This year’s edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale. past this month, Riyas Komu, the biennial’s cofounder, resigned from his position there amid allegations of sexual harassment.

COURTESY KOCHI-MUZIRIS BIENNALE

In a statement circulated past today, greater than 270 artists and artwork professionals, lots of whom are based in South Asia, took a stand in opposition t sexual harassment within the art world. “As active stakeholders within the South Asian arts group,” their remark begins, “we’re concerned by means of the starting to be number of allegations of sexual harassment and reviews of adversarial work environments.”

among the signees are artists Gauri Gill, Dayanita Singh, the Guerrilla girls, Tania Bruguera, Naeem Mohaiemen, Nalini Malani, Amar Kanwar, and Martha Rosler; Prateek Raja, the director of Experimenter gallery in Kolkata, India; Gabi Ngcobo, who curated the 2018 Berlin Biennale; Adam Szymczyk, who served as inventive director of Documenta 14; and Diana Campbell Betancourt, the inventive director of the Samdani paintings groundwork and the manager curator of the Dhaka artwork Summit.

Their commentary goes on to address retaliation in opposition t those that have come forward and calls on the South Asian art world to “rigorously suggest for open and supportive spaces that allow women, trans americans, queer people, and people who have been disenfranchised by way of caste and class buildings to voice their concerns and discover assist.”

The circulation of this statement follows #MeToo allegations against excessive-profile figures in the Indian artwork world, including artist Subodh Gupta and Kochi-Muziris Biennale cofounder Riyas Komu. (Gupta denied the claims and stepped down as visitor curator of the Serendipity Arts festival in Goa, India. Komu resigned after the allegations in opposition t him were made public and, in an Instagram post, offered his apologies to the victims.) The accusations against Gupta and Komu had been posted to Instagram by way of an account referred to as Scene and Herd, which aims to raise attention for sexual misconduct in the Indian paintings world.

the whole remark, together with the list of signatories, follows beneath.

JOINT remark promotion protected spaces within the SOUTH ASIANARTS group

As energetic stakeholders in the South Asian arts group, we are worried with the aid of the starting to be variety of allegations of sexual harassment and reports of adversarial work environments. These are severe concerns that should be addressed with urgency. The art world is amorphous in nature: social mobility is stylish on informal networking and personal and knowledgeable areas cannot be comfortably separated.

Survivors who publicly inform their reports face severe types of retaliation. they are reluctant to reveal their identities as a result of they worry dropping work. As a community, we commit to guaranteeing that americans who are talking out are covered, and that professional opportunities don’t seem to be denied to them. We respect the fact and stand in harmony with people who come out with their reviews.

We strongly object to the use of defamation as a technique to intimidate and silence survivors and people who represent their interests. We call on all our peers; artists; curators; gallerists; collectors; writers; and heads of both public and personal associations to decide to the safeguarding of survivor debts. We request them to fastidiously advocate for open and supportive areas that permit girls, trans individuals, queer people, and those who had been disenfranchised via caste and sophistication buildings to voice their concerns and find guide. asian antique

We pledge to at the same time reflect, ideate and act on establishing the quintessential legal and casual support mechanisms to handle these challenges. we are able to do our foremost to protect spaces for open conversations, and uphold simple codes of professionalism.

