A new Khoj

A revamped Khoj studio aims to be a “well-contained mini institution” for art

As you walk through the cobbled, crooked lanes of Khirki village in Saket, a strange sight meets the eye. Local children play with flat tyres, hawkers sell chana jor garam outside dilapidated buildings, while local artists sit idle discussing current affairs. What you don’t expect to find is a studio for artists — equipped with a living hostel, a media lab for sound and editing, a library, an ‘experimental’ project space theatre and a cafeteria — spread across 400 square yards within the neglected village.

As an initiative of the Khoj International Artists’ Foundation, the studio is being renovated to encourage young artists as well as emerging art practices. Part of the Triangle Arts Trust, Khoj was founded in 1997 and has been working to promote new, investigative and experimental art practices across the country, such as media art, public and community based art, environmental, sound, video and other experimental modes of cultural production.

Referring to itself as an ‘artist- led foundation’, Khoj has enjoyed the support of 40 renowned artists such as Subodh Gupta, Bharti Kher, Manu Parekh, Reena Saini Kallat, Sarnath Banerjee, Anita Dube, Sumedh Rajendran, Anjum Singh and more. What’s more, each of them has willingly come forward and donated his or her work to raise funds for a revamp of the new studio.  

Parekh recalls his early days as a painter and the struggle that followed. “When you’re young, fresh out of college, and wish to take up an unconventional art practice, it is crucial to find some sort of aid,” he stresses. “By doing this, Khoj is encouraging young artists to engage their curiosities and explore creativity.” Bringing art into the public domain provides a platform to budding artists, he believes.

Pooja Sood, director, Khoj, agrees. “The purpose of Khoj is to provide an interactive space for artists from different backgrounds to work together, live together,” she says. Calling the studio a “well-contained mini institution”, she highlights the need for a non-profit space for art — Khoj is one such space that promotes “art for art’s sake”.

But why choose a location like the Khirki village, drowning in architectural neglect and ruin? Low property rates are a huge incentive of course. “The location also gives the artist a well-rounded perspective of India. The artists often interact with the Khirki community, making them subjects for their art.”

With air-conditioned malls across the road facing the small village, the artist gets a glimpse of the two Indias that co-exist, believes Sood.

The fundraiser — to be held on November 6 at Neeti Bagh’s Gallery Nature Morte in the evening — will see works of prominent artists being sold at lower prices. Titled ‘A Gift for Khoj’, the collection has been divided into three limited edition portfolios. The photography portfolio contains 12 original signed photographs by artists such as Amar Kanwar, Anita Dube, Anay Mann, Atul Bhalla and Avinash Veeraraghavan. With 25 editions in all, each one is sold at Rs 3 lakh.

The second edition will have 11 sculptures, priced at Rs 50,000. Finally, the third edition will be a painting portfolio with 18 original drawings by artists Adip Dutta, Aditya Pande, Archana Hande, Ashim Purkayastha, Debnath Basu and more. There are five portfolios in all and each portfolio of 18 drawings will be available at Rs 800,000.

Khoj also offers international and curatorial residencies giving an opportunity to the artists to showcase their work at the studio. Exploring territories such as the nexus between art and science and sonic art, Khoj provides a space to artists from Pakistan, Germany, Indonesia and Brazil to work together for six weeks.

While the studio in Khirki is scheduled to be ready by the end of this year, applications for the residencies will be open to all online.