Adding more merry to the festive season, the countdown to the country’s biggest art carnival has begun. The sixth edition of the 110-day Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB), titled For the Time Being, will open on December 12.
TNIE walked the Biennale route in the Fort Kochi - Mattancherry area to get a sense of how preparations are shaping up for the mega festival. There is indeed an air of excitement and suspense around the venues.
Artists, officials, contractors, architects, and workers are racing to ready all venues for the opening day. Tourists, meanwhile, pause to enquire about the goings-on.
Hearing hammering and welding sounds from the heritage structure of Arthshila Kochi, a German tourist asks whether a renovation was under way. “No, it’s the Kochi Biennale,” replies a young volunteer, who goes on to explain the nitty gritty.
Though initially disappointed that he would miss the event because of his holiday schedule, the tourist brightens up upon learning the Biennale runs until March. “Oh, so I will plan another trip… I will be back here,” he beams.
This year’s Biennale will showcase 66 artist projects from more than 25 countries, under the curatorial direction of Nikhil Chopra with HH Art Space, Goa. Eight venues will host the highlight exhibitions.
St Andrew Parish Hall (Students’ Biennale), Fort Kochi
This heritage hall will host budding artists from across India, transforming its corners, walls, and floors with their creations. A key highlight is the display of works by young artists from the northeast, curated by the Anga Art Collective.
Introducing two young women artists from Arunachal Pradesh’s Adi tribe in Upper Siang district, the curator notes that their project addresses menstrual issues. Overall, there will be 10 projects from the northeast.
Another standout is an interactive project on Naturalism by Mahalakshmi, an MFA student from Chennai. Additional Students’ Biennale venues include BMS Warehouse, SPACE, Arthshila, and VKL Warehouse. The hall will also feature invitation projects.
Arthshila Kochi (Students’ Biennale), Fort Kochi
This revitalised heritage structure on Parade Road will house installations, new media works, documentary projects, and site-responsive pieces. Students’ Biennale projects here explore material ecologies, migration, digital identities, and climate anxieties — concerns resonating strongly with emerging artists across the subcontinent.
David Hall, Fort Kochi
Built around 1695 by the Dutch East India Company as the residence of Governor Hendrik Adriaan van Rheede tot Drakenstein, David Hall will soon feature artwork by an artist from Nairobi. The project is curated by the Nairobi Contemporary Art Institute (NCAI). The building later took its name from Jewish businessman David Koder.
Other invitation venues include Space, Simi Warehouse, Oottupura, Jail of Freedom Struggle, and Devassy Jose & Sons, which will also host residencies.
Pepper House, Fort Kochi
A central courtyard installation by Utsa Hazarika — an artist and writer based in New York — will anchor the space. Her research-driven practice spans video, installation, and sculpture.
Anand Warehouse, Mattancherry
A major draw here will be Parliament of Ghosts by Ibrahim Mahama, known for large-scale collaborative installations, drawings, and sculptures. The project is being realised with the labour of Mattancherry women and materials sourced from local furniture shops. It is supported by the Sandeep and Gitanjali Maini Foundation. Nine artists will exhibit at this venue.
Simi Warehouse, Mattancherry
Alice Yard, a contemporary art collective from Trinidad and Tobago, will present An Instigator’s Handbook for Play, Friendship, Generosity and Autonomy.
SPACE, Mattancherry
Artists Jyoti Bhatt and Sujith S N will feature as part of the KMB exhibition here, alongside invitation and Students’ Biennale projects.
Cube Art Space, Mattancherry
This venue will host the final work by celebrated artist Vivan Sundaram, who passed away in 2023 — ‘Six Stations of a Life Pursued’, a photography-based installation. It is structured as a journey marked by six “stations”, each a pause to release pain, witness beauty, confront horror, relinquish memory, and reclaim life.
Aspinwall House & Director’s Bungalow, Fort Kochi
The Biennale’s most prestigious venue is nearing completion and promises to impress visitors.
Installations and projects are being set up in the coir godown and the director’s bungalow, while the garden will feature three outdoor installations, each presenting distinct concepts and visions. Twenty-five artists will exhibit here.
The Pavilion, Bastion Bungalow, Fort Kochi
Expected to be one of the liveliest venues, this Pavilion will host performances, sessions, and talks, and can accommodate around 250 people. Adjacent to it is a dedicated space for the Art by Children (ABC) project, which will also run near the Fort Kochi Water Metro terminal.
New additions
Other noteworthy venues include Willingdon Island Warehouse, hosting 12 artists including Marina Abramovi and Sabitha Kadannappally, and Durbar Hall, where works by Gulam Mohammed Sheikh will be shown, curated by the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art.