St+art India Foundation and Asian Paints Present Project ‘Me/We’ at Mahim Art District

St+art India Foundation with continuing support from Asian Paints and BMC was happy to reveal the murals which were the result of a month long project ndash; Me/We; in collaboration with Facebook AIR and Bangalore-based artist collective Aravani Art Project. The art works were revealed through an inauguration event and included a showcase of all the outcomes of the workshops with the community. It provided an opportunity for the communitied of Shahu Nagar and Dharavi to come together and celebrate themselves and the murals.

Project Me/We Inauguration event with Aravani Art Project

The event commenced with an introductory note by Sadhna Prasad Co-founder Aravani Art Project followed by an interactive panel discussion. The discussionwas moderated by Sadhna and the panelists were represented by different collaborators of Me/We including a member from the St+art team a participant from Sneha foundation and a trans-woman from Aravani Art Project. Touching upon topics of community-living and creating art in public spaces the discussion also reflected on the collaborators on-ground learnings in the past one month.

Aravani Art Project mural at Mahim Art District

The panel discussion was followed by a performance by poets fromtheAnat Collectivein Mumbai who performed poetry in Hindi and Marathi.Ms.Varsha Gaikwads (Cabinet Minister Maharashtra)speech addressing the audience followed next. Alongside lauding the core vision of the project she highlighted the importance of acceptance in our lives. After Ms. Gaikwads address four beatboxers from theDharavi Dream Projectput up a performance followed by a performance by three rappers from Dogz Music. The last performance of the event was put up by trans-women from the collective one of whom performed a laavani dance while two others put up a very specialKoli dance;performance.

The event ended with a collective photo session against the backdrop of the Kindness Walls.

Over the past 3 years St+art has celebrated the power of the city of Mumbai and Dharavi - its people - by creating an open air gallery in Mahim. Many national and international artists have created works which pay tribute to the everyday citizens of the city who are its lifeline and also represent its diversity and energetic spirit.

Me/We; curated by St+art and led by Aravani Art Project marks the very first collaboration between St+art and Facebook AIR (Artist in Residency). Aravani Art Project uses art as a means to shape safe spaces for the transgender community in India creating large wall mural projects through a participatory approach. In an attempt to adopt newer ways to enable the trans community to reclaim public spaces Me/We; for the first time saw transgender artists from the collective in the role of facilitators for a series of three workshops.

Facebook supports both internal and external initiatives that facilitate direct engagement with art and design. Artists bring stories to life that inspire a greater understanding of one another and the world we share and we appreciate the commitment of individuals and institutions whose ongoing work brings important human stories to broader publics.- Facebook AIR.

Mr. Amit Syngle CEO Asian Paints Ltd. said At Asian Paints we have always believed that Art wins hearts. Our continued collaboration with St+art India Foundation is a testimony to our belief. With the new project Me/We; the hope is towards an inclusive art community that is an indelible part of Mumbai future.

Highlighting the importance of engaging with human emotions through a project like Me/We; Poornima Sukumar Co-founder Aravani Art Project said We wanted to create genuine friendships intangible bonds and of course Art in a seamless way along with our artist friends from the Transgender community. Its not about reclaiming a space with a mural rather encompassing all of its happenings all day everyday. The project has left us yearning to know more about how something as delicate as human emotions are built over the strongest circumstances. Dharavi is a never-ending real life novel.

Elaborating on the unique collaborative nature of the project Ms. Giulia Ambrogi Co-founder and Festival Curator St+art India Foundation said St+art in collaboration with Asian Paints and BMC has worked tirelessly over the last three years to build the Mahim (E) Art District creating artworks that celebrate its people in their strengths and diversity. This edition of the Mahim project cements and furthers our continuing efforts by engaging with different communities of Shahu Nagar in a direct and participative manner. Through workshops murals and the final launch event the project aims to speak and sensitize people towards kindness co-existence and inclusivity - seeking to truly use art as a tool for positive changes.

As a continuation of the Mahim (E) Art District this collaboration is a result to repurpose the format of the open-air-gallery to not merely reserve it for Street Art but open it for interactions that empower our cities by probing and understanding new perspectives and unveiling unheard stories.

Partners

St+art India Foundation

The St+art India Foundation is a non-profit organization that works on art projects in public spaces. The aim of the foundation is to make art accessible to a wider audience by taking it out of the conventional gallery space and embedding it within the cities we live in - making art truly democratic and for everyone. Since its inception in 2014 St+art has organised numerous street art festivals and public art projects across India in cities such as Delhi Mumbai Bengaluru Hyderabad Chandigarh Calcutta Goa and more.

Asian Paints

Asian Paints is India leading paint company and ranked among the top ten Decorative coatings companies in the world with a consolidated turnover of Rs. 19349.84 crores (Rs. 193.50 billion).Asian Paints along with its subsidiaries have operations in 15 countries across the world with 26 paint manufacturing facilities servicing consumers in over 65 countries through Asian Paints Berger SCIB Paints ndash; Egypt Apco Coatings Taubmans Kadisco and Causeway. Asian Paints is also present in the Home Improvement and Dcor space in India through Sleek (Kitchens) and Ess Ess (Bath Fittings).

Facebook Artist in Residence

Facebook Artist-in-Residence Program supports the creation of new and experimental projects globally aiming to build community through art.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/artistinresidence.