First joint-expo of S.Korea, Maharashtra artists opens in Mumbai

Around 120 leading artists from South Korea and more than 70 from Maharashtra are participating in a first-ever joint six-day-long exhibition "Beyond The Frames" which opened here on Saturday, an official said.

The first edition of the Mumbai-South Korea Biennial, the expo was described as "a life-affirming event for the contemporary art scene of the two countries," by Vishwanath Sabale, Dean of the prestigious Sir J.J. School of Arts (SJJSA), which is hosting the event on its campus in south Mumbai.

The event has been jointly organised and produced by SJJSA and South Korea's K-Art International Exchange Association (K-AIEA), in association with Chennai's Inko Centre.

Maharashtra Cultural Affairs Minister Vinod Tawade inaugurated the function at a function on the SJJSA campus.

The artists from South Korea and Mumbai are showcasing an array of works creating on different concepts concerning their inner perceptions, cultural identity, cultural exchange, freedom of expression and social cohesion, besides strengthening cultural relations, he said.

"It also brings together key speakers, world-renowned artists, art historians, gallerists, curators, museum heads, critics, collectors and arts students to discuss a diverse range of art-related topics. We expect the six-day event to be a visual delight for all the stakeholders," Sabale added.

The exhibition displays different styles of paintings, print-making and abstracts, all ranging from 'clearly striking' to 'utterly remarkable' by the South Korean artists and the SJJSA students and faculty.

The Mumbai-South Korea Biennial has been conceptualised and curated by K-AIEA Chairperson and Curator Heo Sook, Sabale, Inko Centre Director Rathi Jafar and event coordinator Smita Kinkale.

Some of the prominent artists who have arrived here from South Korea for the exhibition are Kim Youngwoon, Choi Sungwon, Ju Mihyang, Kim Oksuk, Kim Sunam, Lee Sunhee, among others.

Joining them are well-known contemporary artists from Maharashtra including Uttam Pacharne, Tanuja Rane, Deepak Shinde, Ganpat Majgaonkar, Yashwant Deshmukh, Vilas Shinde, Minal Damani, Kishor Thakur, Ratnadeep Adivarekar, Nilesh Kinkale, Sanjay Sawant, Anand Prabhudesai, R. B. Holle, Rajesh Pullarwar and Pandurang Tathe.

--IANS

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