National Gallery of Modern Art - New Delhi

Museums trying to win back patrons with special events and free weekend tours

The National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) has planned several events and even free entries during weekends.

The pandemic affected tourism all over. Museums across the world have been witnessing record low footfall. In order to win back the interest of the general public these art institutions close to home are now introducing new experiences like programmes and entry concessions.

After remaining shut for more than 9-10 months, some of the museums have started opening doors around the New Year. Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA) opened its doors on January 5. The National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) has planned several events and even free entries during weekends.

Kiran Nadar, founder and chairperson, KNMA, said that this is the new phase in life for the museum and the return of the general public to public spaces will be a part of their mental, emotional recovery from a new normal that the world adopted during its fight against coronavirus.

Adwaita Gadanayak, who is in agreement with Nadar, said that they have launched “Weekends in NGMA” free of cost for the public to revamp footfall. She pointed out that art has a role in relieving stress. On Friday, NGMA announced that its galleries and lawns will be opened for the public for free between 2.30 pm and 4.30 pm.

Starting on Saturday, the art gallery introduced a series of events like performances by a dancing troupe from Manipur, pottery studio, sketching sessions, etc. Other even planned are photography workshops, curated gallery tour,s and film screenings among other cultural events. Eminent poets, authors, artists will also hold sessions to interact with the audience.

On the first day, painter-sculptor Jatin Das had live sessions on sketching. According to Gadanayak, the events have been curated keeping in mind that the people get a relaxed atmosphere to learn about art. Art is stall intimidating for many, said the director-general of the art academy.

All the events took place outdoor to comply with social distancing norms. Adhering to rules of ‘new normal’ is compulsory at every public space and hence the use of face masks was made mandatory along with the availability of sanitiser. At KNMA, visitors were allowed only by appointment to avoid overcrowding.

Events planned for the new weekend at NGMA are a sketching class, pottery class, a performance by students from the Gandharva Choi, and a Kathak dance recital. Art tours comprising of works by, Amrita Sher-Gil, Ramkinker Baij, Tantra art and a retrospective of Nandalal Bose are other events that are lined in this year’s calendar. The cafeteria and store of the museum have also been renovated to pull the crowd. An immersive art exhibition and workshop will take place in Srinagar this year.

KNMA is also actively planning DIY sessions and virtual workshops through its social media platforms. An online tour of current exhibitions was also conducted on January 4 by Roobina Karode, the director and chief curator of the art gallery.