In an attempt to expand the notion of art, the project Five Million Incidents was conceived by Goethe-Institut/Max Mueller Bhavan, in collaboration with Raqs Media Collective. The platform is hosting more than 40 young artists, from actors and dancers to visual artists and filmmakers and more, from across India, showcasing their unique artwork and skills.
There is a set of questions behind the project says Dr Leonhard Emmerling, Director Programmes South Asia from Max Muller Bhavan. “Firstly, there is the question of hospitality. Goethe-Institut is a guest in this country, but curating events here makes us a host at the same time. So, we wanted to understand the limits to hospitality. This leads to another question, what are the limits of a public space?
While we claim to offer a space for conversations and dialogues, we also need to ask ourselves: are there are any limits to it? These are the questions we are exploring by opening up, stepping back from doing our own programme and handing it to an artists’ collective to decide what should be shown at Goethe-Institut,” shares Emmerling.
He believes that there are times this idea really works with events happening simultaneously, cross pollinate and there is discussion between artists who have never met each other. In the process, they end up happily discovering things common to between them.
About selecting the final 40, first, an open call was given for any artist in India to apply. Each round received roughly 200-220 applications. A jury then decided on the projects, depending on the quality of the proposal and its feasibility.
For Emmerling, an art historian, the beauty of the project is that so many artists from different backgrounds have applied.
“While the existence of some are known, 90 per cent of those working here were neither present in any commercial gallery or any project space. The beauty of the project is how it taps into a big pool of productivity and creativity while providing them the visibility that they were yet to receive. So, we did a job that no one else did and what is more satisfying is the happy faces and the rich interactions people have,” says Emmerling. With this, Goethe-Institut has, in a way, changed into a community art center.
While the project will be wrapped up in April, Goethe-Institute/Max Mueller Bhavan will be continuing the same but on a smaller scale.
“We will publish a call for applications, but produce a small number of projects. The jury will select three or five projects per year and they will be given a production grant, making it possible for them to develop it further. We will try to help young talented people foster their career,” concludes Emmerling.