Nine female artists from India are part of the third edition of the International collaborative art project, Artdom: Building Bridges with Art (Countries in Focus: UK & India). A preview of this collaboration between artists from India and UK will be held in Mumbai on 17 February.
Founded by Swedish-Iranian artist and activist Arghavan Agida, Artdom “aims to amplify the voices of female artists on a global scale through art and creativity.” The last two editions paired artists from Sweden and Iran and Norway and Pakistan.
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Agida– a former Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Women National Committee in Sweden—started this collaboration to highlight two countries with different levels of women’s rights. This year, with equality as the theme, the project is coming to India.
For this collaboration, a UK artist was paired with a Indian artist: Rosso Emerald Crimson and Nilisha Phad, Melissa Magg and Nidhi Mariam Jacob, Anna Sudbina and Premila Singh, Sarah Jarrett and Manjri Varde, Amy Dury and Sej, Naila Hazell and Atia Sen, Jackie Berridge and Monica Ghule, Harriet Pattinson and Bhakti Lad and Mahshad Afshar and Karishma Wadhwa.
Five of these nine finished pieces will be showcased in the preview before public exhibitions in Oslo and London later this year, according to a press release.
“I chose India and United Kingdom because these two countries have a deep relationship and shared history, and such a project helps to create a deeper understanding and appreciation for different cultures and ways of life. My new goal is to create a platform where more people can connect and create together,” Agida explains.
Singh whose shared artwork with Sudbina, Diva and DIVINE will be displayed at the preview says this method of starting a dialogue between two strangers will provide “a kaleidoscopic insight to the spectator.”
Social media star, Varde, popularly known as ‘Sassy Sassu’ collaborated with Jarrett who chose to interpret equality through nature. “That we are one with our earth is such an inherent element I wonder how so many people don’t understand it,” she says. Their artwork, Divine Feminine, will also be part of the preview.
The preview will be held at The Quorum, Mumbai on 17 February.
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