Art residencies are the gateway into a world of opportunities that ordinarily exists outside of an artist’s immediate ecosystem. Their importance is rooted in the fact that exploring different spaces and working with other artists can have a major effect on an artist’s work––whether they are a senior artist or someone who’s relatively young in the art world. Through a residency, an artist is given a space that comes with a certain freedom of research and production of work[1]. Through residencies, a lot of underprivileged artists become part of projects that otherwise would not be a possibility. International residencies open the door of travel for artists who are used to working in a specific cultural context and helps them learn about new materials and tools that may be available to access in a particular region. It helps their understanding of a world that is more global, accessible, and tolerant.
Most residencies follow a specific theme around which the work is produced. This way, artists from different backgrounds come together and work. It helps new artists learn from other artists who have much more experience in their practices. In such environment, many artists find their own research style and formulate ways to establish their new methods in their practices. Working with artists of different practices make it easy to open a door for future collaboration of interdisciplinary nature. Artists also enjoy opportunities of bigger and better opportunities for future once they have produced work in a residence––so an opportunity can lead to a bigger and better residency and so on. Moreover, residencies provide a chance to interact with local audience first hand, resulting in the establishment of an audience that is separate from their local, targeted pool of people.
KHOJ international art association is one of those programs that were established by artists for artists. Started in Delhi in 1997, it had a humble beginning. Over the years, it has been established as a not-for-profit body that provides a safe space for artists to have an independent practice in different art backgrounds. [2]It now plays a critical role in the development of interdisciplinary and contemporary art practices happening in India––all the while challenging the traditional ideas about the existence of art in the subcontinent.
This program focuses on establishing networks between artists to develop advanced ideas and master their craft through collaboration and exchange.
As one of the founding members of KHOJ Anita Dube wrote in the first KHOJ catalogue: “Our aim was to function as an experimental art laboratory that would bring artists together from different parts of the country, from the subcontinent and from around the globe, setting up a corporate, non-hierarchical work situation where dialogue, exchange and transfer of information, energy and skills could take place as an intensely lived experience.”[3]
This residency aims to establish a more practice-based training for its residents. It actively develops a training ground for emerging curators who will eventually go out in the world to engage with different art practitioners.
KHOJ residencies have seen and helped develop a variety of practices, allowing a huge number of possibilities to be born. The usual outcome of this program is an exhibition where the artist in residence will display their work. Even though some projects have been excavated from the site of residency––to breathe at a site that has a better context for the finished work of art. Ranging from the performances in New Zealand to politically charged painting conducted in a soldiers laden Srinagar, KHOJ has offered the world all the possibilities of what art could potentially look like.
Looking at one of the most recognized residencies that were given birth in our own country, Murree Museum Artists’ Residency tops the list. Founded by Saba Khan in 2014, it was named after the very location it is based in. Murree is a mountain resort, 30 km northeast of Islamabad, the capital city of Pakistan. This part of the country has a strong colonial history, which is why the residency is directly concerned with the practices that represent the postcolonial landscape. The residency invites artists, both from the national and international art world, to revisit the history of the once colonized space and reconcile with its troubled past. The artists reimagine alternative ideas that support social integration, tolerance for all walks of life, and economic freedom for all[4]. They are also encouraged to socialize with local community through various art practices, mainly workshops, to strengthen their social skills and understand the local landscape. The board of trustees of Murree art residency includes names like Fawzia Naqvi and Salima Hashmi, both of these personalities have strengthened the art practices in Pakistan and continue to do so.
This residency focuses on both individual and collective creative practices through planned activities, seminars, and outreach programs. All the while benefitting the community that inhabits the area. This residency, born out of a vision to bring together the cultural identity of Pakistan. They have been able to create a space for Pakistani talent to practice in an environment that will help them establish themselves in the global art world. It has become a place for international art community to be welcomed and witness the colonial beauty of Murree as the town readily merges the history, culture, and leisure for all.
One of the outcomes of Murree Art Residency is ‘You’re Killing the Mountains’––which was an exhibition and launch of the book with the same name at Alhamra Art Gallery in Lahore, 2017. It was a part of the three days Faiz International Festival. This exhibition investigated the issues that surround the natural reserves of the area and the territorialization of the land, which is fast leading to ecological disasters.
As the British Raj architecture withers away, the archives continue to weaken and fade along[5]. This residency seeks to find artists with exceptional creative practices, in hopes to inspire them with the beauty of the land of Murree and let them restore them in their work before it is too late.
Neuendorf, Henri. 2020. "Art Demystified: How Do Artist Residencies Work? | Artnet News". Artnet News. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/art-demystified-artist-residencies-649592.
[2] "KHOJ". 2020. Transartists.Org. https://www.transartists.org/air/khoj.
[3] Sood, Pooja. 2020. "Khoj As Idea". Critical Collective. https://criticalcollective.in/ArtistGInner2.aspx?Aid=180&Eid=143.
[4] Naveed, Seher. 2020. "In The Mountains -Murree Museum Artist Residency | Artnow". Artnow Pakistan. http://www.artnowpakistan.com/in-the-mountains-murree-museum-artist-residency/.
[5] Shafqat, Mariam. 2020. "Faiz International Festival: Art Residency Brings Terrains Of Murree To Life | The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. https://tribune.com.pk/story/1562324/faiz-international-festival-art-residency-brings-terrains-murree-life.
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