Mentor
Navroze Contractor
Navroze Contractor grew up in Ahmedabad. His interest in cinema took him to the Film and Television Institute of India, Pune. He has been the cinematographer for many path-breaking and award-winning feature films. He is one of the biggest contributors to the documentary scene, worldwide. He has had five one-man shows of his still photography: one in Bombay, two in Bangalore and two in San Francisco, USA. His photographs of jazz musicians are in the collection of the Smithsonian Museum. He has conducted photography and film workshops at the School of Architecture and NID at Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, Pomona State University, California and at the University of the Andes in Venezuela. He also conducts photography workshops in primary schools around India.Curator
Arpita Dhagat
A Founder Member of Astitva Art Foundation, Arpita presently works as a Cultural Outreach Programmer with LEAF Foundation. She is a performer and performance maker, with a specialization in design and theatre techniques from the National School of Drama, New Delhi (2010-13). Arpita is keen on different mediums of artistic expression and how it changes the equation between the audience and the artist.Gallery
Artists
Toral Vyas
Artist
Toral Vyas comes from a finance background, owns an advertising agency, and manages a creative studio. What started as a hobby has now become her passion. She is interested in travel, street and documentary photography. She has exhibited her work as part of several group shows and did a solo show on the kids of the Visamo Foundation, “Visamo… स्कूल चले हम…” Once Upon A Time Photographs have the ability to tell stories in a unique manner. Rearrange them, and you can create new stories. This photography exhibition documents children from the organization Visamo Kids, as characters from the Panchatantra…
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Sumedh Kumar
Artist
Sumedh was born in Hyderabad. He did his post-graduation from M.S University, Vadodara in Print Making. He had received a scholarship from Telugu University for his higher studies. He has also received the Hyderabad Art Society Award. His work has been exhibited in Delhi, Mumbai, Vadodara, and Ahmedabad. Installation – Home Sounds create associations – they are powerful and imperative in providing a holistic experience. This installation creates the sense of objects – the sense of a home – only through sounds. It enables the audiences to navigate what is essentially an empty space, while constantly giving them a sense…
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Pinki Godiawala
Artist
As a student of Padmabhushan Shri Dashrath Patel, she looks at art in varied facets of life. Her art pursuits have introduced her to different mentors and skills. Among her many social associations, Yuva Unstoppable – an NGO for benefit of underprivileged children – is a major part of where she is involved as a Founder Trustee. Installation – Life On Bicycle The bicycle is not just a symbol for transportation, but also rather a symbol for various occupations. In the country, cycles have facilitated various professions, and have helped sustain them in ever-changing times. This photography exhibition is as…
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Pallavi Jain
Artist
Pallavi Jain is an Architect and Designer. She graduated in 2016 from UAL, London in MA Designer Maker: Visual Art. Presently she is working as a Freelance Interior Designer and with craftsmen on developing her furniture palate. Her focus is to work with Indian handicraft and develop it to the next level. Installation – A Woven Story Made from discarded or waste material, this is an interactive installation. The process of creation explores various techniques of weaving. This installation is a woven structure that speaks to the location.
