Erasing Borders: Passport to Contemporary Indian Art of the diaspora 2009

For immediate release

The Indo American Arts Council and Crossing Art present the 6th annual 2009 traveling Exhibition
Erasing Borders Contemporary Indian Art of the Diaspora
Curated by Vijay Kumar.

Press preview: Friday, May 1, 2009 3 pm
Reception & Asian Contemporary Art Week Event: Sunday May 17th, 2009 2 - 6 pm

Special Performances @ 3 pm*
Curator-led tour & Artist talk for both Exhibitions: Saturday, May 30 6 - 8 pm*

Exhibition Dates: Wednesday, April 29th - Saturday, May 30, 2009

(NEW YORK, NY- April, 2009) The Indo-American Arts Council, (IAAC) in collaboration with Crossing Art is proud to present "Erasing Borders". The exhibition explores the themes of cultural dislocation, memory, exile and spiritual inheritances implicit in the word; Diaspora. "Quite a few of the artists--both abstract and figurative--describe their work (or the impetus behind it) in spiritual terms, and many of the works comment directly on environmental and political issues. Khalil Chishtee's figures are made out of plastic bags. Jagdish Prabhu has 'drawn' his figures in soot (carbon), the "much maligned but primal substance"… (Whose)..." fluidity and etherealness embody the ephemeral nature of existence." Pritika Chowdhry's installation titled "What the Body Remembers" is comprised of sculptures that "investigate the potential of the… fragmented body to invoke collective narratives of trauma", Vijay Kumar. The exhibition comprising of 27 contemporary artists, a mix of painting, drawing and prints, photographs, C-prints, photomontages and videos, sculpture and installation, 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' newfound situations. The result deserves a new "ism", a new journey to an old destination.

Participating artists: Niyeti Chadha Kannal, Nandini Chirimar, Khalil Chishtee, Neil Chowdhury , Pritika Chowdhry, Anjali Deshmukh, Anujan Ezhikode, Indira Freitas Johnson, Asha Ganpat, Ina Kaur, Adil Mansuri, Divya Mehra, Samanta Batra Mehta, Indrani Nayar-Gall, Jagdish Prabhu, Antonio Puri, Alka Raghuram, Gautam Rao, Amin Rehman, Tara Sabharwal, Pallavi Sharma, Mumtaz Hussain, Reeta Gidwani Karmarkar, Haresh Lalvani, Alakananda Mukerji, Veru Narula, Prince Varughese Thomas

For further information and the 2009 exhibition schedule visit our website or contact IAAC Director of Exhibitions Amina B Ahmed amina@iaac.us 1212 594 3685

The Erasing Borders Exhibition is supported by: NYSCA, DCA, CONSULATE GENERAL OF INDIA, INDIA ABROAD, REDIF.COM, QMA DOWD GALLERY, PENNSYLVANIA COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY, CROSSING ART, ASIAN CONTEMPORARY ART WEEK

Also on view

Recess: Curated by Crossing Art Assistant Director Jennifer Junkermeier
Press preview: Friday, May 1, 2009 3 pm
Reception & Asian Contemporary Art Week Event: Sunday May 17th, 2009 2 - 6 pm
Special Performances @ 3 pm*
Curator-led tour & Artist talk for both Exhibitions: Saturday, May 30 6 - 8 pm*
Exhibition Dates: Wednesday, April 29th - Saturday, May 30, 2009

(NEW YORK, NY- April, 2009) Crossing Art is pleased to present the group exhibition, Recess. The exhibition will subversively examine theories as of how and why the economy collapsed by examining different types of structures and systems. Recess will feature works by Chen Gang , Chris Coffin, Carl Eckhoff, Gabert Farrar, Ben Grasso, Michael Greathouse, He Diqiu, Timothy Hutchings, Scott Kiernan, Rachel Kohn, Jon Laustsen, Paris Mancini, Meridith Pingree, Patrick Resing, Adam Thompson, and Kai Vierstra.

The title, deduced from the concept of "recession," sets the stage for an exhibition that promises to reach across the spectrum of possible interpretations. The artwork to be featured tackles the state of mind of "recess" as much as it does the questions of the modes of politics and economic recessions, bringing to the fore artists looking to break down standard structures and systems in order to further examine and understand them. The breadth of the exhibit presents the viewer with a conceptual see-saw, weaving itself through a time-space continuum of the past, present and future as it explores the urban reality of communications systems and Wall Street cultures. The physicality of our own modernity, given weight by re-contextualized images of American currency and the enduring monuments and structures of our day, is challenged, however, by the appearance of historical themes and ideas which seem to imply the fleeting nature of the status quo. With this, one is reminded of a special cultural obsession with the future, its promises and its very novelty, suggesting that as time shuffles on so do our priorities and conceptions of self undergo transformations. The layers are boundless, intimating a need for the creation of new paradigms in the face of what seems a time in which much is uncertain and left up in the air.

The whimsically aesthetic vibrancy as well as the variety of the artwork to be displayed work to intrigue the audience while encouraging discussion of the ways in which even contemporary artists and the artworld may respond to this international financial crisis. Recess aims to begin a revisionary dialogue directed at those current and accepted structures and paradigms, welcoming and inspiring the employment of a critical lens as we approach and attempt to come to terms with these times of uncertainty and imminent changes.

For further information on both exhibitions contact Jennifer Junkermeier at 212. 359. 4333 or jennifer@crossingart.com

* Special Performances: Dance performance courtesy of the Indo-American Arts Council & Concert by the New York Asian Symphony Orchestra.

*Curator-led Tours in conjunction with the Queens Council on the Arts: Queens Art Express Event.

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