Premise

In a country with little to no governmental or institutional support for the arts, and with limited opportunities, Ayesha Singh co-started Art Chain India (ACI) with artist Purvai Rai, during the 2020 Covid pandemic with the determination to create spaces within the arts for community interaction, alternative methods of knowledge-sharing and guidance, and to evaluate ways in which artists can challenge opacities within which systemic hierarchies thrive. ACI seeks to exist beyond the uncertainties of today, to cultivate a politics of autonomy and collaboration, and to decentralize conversation, economy and resources. Made for artists by artists, the ACI community works toward ensuring that artists in India have information about their rights and ways of implementing them (Art Chain Legal), as well as the freedom of earning a livelihood through their work (Art Chain India) and and receive support including in the form of pre-application assistance, mentorship, workshops, AMA’s and information sessions (The Review Chain). 

 

At the Homebound Residency, Ayesha and the ACI team aimed to strategize ways of communication and democratic information-sharing that could benefit artists and grow local and global communities through digital interventions. They hoped to work on ways to start a fourth lateral, which provides funding for art production and education, and intends to fill gaps identified through their own experience or through feedback from the ACI Review Chain. The artists behind ACI aim for their work to exist outside of the standard and traditional structures of nomination, application, decision of acceptance made by a jury and the assumption of fluency in English; structures that presently control opportunities and access to funding. Through the residency, Ayesha and the ACI team hoped to envision alternative methods to create and expand democratic spaces of sharing; the complexities of language, recognition, and bias, and through critical conversation to co-imagine a more equitable and tolerable art ecology.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Process

During the Homebound Residency, Ayesha, Radha and Veernaganakumariwere able to co-imagine what a collaborative and non-institutional endeavor may look like.The residency facilitated the implementation of short-term and ongoing long-term goals. These included: 

1. Translations – ACI aims to make its content available to all Indians. India has over 22 recognised official languages, 122 major languages and over 1500 local dialects. ACI hopes to translate their content to 4 official languages for better dispersion and inclusivity. 

2. Legal – Artists on the ACI may work with a legal partner to create contract clauses and learn to legally protect themselves and their work as an artist. 

3. Structure and project development – Considering the gaps and financial hindrances they themselves have experienced in their creative careers, founding artists at ACI continue to seek out optimal ways to create systems of funding for artists in India. 

4. Conversations – ACI continuously facilitates exchanges between creatives in India who have started artist-run spaces and collectives that provide spaces for India’s creative communities where conversations with artists and arts professionals can take place. By observing existing structures, ACI is working towards understanding the journeys and experiences of those already working within these independent spaces. 

ACI has since translated the content in three languages – Assamese, Bengali, and Hindi, currently translating the content into Indian Sign Language (ISL), which can be viewed on the Art Chain India website. They advertised open calls for volunteers to translate the website and video content, and artists who came on board to help edit the website content and thus ensure correct use of terminology and usability. To create Art Chain Legal, founders engaged local and international artists at various stages of their careers in conversation to gain insights into prevalent legal experiences within their communities. Some artists have shared their contracts including loan agreements, consignments, representation agreements, and commission agreements, providing a rich collection of documents for ACI to work from with the guidance of lawyers and legal professionals, creating templates for use by their community and online audience. 

ACI has undergone a structural change which will separate its three pillar entities of marketplace, legal resources and review resources under a new name. Conversations that started during the residency led ACI founders to understand and be conscious of the ways online and in-person audiences navigate the information presented to them. ACI looks forward to implementing changes that reflect this understanding, as well as a new entity, the Dialogues, where creatives can dynamically engage in conversation and resource sharing.

 

 

 

Outcomes

Through conversations and organically-developed relationships with creatives in India and beyond, ACI and their audience has been realizing their reach to and impact on India’s art ecosystem. Ayesha and the ACI received extensive positive feedback from users of the platform. Many of these pertained to gaining confidence in negotiating fair treatment and seeking information on safeguarding their practices. Artists engaging with the platform actively contributed to the Chain, sharing processes, mentoring, and fostering relationships.

Over the course of the residency, ACI added new content and components to the website, including the translations and new resources for artists under #Checklist. Post-residency, they have taken the time to respond to newly discovered needs and wants of their existing and future audiences, and to restructure ACI. They especially recognized the need for separating the marketplace from the resource content, a change currently under construction on the website. Leveraging remaining resources, the women/people behind ACI remain committed to furthering their objectives and exploring additional avenues for progress.