The undersigned,

1. Aashna Jhaveri, Artist, Mumbai2. Abdullah Qureshi, visual Artist and Researcher, Helsinki3. Abhay Sardesai, Editor and creator, Mumbai4. Abhineet Singh, Founder, the Brewhouse, New Delhi5. Abhinit Khanna, impartial Arts supervisor and advisor, Mumbai6. Abhishek Hazra, Artist, Banglore7. Abir Karmakar, Artist, Baroda8. Adam Bainbridge, Musician, London9. Adam Szymczyk, creative Director, ducumenta 14, Athens/Kassel10. Aditya Kapoor, Photographer and Filmmaker, New Delhi11. Aditya Pande, Artist, New Delhi12. Adwait Singh, unbiased Curator and creator, New Delhi13. Afrah Shafiq, Artist/Filmmaker, Goa14. Akansha Rastogi, Senior Curator, Kiran Nadar Museum of art, New Delhi15. Alok Vaid-Menon, Artist, New York16. Amar Kanwar, Artist, New Delhi17. Ameet Sikka, vogue Stylist, New Delhi18. Amna Hashmi, paintings Educator and Practitioner (Assistant Professor),COMSATS, tuition, Islamabad19. Amol ok Patil, Artist, Mumbai20. Amshu Chukki, Artist, Bengaluru21. Andrew Ananda Voogel, Artist, Taipei22. Anisa Nariman, food creator and Chef, New Delhi, India23. Anita Khemka, Photographer, Delhi24. Anita Rani, tv Presenter, London25. Anjali Monteiro, Filmmaker and Academician, Mumbai26. Anjalika Sagar, Artist, The Otolith community, London27. Ankur Tewari, Musician, Mumbai28. Annu Palakunnathu Matthew, Artist and Professor, institution of RhodeIsland, Bangalore/Rhode Island29. Anoushka Shankar, Sitarist and Composer, London30. Anurag Banerjee, Photographer, Bombay31. Anusha Yadav, The reminiscence business, Mumbai32. Anushka Rajendran, Curator, New Delhi33. Archana Hande, Artist, Bombay34. Arijit Bhattacharya, Artist, India35. Arnav Adhikari, creator/Editor, New Delhi36. Arnika Ahldag, JNU, New Delhi37. Aruna Chandrasekhar, unbiased Photojournalist, Bangalore38. Aruna Keshav, Assistant Director, GALLERYSKE, Bangalore39. Asmita Parelkar, Photographer, Mumbai40. Astha Butail, Artist, Gurgaon41. Aunohita Mojumdar, Editor, Himal Southasian, Colombo42. Avantika Bhuyan, Freelance author, New Delhi43. Avinash Veeraraghavan, Artist, Bangalore44. Ayesha Jatoi, Artist, Lahore45. Aziz Sohail, Curator and author, Karachi/Los Angeles46. Bharat Sikka, Photographer, New Delhi47. Bhavika Aggarwal, clothier, the Brewhouse, New Delhi48. Bikkil Sthapit, Artist, Nepal49. Boshudhara Mukherjee, Artist, Bangalore/Mumbai/Kurseon50. Bunu Dhungana, visual Artist, Kathmandu51. Chandrika Grover Ralleigh, consultant, Cultural method, New Delhi52. Charles Esche (Prof.), Director, Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven53. Chinar Shah, Artist, Srishti Institute of paintings, Design and know-how, Bangalore54. Clare Lilley, Director of Programme, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Wakefield, UK55. Cosmin Costinas, Director, Para website, Hong Kong56. Cynthia Packert, Middlebury faculty, Vermont57. David Sanderson, instances Arts Correspondent, London58. Dayanita Singh, Artist, New Delhi59. Deborah Bruguera, Activist, Padova60. Deep Kailey, inventive Director, London61. Deepak Ananth, art Historian and Curator, Paris, France62. Deepali Dewan, Senior Curator of South Asian art & culture, Royal OntarioMuseum, Toronto63. Devika Bakshi, author and teacher, Delhi64. Devika Daulet-Singh, Director, PHOTOINK, New Delhi65. Dhruv Malhotra, Photographer, Jaipur66. Dia Mehhta Bhupal, Artist, Hyderabad67. Diana Campbell Betancourt, artistic Director, Samdani art foundation, ChiefCurator, Dhaka art