Friday 19th April 2024
Nepal, the nation of art and culture, will now showcase its skill and talent at the international front!
In a first of its kind initiative, 37 contemporary Nepali artists are preparing to present more than 90 artworks in 2019 at the Weltmuseum, Vienna.
The exhibition is a brainchild of Weltmuseum Director & Chief Curator Christian Schicklgruber, Late Dina Bangdel and Nepal Art Council Swosti Rajbhandari Kayastha.
The various artworks will remain on display in Vienna between April 11 – November 5, 2018.
Expressing his excitement, Schicklgruber said, “Such an expansive exhibition of modern Nepali art since the introduction of modern art in Nepal since 50s to innovations in abstract, mixed-media and repousse work has not been displayed internationally before.”
“This will be a monumental, landmark exhibition,” added Kayastha.
It all began with an idea in 2015 when the Schicklgruber-Bangdel duo visited Singapore with the hope of setting up an exhibition on Nepali art from 10th – 18th century.
“Then I thought to myself, Nepali art did not stop in the 18th century,” said Schicklgruber.
Bangdel then recreated the concept to showcase the entire trousseau of Nepali contemporary art. The duo put together a list of 80 artists for the exhibition. But after Bangdel’s demise in 2017, Kayastha was roped in to downsize the number of artists, making it a more manageable number.
The new duo shortlisted 37 artists specializing in traditional artworks including Paubha and Mithila art, abstract art and sculptures.
“We wanted to create a chronology of Nepali art,” said Kayastha.
The curators, who spent two months visiting artist studios picked artist creations from their own studios and private collections including works of Birendra Shahi, Prabhakar Shumsher, Prithvi Pande and Siddhartha Art Foundation.
The artists appearing at the exhibition include Nepali modern pioneers such as Lain Singh Bangdel, Laxman Shrestha and Shashi Shah, and contemporary artists such as Manish Babu Mishra, Samundra Man Singh, Manish Hairjan and Rajini Upadhyay.
One of the primary aims of the exhibition is to introduce an international audience to the glory of Nepali contemporary art.
“Nepal is known only for its ancient art and culture. We want to change that and show the world our contemporary art,” said Sagar SJB Rana, Project Coordinator.
The ancient city of Vienna is home to some of the greatest artists and art revolutions. This makes it the ideal location to showcase Nepali art to Europe and the world beyond.
Nepal Art Council at Babar Mahal is currently showcasing all the works that will be featured at the Weltmuseum, until December 21, 2018.
