KOCHI: Versatile and provocative painter Nilima Sheikh has become the first artist to get the curator’s nod for the fourth edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB), which will begin on December 12, 2018. Anita Dube, the curator of the upcoming KMB made the announcement on Tuesday. The 72-year-old Vadodara-based painter is known for her intense depiction of subjects, with particular emphasis on Kashmir, Partition and displacement.
Her strength also lies in the portrayal of grimness of contemporary life like oppressive patriarchy and silent suffering of women. “The tender compassion in the paintings of Nilima Sheikh aligns the feminine with the mystic and subversive strains in our tradition. She is a voice we must listen to, especially in these troubled times,” Ms Dube said.
On the selection of Ms. Sheikh, Kochi Biennale Foundation president Bose Krishnamanchari said, “Curator Anita Dube’s intentions and ideas for KMB 2018 are reflected in the selection of Nilima Sheikh, the first artist she’s presenting of the lineup. I can see reflections of the socially and politically sensitive aesthetics that Anita would bring to KMB-2018.”
