Hampi Art Labs to open near UNESCO Heritage Site, encourage artist interaction with local communities & landscape

Art show at Hampi Art Labs, cofounded by Sangita Jindal and Tarini Jindal Handa. (Image courtesy JSW Foundation)

Starting February 6, Hampi Art Labs, a new art residency-cum-exhibition space will host a group show with works by Bharti Kher (Sari-portraits), Reena Kallat (Vortex), Annie Morris, Manish Nai, Leena Kallat, Lubna Chowdhury, the late B.V. Doshi, and Dayanita Singh, among others. The artworks are all from the private collection of Sangita Jindal, who is also the cofounder of Hampi Art Labs along with her daughter, Tarini Jindal Handa.

Called ‘Right Foot First’, Hampi Art Labs' first art show, curated by Phalguni Guliani, explores the idea of progress or putting one foot in front of the other.

Hampi Art Labs: Idea and location

Located 35 km from Hampi, Toranagallu - a small town in Bellary - is home to Hampi Art Labs that is set to open its doors in the first week of February.

Designed by Mumbai-based architect Sameep Padora from studio sP+a, Hampi Art Labs is an ode to the local organic forms and uses soil, stone, and steel from the region. As you enter, you see a nonlinear structure supported by ombre stone that's a striking contrast to the green landscape. It is a fitting introduction for what is inside: a sprawling facility spread over 9 acres, housing artist production facilities, galleries, exhibition spaces, studios and apartments for residencies, and a café. The space is an initiative of the JSW Foundation, the social development arm of the JSW Group.

(Image courtesy JSW Foundation)

“This is a residency based on artistic practice and a space for artists who intend to extend their practice or reinvent themselves. We do not expect that the artists give something at the end of the residency but encourage them to participate in community outreach projects. Most importantly, we want to develop this kind of the local artisanal practice and how artists like contemporary artists can respond to it,” explains Meera Curam, Residency Director, Hampi Art Labs.

Being close to the UNESCO world heritage site Hampi, its riverine landscape and boulders are not just the inspiration for the design but are also expected to influence the artists in residence.

Sangita Jindal, who is also chairperson of JSW Foundation, says, “We will have a lot of interaction with the community, and we will provide an ecosystem that will facilitate this. Artists have a huge foreground and access to make this happen. We will provide equipment here for large scale work and this will be a production facility for the artist as well.”

The production facilities at Hampi Art Labs include workshops for printmaking, stone and metal sculpture, ceramics, and new media. Creative Director, Tarini Jindal Handa, who worked closely on the design of the space, adds, “This is a space that encourages a cross-disciplinary approach to artmaking and driving engagement with the region's heritage and artisanal legacy alongside India's contemporary arts scene.”

The artists are paid a per diem allowance as well as a budget allocated for their production facilities. This apart, accommodation and commuting expenses are also borne by the JSW Foundation.

Artist Residency

HAL currently has five artists in residency. An 825 sq. ft studio, with abundant natural light and facilities, is assigned to each of them to help them explore their creativity. Artists for the next cohort starting in April 2024 have been chosen by an open call - the candidates were screened by a jury, to ensure that a mix of artists working in different art forms.

Current resident and a Rajasthan-based Indian sculptor Anirudh Shaktawat says that he wanted to spend time outside a sales system to produce work that is experimental. “There are no restrictions here and this gives me an opportunity to invest fully in what I want to do. The space is well-equipped and the studio has access to everything I need, so I am hoping to investigate newer things in my work.”

Anirudh Shaktawat (Photo by Bindu Gopal Rao)

Sharbendu De, a Sikkim-based contemporary lens-based artist, echoes this sentiment. “... this residency provides a huge amount of logistical and financial support for artists that will provoke a more conducive response from other patron players.”

The current set of artists-in-residence also includes Bhasha Chakrabarti, based in the US who is using the space to explore oil painting coming from a background in textiles and print making. “I use fabric explicitly in the subject matter I am working on and I am quite interested in the local weaving traditions, working with waste as well as understanding the use of banana fibre in this region.”

Promiti Hossain, a Bangladeshi painter who is based in Santiniketan, hopes to visit Hampi several times to gather more information on its history. “I work on socio-political and gender discrimination in Bangladesh and I use historical monument images in my drawings. I look at these monuments from a non-religious lens and I am hoping to incorporate these sketches from the craft and culture angle. I am planning to do a community interaction here and share my thoughts as well as learn from some of the weaving community members here.”

Bhasha Chakrabarti (Photo by Bindu Gopal Rao)

Goa-based Madhavi Gore, a painting and performance artist who dabbles in several formats, says that a spinning session with a master spinner on a charka has been quite an eye-opener for her. “This is such an amazing practice that we must bring back. I am interested in contemporary art language and the critical engagement of it as well as the aesthetic of abstraction and craft practices like basket making that always has my attention.”

Right Foot First is on at the Hampi Art Labs from February 6 to May 31, 2024.