Kochi: Archaeology has become a tool of interactive art for Afghan artist Amanullah Mojadidi, who is working on a multi-media land installation art at the Kochi-Muziris Biennale beginning on Dec 12. Amanullah has replicated an archaeological dig - on an 8x10 sq ft plot of land - at the Aspinwall House, a colonial relic in the historic quarters of Fort Kochi by the harbour to explore the threads between migration, dislocation, subversion of history through archaeological manipulations and clash of Sufi and Sunni Islam. Forty-one-year-old Amanullah, who was born in Jacksonville in the US, works from Kabul where he campaigns for freedom through his art. He shows his works around the world.
One of his installations, "Jihadi Gangster" - a series of photographs about a day in the life of a "neo-jihadi" - shot at a bling art performance last year ran into trouble with the authorities. The series emerges from the conflict between civil society that is trying to rebuild the new Afghanistan and the hardline fundamentalists still at work. In his homeland, Amanullah has been received with critical acclaim for his radical post-modern and conceptual art that draws from the current social realities of Afghanistan.
The installation at the Kochi Biennale is essentially a series of earth patterns, made of a trench - a shallow horizontal mud basin hosting the remains of a home supposedly belonging to an "exiled Afghan businessman". A camp office next to the dig - made of tin and mud - serves
01:39 PM, Dec 04, 2012
New Delhi: Site-specific art, which can hardly hope to find buyers among private collectors, is largely dependent for survival on its ability to be socially engaging. It helps, of course, if it could also get funds from corporate houses or governments. Site-specific art had a spell of popularity in India in the mid-1990s, in large open venues like public spaces, or outside museums. Since then, it has been shrinking to...
11:26 AM, Nov 30, 2012
New Delhi: For leading multimedia contemporary artist Paresh Maity, a globalised painter with an eye for diversity of Indian life, "identity is very important for any form of art to flourish". "I can be removed from my own heritage, but I cannot lose touch with it. Proper globalisation of Indian art is possible only when heritage meets modernity. If there is no root, you are baseless," Maity told IANS. The...
09:11 AM, Nov 26, 2012
Hyderabad: The state government is all set to reinstall the 12 statues, of that of Telugu icons from Coastal Andhra, on Tank Bund that were vandalised by Telangana activists during the Million March of the Telangana agitation in March 2010. An additional statue of Komaram Bheem of Adilabad district, who fought against the Nizams, would also be installed. The Cultural Department will take up the work from October 1 as...
02:15 PM, Sep 24, 2012
BANGALORE: Ushering in a multitude of international names, Namma Bengaluru has now emerged as the new development destination of the country.Apart from experiencing dramatic social and cultural changes with the expansion of information technology and other industries, the city has also undergone a huge change with respect to the cultural and social structure.Today, Bangalore has evolved from being a pensioners paradise to the Silicon Valley of India.Keeping in mind, the...
08:31 AM, Apr 26, 2012
New Delhi: The Intelligence Bureau has warned of a new terror plot -- to turn ships into deadly bombs, but no lessons appear to have been learnt from the Mumbai attacks. Vital off shore installations are under threat as Intelligence agencies had intercepted a specific threat just days after the audacious attack on Pakistans Mehra Naval base. But multiple coastal security agencies have only led to more confusion on jurisdiction....
09:54 PM, Jun 21, 2011
The two sides also exchanged fresh lists of prisoners. ...
01:01 PM, Jan 01, 2009
Events in public areas in the big cities in no small task. ...
04:09 AM, Dec 14, 2008
Video installation art is a genre that's an international rage. ...
03:52 AM, Aug 01, 2008
Chennai: Graeme Swann is eager to atone for his foul-mouthed rant during England's defeat by Bangladesh when they face the West Indies in a must-win World Cup match in Chennai. England need to beat the Caribbean side on Thursday if they are to have any chance of reaching the quarterfinals and at the same time hope other results go their way. Swann was caught swearing on air during England's two-wicket...
12:54 AM, Jan 02, 2008
In this week’s segment of
Art of Investing, CNN-IBN meets one of the biggest names in Indian insallation art. ...
11:18 AM, May 01, 2007
India and Pakistan on Monday exchanged lists of nuclear installations and facilities. ...
03:40 PM, Jan 01, 2007
Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil has said India's critical infrastructure, oil rigs and atomic plants are on Lashkar-e-Toiba’s target. ...
05:13 PM, Nov 22, 2006
One of the best-known names in installation art in the world, Anish Kapoor, now has his first major display in NY. ...
06:09 PM, Sep 20, 2006
