Breathe free

What: This exhibition documents the stories, pain, suffering, frustration and hope of eight individuals and the cities they live in, connected through one common thread – air pollution. Extinguishing more life per person than terrorism, smoking or malaria, the narrative around India’s biggest public health emergency continues to be myopic and Delhi-centric, focusing on death tolls and particulate matter data. ‘Breathless: An Artistic Call to India’s Air Pollution Crisis’ by Help Delhi Breathe and Clean Air Collective aims to tell stories that help connect town to city and sources of pollution, while introducing us to ordinary people resisting extraordinary pollution. This photo project hopes to humanise what seems like an amorphous, seasonal and regional problem to many. With photos by Ishan Tankha, research and stories by journalist Aruna Chandrasekhar, featuring VR, data art and music by Gully Boy composer Ankur Tewari, the exhibit is a call to action and valuing our commons, human fragility and resilience.

When: June 6-9 (10am – 6pm)

Where: Bikaner House, Lawrence Road

Colonial creativity

What: Evolving during the 17th and 18th centuries in the old Inca capital of Cuzco – the Cuzco School of Painting is the most distinctive and major school of painting in Spain’s American colonies. Indian and Mestizo artists transformed formal and iconographical types from European art to create a uniquely American style of religious painting, characterised by brilliant colours, flattened space, and a strongly decorative aesthetic. The favorite subjects include anecdotal biblical narratives, hieratic figures of the Virgin and saints, and gaily dressed archangels, as well as brightly colored tropical birds and idealised imaginary

landscapes without reference to local geography. Putting together contemporary reproductions of some of these paintings, are on display at the exhibition titled ‘The Colonial Art of Peru – Paintings of the Cuzco School’.

When: June 12 – 18 (11am – 7pm)

Where: India International Centre, 40 Max Mueller Marg

Groove and gorge

What: Prepare to be swept off your feet with the spunky tributes from the 40s to the 70s. Crooner’s Collective is an old school project to revive swing, jazz and retro music. The band is known for their renditions of timeless classics from Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Neil Diamond, Louis Armstrong, Elvis Presley, Nat King Cole and other warm-voiced maestros. Experience the good-old-days of swing, full-throated vocals and big band orchestras, and embark on a journey filled with timeless music and good food.

When: June 7 (9:30 pm onwards)

Where: Farzi Cafe, Aerocity