Sculpting stories
What: Shot in the atelier of a sculptor renowned for large statues of politicians and national heroes, Death at a 30 Degree Angle is a work about the commissioning of a monumental statue by a small-time politician. Located in present-day India, the film is presented as part of Filament, an online film program by Experimenter. The politician, along with his cronies, experiments with a variety of costumes and poses, actively participating in the writing of his own memory and mythmaking. This film by Bani Abidi is a reflection on self-portraiture, megalomania and monumentality. Today, statues of erstwhile leaders, rulers and heroes lie scattered in graveyards and public squares all over the world. Communist leaders of all sizes, colonial explorers with hands thrust forward in righteous motivation, glowering facsimiles of African dictators made in Korea, fists, boots, disembodied heads, all lie relegated to remote tourist parks or in overgrown backyards of palace museums. These are objects that once controlled and impressed upon the public space and imagination but overnight became mere proxies, subjected to torture, ridicule and public vengeance.
When: August 10 – 20
Where: website of Experimenter
Collecting art
What: Putting together an exclusive selection of artworks by eminent artists, Art Alive brings ‘Collector’s Weekend’. An initiative that aims to brighten up weekends with selected art by Masters, Contemporaries and next-generation artists. In the coming weeks, they will present a series of selected works, carefully curated to showcase works by masters as well as upcoming contemporary talent transcending various genres of art. In the first edition of the series, they bring to you an exclusive selection of artworks by some of the most illustrious names in Indian art, five Masters of Contemporary Indian Art – SH Raza, Krishen Khanna, Sakti Burman, Jogen Chaudhary and ThotaVaikuntam.
When: every alternate Friday
Where: website of Art Alive Gallery
Behind bars
What: For all the film fans, Mexican director Andrés Ibañez Dias Infante’s 90-minute film Shake off your Sorrows (Sacúdete las penas) is available for viewing. González, an inmate serving a long sentence, tells the story of Pepe Frituras, Mexico City’s most famous dancer, who would lose his freedom during a night out partying, ending up in the Palace of Lecumberri–the country’s most dangerous penitentiary. Through anecdotes filled with music, dances, and romance, González narrates how he became the only convict that managed to escape the prison walls using the power of his imagination
When: Till August 16