Summit68. Dileep Prakash, Artist, New Delhi69. Dinesh Khanna, Photographer, Delhi70. Diva Gujral, PhD student, school college London, London71. Dr Emilia Terracciano, Ruskin faculty of paintings, university of Oxford,London/Oxford72. Dr Rashmi Poddar, Director, Jnanapravaha, Mumbai73. Eesha Patkar, Editorial manager, Saffronart, Mumbai74. Elvira Dyangani Ose, Director, The Showroom, London75. Emilia Bergmans, Founder, the Brewhouse, New Delhi76. Fiza Khatri, Artist, Karachi77. Frances Morris, Director, Tate modern, London78. Gabi Ngcobo, unbiased Curator, Co-Director, Nothing gets Organised(NGO), Lecturer, Wits school of Arts, Johannesburg79. Garima Gupta, Artist and Researcher, New Delhi80. Gauri Gill, Artist, New Delhi81. Gayatri Nair, Founding member, Chennai picture Biennale/CPB foundation,Chennai82. Guerrilla women, Artists, USA83. Hadrien Diez, Curatorial consultant, Bengal foundation, Dhaka84. Helmut Schippert, Co-Founder, Chennai photograph Biennale/CPB foundation,Chennai85. Hem Partap Singh, dressmaker, the Brewhouse, New Delhi86. Hena Kapadia, Gallery Director, TARQ, Mumbai87. Henri-Claude, Curator and Former Director of École de Beaux-Arts, Paris,France88. Himali Singh Soin, creator and Artist, New Delhi/London89. Iftikhar Dadi, Director, South Asia application, Cornell institution, Ithaca, NewYork90. Itisha Giri, Poet, Madrid/Kathmandu91. Jeroo Mullah, Social Communications & Media, Professor and Dancer92. Jessica Lim, festival Director, Angkor image competition, Singapore/Cambodia93. Jiten Thukral and Sumir Tagra, Artists, New Delhi94. Joe Paul Cyriac, Photographer, Thiruvananthapuram95. Jyoti Dhar, artwork Critic, Colombo96. k. P. Jayasankar, Filmmaker and Academician, Mumbai97. Kai Altmann, Artist, Musician and Curator, Worldwide98. Kamayani Sharma, paintings Critic, New Delhi99. Kanika Makhija, Artist and Researcher, Mumbai100.Karan Shrestha, Artist and Filmmaker, Kathmandu/Mumbai101.Karishma Dev Dube, Filmmaker, New York102. Karma Wangchuk, Artist, Bhutan103.Karthik Subramanian, Photographer, Chennai104. Kartik Sood, Artist, Shimla105. Kavan Balasuriya, Artist, Sri Lanka106. Ketaki Sheth, Photographer, Mumbai107. Kiran Nadar, Chairperson, KNMA, New Delhi108. Krishnaraj Chonat, Artist, Bangalore109. Kuldeep Patil, Shiv Nadar college, Delhi110. Kush Badhwar, Artist, Sydney/Mumbai111. Madhavi Gore, Artist, Bardez112. Madhuban Mitra, Artist, Kolkata113. Mahendra Sinh, Photographer, Mumbai114. Malini Kochupillai, Artist and concrete researcher, New Delhi115. Manas Bhattacharya, Artist, Kolkata116. Manishikha Baul, Performing Artist, Delhi117. Mario Ashley DSouza, Curator and author, New Delhi.118. Martha Rosler, Artist, Brooklyn, New York119. Medha Khosla, designer Entrepreneur, ANOMALY, Delhi120. Meera Menezes, paintings author, New Delhi121. Megha Rawla, dressmaker, the Brewhouse, New Delhi122. Megha Roy, reproduction-writer, the Brewhouse, New Delhi123. Mila Sambdub, creator, New Delhi124. Mithu Sen, Artist, New Delhi125. Monali Meher, Artist, Gent, Belgium126. Mortimer Chatterjee, Director, Chatterjee & Lal, Mumbai127. Munem Wasif, Artist, Dhaka128. Mustafa Khanbhai, Artist, New Delhi129. Nada Raza, Curator, Dubai130. Naeem Mohaiemen, Artist and author, Dhaka131. Nalini Malani, Artist, Mumbai132. Nandita Jaishankar, Editor, New Delhi133. Natasha Ginwala, creator and Curator, Colombo134. NayanTara Gurung Kakshapati, Director, picture Kathmandu, Kathmandu135. Nihaal Faizal, Artist, Bangalore136. Nikhil