Here and Now: Where modernity meets tradition

Each year, 1 Shanti Road selects a handful of emerging artists to participate in the residency program ‘NEXT-STEP’. Anisha Baid, Khandakar Ohida, Manjot Kaur, Shubham Kumar and Vikrant Kano will take over the space this year, as part of the artists-in-residence programme. The theme for 2019, “Here and Now,” maintains its focus on relevant conversations and current themes.

The artists, who come from Baroda, Delhi, Calcutta, Bodhgaya and Chandigarh, representing a wide spectrum of culture and experiences, will showcase their work at the gallery this weekend. New Media is the buzzword this year, with artists using soundscapes and video installations, which they incorporate into traditional media like sculpture and painting, too. For some, like Ohida, Kumar and Kano, whose work has been closely informed by their own roles and experiences in society, run common threads like hierarchy, history and heritage.

Anisha Baid, for example, takes the viewer on a digital journey, exploring the idea of the interface as a medium for human-computer interaction. Kaur comes with a background in painting but uses sound, time lapses and animation to represent the temporal, ephemeral and entropy within and surrounding our existence.

Anisha Baid, one of the artists-in-residence talks about how the experience was fueled by a bond created between the residents themselves. The residency began with five individuals coming together and being introduced to the history and heritage of a new city. It comes to an end with a showcase of their work and the sweetness of new bonds formed.

What: Open Studio
When: June 28
Where: 1 Shanthi Road