From the outside, the river bank across the old Yamuna bridge in Delhi seems to be just a patch of depleting floodplain complete with tall river grass and moist and sandy earth, with a panoramic view of the almost 150-year-old bridge built by the British in the background. The stench is overpowering and filth and muck that have sadly become an indispensable part of the river?s identity in Delhi is visible in abundance at a short distance.
But amidst this neglect, there is a part of the landscape that has been converted into a public art gallery for the past couple of weeks. The installed works of art ask the city and its folks to respond to uncomfortable and critical questions of survival facing the river. The Yamuna-Elbe Public.Art.Outreach Project, or Project Y, featuring four Indian and four German artists, organised by the Goethe Institut, New Delhi, the city of Hamburg, and the government of NCT Delhi, sought to create awareness and actionable interaction between the river and the city it sustains. This is the second leg of the collaborative project, the first leg of which was organised in Hamburg along the Elebe river in October. The project, a part of ?Germany and India 2011-2012?, commemorating six decades of diplomatic ties between the two countries, is centered on the idea of creating ecological sustainable rivers in the two cities of Delhi and Hamburg.
As one enters the exhibition area, the installations, shaped as giant plastic bottles protruding from the ground, take one by surprise. These bottles are the work of Atul Bhalla and originated from the idea and belief that water is a source of knowledge. Hence, alongside each such installation is a question inspired from the ones that Yaksha asked Yudhishtir in the Mahabharata.
Another interesting and starkly visible artwork is that of Gigi Scaria, who erected a 24-feet tall ?fountain of purification? with the structure having four architectural floors. The ?fountain? draws water from the much contaminated Yamuna, cleanses it and dispenses potable water. Then there are other interesting and fascinating works like Sheba Chhachhi?s ?wounded organic form? placed on the river with visual flames created on it with a projector.
Recounting the story of how the project was initiated, co-curator Ravi Agarwal tells FE, ?What you see today is the culmination of a year-long effort. I won?t say it?s an end unto itself, but a part of the series of efforts that are being undertaken and still need to be done in order to salvage the Yamuna.? So were there any fundamental differences between the project legs in Hamburg and Delhi? ?Of course there were differences. And that has to do with the way the two cities interact with their respective rivers. In Hamburg, Elbe is a part of people?s life and is on their minds, unlike the Yamuna in Delhi. The foremost idea here is to get the people to the river first in order to deal with the problems. One reason why we went for installation-based works was to get the people to the river, which has to be the first step in a city which seems disconnected from the very water body that has been a part of its existence,? says Agarwal.
Fellow curator Till Krause says public art being common in Germany and people having a connect to Elbe in Hamburg created the difference in the way Project Y was executed in the two cities. ?In Hamburg we didn?t do installations or objects.?
The whole project has been managed with a moderate budget of around euro 1,20,000, and the response, according to the curators, has met expectations. ?We have to understand that it?s not a fete and in this city too many things compete for attention. On an average, we got 200 visitors a day and at the music performances, we got more than 400 visitors. These numbers might not seem impressive from an event point of view, but given the nature of the project and its context, we are fairly satisfied,? says Agarwal.
And while the Project Y ends today, the river is still looking for answers from a city that was born out of it, and a city that has tormented it to such extremes.