Erasing Borders Exhibition of Contemporary Indian Art of the Diaspora June 12, 2010

Seventh Annual IAAC Erasing Borders 2010: Exhibition of Contemporary Indian Art of the Diaspora curated by Vijay Kumar. This community group exhibition explores the themes of cultural dislocation, memory, exile and spiritual inheritances implicit in the word; Diaspora. The exhibition comprising of 24 contemporary artists is a mix of painting, drawing and prints, photographs, C-prints, photomontages and videos; sculpture and installation. This travelling exhibition explores and draws from the experiences of artists whose origins can be traced to the Indian subcontinent. Cultural dislocation often produces unexpected and profound results; memory collides with exile, culture engages with adaptation to understand the powerful and often disturbing concepts of change and assimilation. The artists confront issues of sexuality, terror, disease and multiple identities to weave together existence in a globalized context while subject matter is often drawn from the country of origin, many of the aesthetic values and political concerns come from the artists' new found situations. The result deserves a new "ism", a new journey to an old destination."Today, living in the Diaspora no longer implies that relationships and hometowns are irrevocably left behind. The internet and the web…Skype and phone cards…affordable travel…the globalization of art, literature, cuisine and pop culture…all keep us instantly connected-not only to relatives and friends, but to the news and events of our homeland as well. So, in this ever-more-global world, it has been interesting to see what a profound influence India still has on much of the artwork in this show-even (or especially) for many of the younger artists.