About
Set up in 2004 by arts curator Himanshu Verma, Red Earth is an independent private arts organisation based in New Delhi. We engage with diverse forms of cultural expression, from Indian contemporary art (with a strong focus on painting, and supporting the work of emerging artists who negotiate multiple formal spaces) to design, performing arts, educational programmes, and experiential tourism; in the process devising varied and eclectic programming, festivals, exhibitions, projects and events. In a word, we create arts experiences. We are multi-disciplinary, multi-arts and multifarious…
The vision behind Red Earth is to celebrate culture in India in all its varied manifestations, in an unlimited way. We are keen to break the boundaries of genres and styles (classical, modern, contemporary, folk etc…) We refuse to compartmentalise culture into strict hierarchies of high and low, classical and modern, elitist and popular, rural and urban. We strive towards a newer understanding of culture in India today, creating a unique model for an arts organisation in urban India. We support innovation, but also tradition…
In the Indian cultural ethos, the arts have been inter-related not only to each other, but also to other aspects of lived culture, like various religious practices, the uniquely varied cycle of Indian seasons , and the many festivals that dot the Indian calendar; in a very organic, symbiotic and fluid manner. The traditional arts, festivals, religion, aesthetics are a way of life, which we are losing sight of in contemporary times. Today, with increasing modernisation, much of our culture is being cut off from roots that have nourished it for centuries. We need to find new anchors, and rethink. Red Earth aims to work towards this, attempting to create a renaissance of sorts. We hope to rectify some of the excesses of a self-indulgent elitist westward-looking contemporary arts scene, and make the arts a community affair, a beautiful part of our lives again…
Our curatorial work engages with diverse themes and narratives, such as celebrating Indian seasons and festivals with Indian contemporary art exhibitions and festivals, as well as other themes like masculinity, and those related to contemporary Indian urban / visual art culture.
Over the last few years we have received critical acclaim, public adoration and people’s blessings for reviving traditional Indian festivals and the aspects of lived culture associated with them in the city of Delhi, for example, the festivals of Basant Panchami, Holi, Chaitra, Hariyali Teej and Diwali. In the process Red Earth has created bridges between traditional practices and contemporary creative expression, presenting unique art festivals like The Monsoon Festival which have become part of the city’s cultural calendar.
Red Earth is the parent organisation that leads several other projects that are becoming well known institutions in themselves, like The Genda Phool Project.