Aspinwall House to be made permanent venue for Kochi-Muziris Biennale

KOCHI: The state government has decided to make the Aspinwall House at Fort Kochi as the permanent venue for the Kochi-Muziris Biennale. "As an initial step, the government has cancelled the lease on a portion of Aspinwall House. Negotiations are on to acquire the rest of the property in a time-bound manner by paying a reasonable amount," Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac said on Sunday after visiting the Biennale venue. The minister said the "Biennale will be maintained as a permanent art and culture asset for Kochi. The city will join other big metropolises in housing an iconic international event. We can even utilise this space to conduct various art and cultural activities during non-Biennale years," he added.

Mr Isaac claimed that his decision to provide fund for the inaugural Biennale six years ago as the then finance minister turned out to be right. "There was controversy about spending so much money on an art event rather than on art training schools. Today, there is near unanimity on the importance of the Biennale", he said. The minister said allotting Rs 2 crore for the Biennale in its off-year is an investment to the upkeep of an established and important international event. He took a day-long tour of KMB 2016 venues in Fort Kochi and Mattancherry, viewing the works on display and interacting with the Sunday crowd at Biennale.