Threading New Paths for South Asian Art

Photo: Kazi Tahsin Agaz Apurbo

The 3rd edition of the Dhaka Art Summit produced by the Samdani Art Foundation was its most ambitious yet, with the platform evolving to incorporate research on art into its mandate. The four day event at Shilpakala asked the viewers and patrons to employ all of their sensory faculties to comprehend the meticulously curated narrative that stretched the four stories of the academy. The subject, by itself, is one that could be described as inadequately in two words as it would be through a seven-volume odyssey- the rather elusive cartography of the South Asian existence. DAS attempted to deconstruct this monolithic term, carefully examining one dimension before meandering onto another plane. More interesting, still, was the fact that this was being attempted in Dhaka- a populace and a people still coming to terms with urbanity. This week, Star Weekend provides an in-depth review of the recently concluded Dhaka Art Summit in an attempt to see whether or not the summit was successful in its intentions.

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