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INDIAN ARTIST SUDARSHAN SHETTY TO JOIN THE ROLLS-ROYCE ART PROGRAMME
Thu Jun 02 10:00:00 CEST 2016 Press Release
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is delighted to announce that Sudarshan Shetty will be the next artist to be commissioned for the Rolls-Royce Art Programme. Shetty is one of the most renowned Indian artists of his generation and is acclaimed for his artistic practice, which includes enigmatic sculptural installations that reflect on urban contemporary life.
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Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is delighted to announce that Sudarshan Shetty
will be the next artist to be commissioned for the Rolls-Royce Art
Programme. Shetty is one of the most renowned Indian artists of his
generation and is acclaimed for his artistic practice, which includes
enigmatic sculptural installations that reflect on urban contemporary life.
Shetty’s new work will take the form of a two-channel film,
anchored by two sculptures. The commission will be based on an Indian
folk tale and is slated to be presented in Mumbai on 5 November 2016,
alongside his existing ‘Flying Bus’ public art project at the Maker
Maxity in Bandra-Kurla Complex, Mumbai. The new commission will then
move to New Delhi.
Shetty will become the first artist from India to join the
Rolls-Royce Art Programme, founded in celebration of the marque’s
commitment to creating unique, rare and aesthetically powerful motor
cars, which transcend the world of conveyance to become works of art
themselves. He has recently been appointed as Artistic Director of the
Kochi-Muziris Biennale, which opens in December 2016.
The new commission will take inspiration from a popular South
Indian folk tale that is an allegory for artistic expression and the
importance of creativity. Two structures will represent the home and
public space featured in the story, whilst the film will depict the
tale of a husband and wife, at a moment when the wife envisions a
story and a song from her breath whilst sleeping.
The sculptures will represent key moments in the tale and will
be rigorously handcrafted reflecting the art of craftsmanship. Shown
across two screens, the film will convey a sense of unfolding time
whilst exploring the narrative as it comes into the world through
language and music.
Rolls-Royce has a shared ethos with the world of art, each
Rolls-Royce motor car is Bespoke, commissioned for its aesthetic power
out of the finest materials, and has its own story to tell. Therefore,
a common philosophy was found between the marque and the artist.
Shetty’s work raises the questions about the moment in the creative
process of when a story becomes a story and when a song becomes a
song. His belief is that an artist carries a story and it is
imperative for him to express it.
Torsten Müller-Ötvös, Chief Executive Officer, Rolls-Royce Motor
Cars, commented, “Sudarshan Shetty has been recognised as one of the
most innovative artists in India for his generation. I am delighted to
welcome Sudarshan to the Rolls-Royce Art Programme; he is an artist
whose work reflects our own striving for perfection. India is an
important part of Rolls-Royce’s heritage and it gives us great
pleasure that Sudarshan will weave Rolls-Royce into the thriving
Indian arts scene.”
Sudarshan Shetty visited the Home of Rolls-Royce on the Goodwood
Estate in West Sussex, UK, to inform the creation of this new work,
taking inspiration from the meticulous standards set by the marque’s
artisanal craftspeople. The Rolls-Royce commission will enable him to
explore new dimensions of his work, including an in-depth exploration
of new methods of filming.
Sudarshan Shetty commented, “Rolls-Royce is, for me, a model of
craftsmanship and technological advancement. It is a matter of
privilege and also a challenge to create a new commission for
Rolls-Royce and to be able to try to match its high standards. Through
this new commission, I am seeking to find a meeting point between the
innovation of Rolls-Royce and my own imagination as an artist.”
Sudarshan Shetty joins Emirati artist Mohammed Kazem as a member
of the Rolls-Royce Art Programme for 2016. Kazem has been commissioned
to create a sculpture for the Programme which will be presented in
late 2016 alongside a Bespoke motor car that has been inspired by the
new work. Sudarshan Shetty presented a successful Art Talk in Sydney
to coincide with the 20th Biennale of Sydney in March 2016 for the
Rolls-Royce Art Programme.