MUMBAI: The grand opening of the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) in Mumbai has become the talk of the town.
After two days of celebrations, the final day of a weekend-long star-studded launch of the NMACC saw Kokilaben Ambani, the wife of the late Indian business mogul Dhirubhai Ambani, inaugurating The Art House by lighting a lamp.
The Art House, the Centre’s dedicated space for visual arts opened with ‘Sangam/Confluence’. The unique exhibition features over 50 exquisite artworks and installations from 5 Indian and 5 international artists, all celebrating India’s diverse cultural impulses and traditions.
Curated by American curator Jeffrey Deitch and India’s leading cultural theorist Ranjit Hoskote, the exhibit is inspired by the idea of unions deeply rooted in Indian culture.
From the works of internationally acclaimed artists like Anselm Kiefer, Cecily Brown and Francesco Clemente – whose pieces are being displayed in India for the very first time – to the artworks of eclectic Indian artists like Bhupen Khakhar, Ranjani Shettar, Ratheesh T. and Shantibai, the show witnessed a unique melting pot of traditions, much like the Cultural Centre itself.
On the final day, Nita Ambani and Isha Ambani launched the ‘India in Fashion: The Impact of Indian Dress and Textiles on the Fashionable Imagination’ exhibition at the cultural centre. It is a beautifully illustrated eponymous coffee table book published by Rizzoli.
An extension of the eponymous costume art exhibit that enthralled audiences on Day 2, this visually rich volume features an introduction by author, costume expert and ‘India in Fashion’ Curator Hamish Bowles, along with fascinating and insightful scholarly notes by renowned curators, historians, and journalists in the fields of fashion, textile and art history.
This was followed by a reading of excerpts by Isha Ambani, along with art historian, writer and curator Amin Jaffer, fashion and textile designer Anuradha Vakil, noted fashion journalist and critic Suzy Menkes, and editor and writer Priyanka Khanna.
Singing sensation Prateek Kuhad also performed at the gala.
NMACC, which is located within the Jio World Centre in Mumbai’s BKC, will be opened to the public from April 3 with a list of events already lined up. (ANI)