the street is our gallery

St+art Mumbai 2017 Urban Art Festival announces the Sassoon Dock ArtProject that aims to reintroduce the city to one of its lost spaces – SassoonDock!

The #sasoondockartproject is an experiential exhibition which will see the creation of site-specific installations, murals, audiovisual experiences, screenings, talks and curatedtours in an unconventional space of one of the busiest docks of Mumbai,nestled at thetip of Colaba. Over the next 2 months, the 142-year-old space of Sassoon Dock will betransformed into a public art exhibition that will delve deeper into the various layers ofthe city, and the multilayered contexts of the dock.

Sassoon Dock is where the city of Mumbai developed itself. A city, which is slowly headed towards becoming the largest in the world, still has pockets living in the past. Sassoon Dock is one such space – a place forgotten in time, invisible even to most locals. Sassoon Dock, which has remained locked for Mumbaikars so far, will be unlocked and activated with artworks, performances and other active installations. With support from Asian Paints and associations with Mumbai Port Trust (MBPT), Singapore Tourism Board, Bonjour India, Institut Français and JSW Group amongsta host of other partnerships with cultural institutions and embassies, St+art Mumbai 2017 will bring to Sassoon Dock 30 Indian and international artists between November 11-December 30. The aim is to create a temporary cultural hub and a provide a stimulating experience, open to everyone while working alongside the vibrant communityof locals and economies that are thriving in the area.

Giulia Ambrogi, Co-Founder & Festival Curator, St+art India Foundation said, ”Expanding at a very fast pace the city that never sleeps has spots lost in time. Everyonein Mumbai knows of Sassoon Dock but very few have ever stepped in. The aim of the Sassoon Dock Art Project is to unlock an area, which is ready to be discovered, enlightening its narratives through art interventions of international and unique Indian artists. The Sassoon Dock Art Project is an ecosystem of its own to experience in an overall dialogue between the finest contemporary global urban art and the deepest local traditions.”

Artist line up at Sassoon Dock Art Project:

Akash Raj Halankar (IN)
Arthat Collective (IN)
Asim Waqif (IN) & Lek (FR)
Avinash Kumar (IN)
AWP (FR)
Clemens Behr (DE)
Curiot (MX)
Darren Soh (SG)
Do & Khatra (IN)
Faizan Khatri (IN)
Furqan Jawed (IN)
Guido Van Helten (AU)
Hanif Kureshi (IN)
Hanisha Tirumalasetty (IN)
Inkbrushnme (IN) (Around the dock)
Inside Out Project (FR)
LIVIL (AT)
Pierre Guyot (IN)
Poornima Sukumar & Sadhna Prasad (IN)
Sajid Wajid Sheikh (IN)
Sameer Kulavoor (IN)
Shilo Shiv Suleman (IN)
Spy (SP) (Around the dock)
Tahska (IN)
Tan Zi Xi (SG)
The Big Fat Minimalist (IN)
The Fearless Collective (IN)
The Yok & Sheryo (SG)

Mr. Amit Syngle, President-Sales, Marketing, Technology & Home Improvement, Asian Paints Ltd. said “Like every year, we yet again hope to add a bit of vibrance to the city and uplift the moods, spirits and lives of the Mumbaikars. We want to take art to the masses and make it accessible to a wider range of spectators. The idea is to open spaces to dialogues, conversations and culture creation through the lens of the city.”

Hanif Kureshi, Co-Founder & Creative Director, St+art India Foundation said, “Sassoon Dock is surrounded by many established art galleries, but most of the local community is not aware of it. Same way people outside the docks have only heard of Sassoon Dock, but not many people have ventured inside. With this project, we invite all Mumbaikars to come and discover the new side of the city and experience art at this unexpected place. Sassoon Dock Art Project makes our motto even more clear, which is ‘art for all’ and ‘all for art’.

There will be special schedules across weekends in November where the exhibition will transform into a pop-up cultural hub for various creative communities to come together. These weekends will see special programming with the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), Institut Francais and Bonjour India.

With the intent of creative and cultural exchange between India and Singapore, Sassoon Dock Art Project will see the Singapore Weekender with several Singaporean artists in association with Singapore Tourism Board’s new brand Passion Made Possible. Between November 17-19 Sassoon Dock will see artworks by The Yok & Sheryo, Tan Zi Xi, a Zine festival and screen printing workshop with Knuckles & Notch – a design + risograph press based in Singapore, an exhibition by photographer Darren Soh and film screenings by Objectifs Centre for Film and Photography, performances by Turntablist and Producer DJ KoFlow. The weekend will also see a unique collaboration between Chef Gresham Fernandes (Social) and Chef Bjorn Shen (Artichoke) both whose styles represent the cultural quirks and similarities Singapore and Mumbai share (we are both multicultural cities and we love our seafood!). The collaboration will create a sensorial showcase, which will reflect their passions, inspirations and styles. The menu will be available across all Social’s in Mumbai until December 2.

Mr. GB Srithar, Regional Director, South Asia Middle-east and Africa, Singapore Tourism Board said, “Singapore is popular as a family friendly destination. We are happy to partner with St+art India Foundation and Impresario Group, both players known to break boundaries in their own fields. Through this collaboration, we seek to present Singapore in a different light to the young adults and working millennial segments who travel for various pursuits. In showcasing Singaporean artistes’ work in line with our “Passion Made Possible” brand, we hope to entrench Singapore as an exciting lifestyle hot spot. Many travel interest triggers, like music, art and dining can be satiated in Singapore.”

