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CAA row in Goa fest, artworks taken down
Due to the ongoing unrest in Delhi, the Serendipity Arts Foundation saw many of its artworks removed. Art spaces in general should be made to function freely and openly to allow free speech.
Amid nationwide protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC), a few artworks in an exhibition curated by acclaimed artist Sudarshan Shetty which referenced the CAA at the ongoing Serendipity Arts Festival, were withdrawn.
Three of the 27 artworks in the exhibition titled “Look Outside This House”, curated by Shetty as part of the visual arts segment of the festival were found to be either removed, non-functional, or shut.
While the Serendipity Arts Foundation that organises the annual multi-disciplinary festival cited “technical glitch” as the reason, Shetty said he felt “troubled and pained at the situation we have come to”, and added that he stood by “each piece of work in the show”. He said “art spaces should be allowed to function freely and openly and must allow for free speech”.
A section on Miyah poetry, written by the Bengal-origin Muslims of Assam in their native dialects that describe the discrimination they experience in the state in view of the NRC process and which has even caused controversy in the home state of Assam, was shut down.
Another installation invited viewers to write on wall-sized canvases with ink created out of carbon in the air and featured some anti-CAB/NRC scribbles three days into the festival.
The third video, which was supposed to showcase sensor fitted goggles for the blind, carried the caption, “Due to the ongoing protests against the Citizenship Amendment Bill in the Northeast, we could not procure the goggles for the blind in time.”
“As far as the show I curated is concerned, why [should] a caption saying an artwork could not reach on time for the exhibition due to transportation delays due to CAB protests in the North East be a problem?” Shetty asked.
Organisers chose to remain tight-lipped and cited “technical reasons” for shutting artworks.