Chopra, Artist, Bardez137. Nikhil Kaul, fashion designer, the Brewhouse, New Delhi138. Nilanjana S Roy, creator, New Delhi139. Niranjan Kunwar, schooling advisor and author, Kathmandu140. Orijit Sen, Director, people Tree, Goa141. Ornella D’Souza, Senior function author, each day news & analysis (DNA),Mumbai142. Pakhi Sen, Artist, New Delhi143. Paribartana Mohanty, Artist, New Delhi144. Parni Ray, New Delhi145. Parul Vadhera, Director, Vadhera artwork Gallery New Delhi146. Payal Khandwala, Painter and Clothesmaker, Mumbai147. Phalguni Desai, author and Producer, Mumbai148. Philippe Calia, Artist, Mumbai149. Philippe Pirotte, Rector Staedelschule and Director Portikus, Frankfurt150. Pooja Pant, Artist, Nepal151. Prabhakar Pachpute, Artist, Pune152. Prabhavathi Meppayil, Artist, Bangalore153. Prajakta Potnis, visual Artist, Mumbai154. Praneet Soi, Artist, Kolkata/Amsterdam155. Prarthna Singh, Photographer, Mumbai156. Prashant Panjiar, Photographer and Curator, Goa157. Prateek Raja, Director, Experimenter, Kolkata158. Prawin Adhikari, Asst. Editor, La.Lit, Kathmandu159. Premjish, Curator and Critic, Delhi160. Preti Taneja, creator, United Kingdom161. Princess Pea, The Pea family unit Studio, Gurgaon162. Priyadarshini Ravichandran, Photographer, Auroville/Chennai163. Priyanka D’Souza, Artist, Mumbai164. Priyanka Raja, Director, Experimenter, Kolkata165. Pulak Bhatnagar, fashion designer, the Brewhouse, New Delhi166. Pundoles, Mumbai167. Pushpamala N, Artist, Bangalore168. Qudsia Rahim, govt Director, Lahore Biennale Foundation169. Rachel Spence, Poet and arts author , London170. Radha Mahendru, Arts manager and Filmmaker, Delhi171. Radhika Chopra, Collector, New Delhi172. Ragini Bhow, Artist, Bangalore173. Rahaab Allana, Curator and publisher, New Delhi174. Rahel Aima, author and Editor, New York175. Rajyashri Goody, Artist, Pune176. Ramona Dmello, Digital marketing manager, Saffronart, Mumbai177. Randhir Singh, Photographer, New Delhi178. Ranjana Steinruecke, Director, Galerie Mirchandani + Steinruecke, Mumbai179. Ranjit Kandalgaonkar, Artist and Researcher, Mumbai180. Rashmi Sawhney, affiliate Professor film & Cultural reviews, ChristUniversity, Bangalore181. Rashmi Varma, clothier, New Delhi182. Rebecca John, Curator and Researcher, Berlin183. Reeta Loi, creator and Musician, CEO Gaysians, London184. Reetu Sattar, Artist, Dhaka185. Rhea Maheshwari, Assistant Director, GALLERYSKE, New Delhi186. Rishi Singhal, discipline Lead – photography Design, national Institute ofDesign, Ahmedabad187. Ritesh Uttamchandani, Photographer, Mumbai, India188. Rithika service provider, Artist, Mumbai/Barcelona189. Ronny Sen, Photographer and Filmmaker, Kolkata190. Roobina Karode, Director and Chief Curator, KNMA, New Delhi191. Rosalyn Dmello, art creator and creator, New Delhi192. Roshni Vadhera, Director, Vadhera art Gallery New Delhi193. Rudra Rakshit, Photographer, Bangalore/Pune/Sakleshpur194. Rupali Patil, Artist, Pune195. Sabih Ahmed, Researcher, Asia paintings Archive in India, New Delhi196. Sadia Marium, Photographer, Dhaka197. Sahil Naik, Artist, Ponda198. Saif Hasnat, Journalist and Lyricist, United information of Bangladesh (UNB)199. Sakshi Gupta, Artist, Mumbai200. Salima Hashmi, Artist and Educator, Lahore201. Samira Bose, creator and Researcher, New Delhi202. Sana Nasir, art Director and Illustrator, Karachi203. Sandip Kuriakose, Artist and author, New Delhi204. Sania Galundia, Researcher