The project invited contemporary engagement with a historical object, and required the careful selection and curation of artists who could respond to the subject and space.
Engraved Treasures – I and II were part of an experimental program built in collaboration with the Museum of Christian Art, Goa between December 2022 – April 2023. Curated by Lina Vincent, the project revolved around meaningful interaction with, and interpretation of, engravings from the 18th C Belgian Bible in the collection. In a synergy of tangible and intangible expressions, the showcases brought together a diverse range of works that also reflected unusual yet complementary pairings of aesthetic languages. The compilation of prints, paintings, photographs and performance pieces by artists and collectives revealed a balance between conventional and experimental approaches; a meeting of classical western art with indigenous art and craft practices; and a sense of acknowledgement for tradition as well as contemporaneity.
As with engagements within a heritage museum space, the theoretical, socio-cultural, philosophical and spiritual essence of the objects and architecture were explored, along with the broader histories associated with Goa as a port-state and presence as an earlier Portuguese colony, that redefines certain aesthetic and artistic languages.
Images Courtesy: Michael Praveen