“This has been the most challenging edition, with a lot of roadblocks but there is a wonderful energy coming together,” reassured Bose Krishnamachari, president of Kochi Biennale Foundation.

In its fifth edition, the biennale curated by Singapore-based Indian-origin artist Shubigi Rao will bring together works of over 90 artists from across the globe, presented under the central exhibition titled ‘In Our Veins Flow Ink and Fire’. It features prominent national and international names, including Indian artists Vivan Sundaram, Amar Kanwar, Arpita Singh, Nasreen Mohamedi, Rita Khin from Myanmar, Haegue Yang from South Korea, Thao Nguyen Phan from Vietnam and Joan Jonas from the US, among others.

Scheduled to originally open in 2020 and delayed twice due to the pandemic, this edition of the biennale has been marred by uncertainty. While the pandemic and related travel curbs made it difficult for the artists to conduct on-site interactions and production visits, there have been shipments delays as well. Moreover, the organisers had no access to Aspinwall House until recently, as the Kerala government was reportedly negotiating with the current owners, the DLF Group, to acquire the property.

The flagship space apart, artworks featuring in the biennale are spread across 14 venues in the city. The associated programmes include the Students’ Biennale section that will see works of students from art schools across India. This is the first year the biennale has introduced an invitations segment, where prominent institutions have been invited to participate. This will see the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art presenting ‘Tangled Hierarchy 2’, an exhibition curated by artist Jitish Kallat that centers on a collection of five envelopes addressed to Mahatma Gandhi. The project ‘How to reappear: Through the Quivering Leaves of Independent Publishing’ reflects on the realm of alternative publishing practices, and in ‘Shadow Circus: A Personal Archive of Tibetan Resistance (1957–1974)’, filmmakers Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam share the story of Tibet’s armed struggle through their personal archives.

The central exhibition is expected to stir with music and sound, with a focus on digital works that respond to the present and borrow from the past.

Even as Krishnamachari works against deadline, he notes that in the 10 years since the biennale was founded by him and fellow artist Riyas Komu, the celebration of art has risen against challenges. “When we started, we published a book, Against All Odds: Kochi-Muziris Biennale. With this edition too, we will rise from chaos.”