and curator, Jaipur205. Sanjana Hattotuwa, Founding Editor, Groundviews.org, Colombo, Sri Lanka206. Sathi Guin, Artist, Baroda207. Savia Mahajan, Artist, Mumbai208. Saviya Lopes, Artist, Bombay209. Seher Shah, Artist, New Delhi210. Sethu Vaidyanathan, Trustee, CPB groundwork, Chennai211. Shahidul Alam, Photographer, creator and Activist, Dhaka212. Shaleen Wadhwana, independent Arts knowledgeable, New Delhi213. Shanay Jhaveri, Curator, long island/Mumbai214. Sharareh Bajracharya, Chairperson, Srijanalaya, Kathmandu215. Shaunak Mahbubani, Curator, New Delhi216. Shazia Salam, Artist, Bangalore217. Sheela Gowda, Artist, Bangalore218. Sheelasha Rajbhandari, Artist, Artree Nepal, Kathmandu219. Sheena Dabholkar, LOVER journal, Nerul220. Shibesh Mehrotra, reproduction-author, the Brewhouse, New Delhi221. Shireen Gandhy, Gallerist, Mumbai222. Shirley Bhatnagar, Artist and designer, New Delhi223. Shiv Ankit Ahuja, Artist, Gurgaon224. Shivanjani Lal, Artist, Bombay/Sydney225. Shreemoyee Moitra, Gallery supervisor, Mumbai226. Shubigi Rao, Artist, Singapore227. Shuchi Kapoor, Founding member, Chennai photo Biennale/CPBFoundation, Chennai228. Shumon Basar, Curator, writer and Editor, Dubai/Berlin229. Sitara Chowfla, Curator, London/New Delhi230. Skye Arundhati Thomas, writer and Editor, Mumbai231. Smita Prabhakar, Collector, Dubai232. Sneha Ragavan, Researcher, Asia artwork Archive in India, New Delhi233. Sofia Karim, Architect & Artist, London UK234. Sohrab Hura, Photographer, New Delhi235. Sooni Taraporevala, Photographer, Screenwriter and Filmmaker, Mumbai236. Sosa Joseph, Artist, Kochi237. Soumyadip Ghosh, Researcher & Archive manager, PHOTOINK, New Delhi238. Srinivas Kuruganti, Photographer, Mumbai239. Sudarshan Shetty, Artist, Mumbai240. Sukanya Ghosh, Artist, New Delhi241. Sumitra, Researcher and Curator, Bangalore242. Sunil Padwal, Artist, Mumbai243. Sunitha Kumar Emmart, Director, GALLERYSKE, Bangalore244. Suresh Kumar G, Artist and arts Facilitator, Bangalore245. Swapnaa Tamhane, Artist and Curator, Montreal, CA246. Tania Bruguera, Artist, Havana247. Tanvi Mishra, inventive Director, The Caravan magazine, IndependentCurator, New Delhi248. Tanya Goel, Artist, New Delhi249. Tanzim Wahab, Chief Curator, Bengal groundwork, Dhaka250. Tara Kelton, Artist, Bangalore251. Tara Lal, Director, Chatterjee & Lal, Mumbai252. Tarana Sawhney, Collector, New Delhi253. Tausif Noor, Curatorial Fellow, Institute of contemporary paintings, Philadelphia254. Tejal Shah, Artist, Delhi255. Thomas Pouppez, Arts manager, Kathmandu256. Trishla Talera, TIFA Working Studios, Pune257. Umer Butt, Director, Gallery gray Noise, Dubai258. Urvashi Butalia, writer, Zubaan Books259. Ute Meta Bauer, Curator and Director, middle for modern art, NTU,Singapore260. Varun Gupta, Co-Founder, Chennai photograph Biennale/CPB basis,Chennai261. Varunika Saraf, Artist/paintings Historian, Hyderabad262. Veera Rustomji, Artist, Karachi263. Veeranganakumari Solanki, unbiased Curator/paintings author, Pune264. Vidisha S, Artist-Curator, New Delhi265. Vidya Shivdas, Director, FICA, New Delhi266. Vidyun Sabhaney, Artist/Editor, Delhi267. Vivek Premachandran, Artist, New Delhi268. Yabya Kewat, Bharati Vidyapeeth school of first-rate Arts, Pune269. Yogesh S Barve, Artist, Mumbai270. Zain Masud, art marketing consultant, London271. Zeenat Nagree, creator, Mumbai272. Zishaan A Latif, images/movies, Mumbai273. Zubin Ekka, Arts manager, GALLERYSKE, New Delhi