience of enthusiasts, a way of attempts and failures, while in European countries art curation has a long tradition. It is also a subject studied at university.”

Speaking on the workshops conducted in the city, Anja Ellenberger shared, “It was an enriching experience for me and the participants. There are a lot of questions and I feel the participants are eager to learn and to do more. They outrun the plan and I’m excited about the outcome.”

The residency will culminate in an exhibition at the Kalakriti Art Gallery, where the works of the participants will be exhibited.