Earlier, it was notified that the art exhibition will commence on December 12, 2020. But now, the announcement has disappointed art lovers across the country who were super excited about the exhibition.
The art festival was inaugurated in 2012 which attracts more than six lakh visitors in three months annually.
But due to the rising cases of coronavirus infection in Kerala, it seemed difficult and irrational to organise the festival. Therefore, the organising committee believed it would better to postpone the event.
An official statement released, which read, “Over the past few months, the Kochi Biennale Foundation has been discussing the COVID-19 situation with our stakeholders. With the pandemic showing no signs of abatement in India, the state of Kerala having slipped into the second spike of cases, prolonged travel restrictions, and generally unfavourable conditions on-ground, we have decided to move the opening of the Biennale to November 1, 2021. We expect that circumstances by then would be conducive for visitors, artists, staff, and others for a safe and complete Biennale gathering.”
Though the main festival has been suspended, for now, but the fourth edition of the Student’s Biennale will happen digitally. This segment is dedicated to art students where artists all over the country participate and exhibit their talent.
The segment will be led by five curator-mentors, Suresh K Nair, Archana Hande, Manoj Vyloor, Adip Dutta and Vasudha Thozhur.
The Redundant Fact-Checker, an online workshop will be hosted by the famous Indian novelist Sarnath Banerjee.
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The art exhibition is held at 10 to 14 venues in Kochi, Kerala, and some of the popular spots include the Aspinwall House, Pepper House and Fort Kochi beach to name a few.
When it comes to COVID-19 positive cases, Kerala has recorded over 418K cases and 1429 deaths as of now.