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Mitul Kajaria & Piyush Pandya
Artist
Mitul Kajaria is a self-taught photographer who has experimented with multiple genres of photography. His work has been awarded internationally in competitions by the Barbican, London and Indiafrica, along with competitions across the country including ‘Better Photography – POY’, and architectural photography competition by IIA amongst others. Piyush Pandya is an Architect and Urbanist by training. His poems bring together obsolete words and idioms from Hindi and Urdu. He has performed in the city on several occasions and his poems have been published in reputed magazines including HindYugm. Installation – Daheri In a world where boundaries are constantly defined and…
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Jigna Gaudana
Artist
Jigna Gaudana is an artist based in Ahmedabad. She completed her Diploma Program in Fine Arts from C.N. College of Fine Arts. After completing her diploma she completed a one-year certificate course in Art History and Aesthetics from the M.S.University, Vadodara and then Masters in Indian Culture from B.J. Institute of Learning and Research, Ahmedabad. Her works have been awarded by Gujarat Lalit Kala Akademi, Ahmedabad. She was also the recipient of the Junior Research Fellowship for the years 2012 – 2013 from the Ministry of Culture. Her works were displayed in many groups shows at Ahmedabad, Baroda, Mumbai, Pune,…
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Isha Talsania & Abhinav Mishra
Artist
Abhinav and Isha share the fundamental research-based approach towards arts through critical examination and documentation of the society. They are interested in incorporating appropriate technologies and interactivity to engage audiences. Installation – What Is That Sound Close your eyes and focus focus on the sounds you hear around you. Each sound brings with it a host of memories. What about the sounds we have lost, then? What about those memories, those associations? It is these ideas that this installation a sound museum explores. By recording and recreating sounds that we have lost over time or will lose in the near…
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Himanshu Panchal
Artist
Himanshu is an accountant turned photographer/printer. He is associated with Rangjyot (Digital Archiving and Fine Art Printing Services) at Navajivan Trust. Subjects connected with socio-economic and cultural aspects of life, interest him. He has participated in several group shows across India and a solo -show at Founders Art Gallery, George Mason University, VA, US. Installation – A Breath Of Fresh Air Imagine being identified by only the mistakes you have made. Imagine, that for years on end, you have been unable to make decisions, and guide your life. While scary, this has been the reality for many individuals who are…
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Hasmukh Makwana
Artist
Hasmukh holds a diploma in applied arts from Sheth C.N. College of Fine Arts and from the Faculty of Fine Arts at MSU, Vadodara. His work usually revolves around routine life. He observes, notices, visualizes and reflects on his perspective on it. He ignites his imagination through elements like rozi-roti, struggle, traditional artefacts, vintage substances, literature, and childhood memories. Installation – Walk A Mile In Their Shoes Stories we are surrounded by them. Every day, we become a part of new stories, and our stories become intertwined with others. These become records of our lives – they become memories.The installation…
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Drashti Dhagat
Artist
Drashti is a founder member and teacher at Astitva Art Foundation. She has completed her Master’s in History and Diploma in Fine Arts from C. N. College of Fine Arts. Her works are majorly centred around abstract art. Her conversation with colour and composition plays a major role in defining the work that she does. Installation – My City, My World Cities are fast becoming microcosms of the larger world we live in – a world that is complex, and layered. The city offers a host of experiences unique to the individual but still linked with the experiences of others….
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Dhrupad Shukla
Artist
Dhrupad tries to abstract all artificial elements from the subject and their environment as he strives to achieve an effect that looks extremely realistic. Shooting with a wide-angle focus enables him to capture as much space from the person’s natural environment as possible and he continues to grapple with the challenge of shooting the subject till he achieves a sense of satisfaction with the result. Installation – Now You See It How does one navigate, even in familiar spaces, without the ability to see where one is going? This photography exhibition tries to explore the question by documenting the lives…
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Akup Buchem
Artist
Akup’s work is inspired by his personal environment and abandonment, ruin, and survival. These have also become defining themes for the works that he undertakes as an artist. He is most interested in the theme of abandonment. Reverance Heritage it is as defining as it is intangible. With changing definitions, its symbolizations have evolved. This installation presents 10,000 replications of moulds made from elements present in heritage homes at a miniature scale. While the individual elements of the installation are small in size, the scale of the overall installation promises to be overwhelming.
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Arpita Dhagat
Artist
A Founder Member of Astitva Art Foundation, Arpita presently works as a Cultural Outreach Programmer with LEAF Foundation. She is a performer and performance maker, with a specialization in design and theatre techniques from the National School of Drama, New Delhi (2010 -13). Arpita is keen on different mediums of art expression and how it changes the equation between the audience and the artist. Ukhana “Off with their heads!” Words were immortalized by the Queen of Hearts in the much-beloved book Alice in Wonderland. The story is appealing to the sensibilities of children as well as adults.This interactive installation is…
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