The weekend with Bonjour India and Institut Français on November 24-26 will bring to the city iconic French photographer/ artist JR’s global participatory project ‘Inside Out Project’ whose large‐format street paste-up project celebrates identity and amplifies untold stories. The project will celebrate the vibrant and diverse fishermen communities of Sassoon Dock through photo blowups of portraits. This will be an extension of JR’s Inside Out Project whose work deals with commitment, freedom, identity and limits through close-up black and white portraits. Photographer/ Visual artist Akshat Nauriyal, who is also the Co-Founder of St+art India Foundation, spent the initial weeks of October researching the complexities of the Sassoon Dock area, getting in touch with local community leaders to get a sense of the diverse socio-cultural intricacies of the space. Through his research he found the region to be inhabited predominantly by the Koli, the Banjaara and the Ghati fishermen and women communities all co-existing in the micro economy of Sassoon Dock.

A pop-up studio was setup in Sassoon Dock where over the course of a week more than 150 portraits, which Akshat Nauriyal along with his assistant Pranav Gohil clicked. These portraits will now be blown up to large size prints which will be pasted across the dock with the intent of representing the people who have worked tirelessly behind the scenes for decades, mostly in anonymity, despite being one of the earliest settlers of the city, and being the source of most of the fish for the city of Mumbai. There will be a film screening about the project where Nauriyal will take people through the format and complexities of the project, followed by the screening of JR’s film ‘Women are heroes’.

The weekend will also see a talk by urban designers Faizan Khatri, AWP, Ayaz Basrai and Sameep Padora. Ella + Pitr, the French duo famous for creating art in aerially-viewed spaces will talk about their practices, choices and secrets behind their art interventions. The screening of their spectacular aerial videos as well as other works will follow the talk. Lek, famous for reclaiming abandoned public spaces for art will conduct a graffiti workshop that outlines the process and techniques behind graffiti art.
Dr. Bertrand de Hartingh, French Embassy in India – Counsellor for Cooperation and Cultural Affairs / French Institute in India – Country Director / Bonjour India General Curator said, “Institut français India has a long-standing relationship with St+art India Foundation. With Bonjour India it has developed into an even stronger partnership. St+art Urban Art Festival will animate Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Chandigarh with social innovation and urban art. Local and international artists will create works on site inspired by local stories and materials. Together these will tell each city their own stories. With murals, graffiti, audio-visual experiences, this tale of two countries will come together in one Indo-French moment.”

Sanjay Bhatia, Chairman, Mumbai Port Trust said, “With its historic legacy, Mumbai Port is pleased to be a part of the art exhibition at Sassoon Dock, which is the oldest dock from where the port has evolved over the past 150 years. The port has been a standing testimony of Mumbai’s evolution and this initiative of wall painting and its exhibition is a step further in this direction. We welcome the artists, both international and Indian in their journey to revamp the Sassoon Dock with their murals and take it to global limelight.”

About St+art India Foundation
St+art India Foundation is an organisation formed on the principle of ‘Art for All’ and works on art projects in public spaces. The aim of the foundation is to make art accessible to a wider audience by taking it out of the conventional gallery space and embedding it within the cities we live in – making art truly democratic and for everyone.

Across the past 3 years, the foundation has organised 6 St+art festivals and numerous public art projects in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad creating iconic landmarks within all these cities. Each new edition of festivals and public art districts brings to civic spaces curated interventions, which are embedded in urban culture, and activate alternative spaces for art enabling people to reimagine how public spaces can be utilised.  For the foundation, which has been responsible for making urban art a movement in India, public art interventions are a celebration of the street as a canvas for visual creativity.

About Asian Paints
Since its foundation in 1942, Asian Paints has come a long way to become India’s leading and Asia’s fourth largest paint company, with a turnover of Rs. 170.85 billion. Asian Paints operates in 19 countries and have 26 paint manufacturing facilities in the world, servicing consumers in over 65 countries. Asian Paints has always been a leader in the paint industry, pushing new concepts in India like Colour Ideas, Home Solutions, Colour Next, and Kids’ World.

About Mumbai Port Trust
Playing a pivotal role in India’s economy, trade and commerce as the country’s premier port for several decades, Mumbai Port has long been the principal gateway to India. Even today, with the development of other ports, it caters to 10% of the country’s sea-borne trade handled by Major Ports of the country in terms of volume. Beyond trade and commerce, the port has always strived to maintain the ecological balance by opting for e-Waste disposal, tree plantation, Botanical garden and Central Kitchen garden among others.

About the Singapore Tourism Board
The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) is the lead development agency for tourism, one of Singapore’s key economic sectors. Together with industry partners and the community, we shape a dynamic Singapore tourism landscape. We bring the Passion Made Possible brand to life by differentiating Singapore as a vibrant destination that inspires people to share and deepen their passions. For more information, visit www.stb.gov.sg or www.visitsingapore.com or follow us on Twitter @STB_sg (https://twitter.com/stb_sg).

About Bonjour India
An Indo-French moment that unfolds in the four months from November 2017 to February 2018, Bonjour India will touch 33 cities in India with 100 programmes and 300 events to bring out the innovative and creative potential of both countries. Through partnerships in its three thematic pillars Smart Citizen, High Mobility and Go Green, Bonjour India will shape the next decade of human exchange between France and India.  Beyond what France is usually known for, Bonjour India sees a flourishing of partnership extending from the cultural field into the technological or environmental sectors. Bonjour India aims far, Bonjour India supports fair, Bonjour India is fun!

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