Gallery Square Circle - Kala Kendra

Kala Kendra, the centre for arts, is the hub of all the art activities in the Pavilion of India, Bharat Nivas. It hosts group art shows on various themes, solo and group exhibitions, art workshops, etc. It encourages artists to come, work, stay and share their work with the community of Auroville. It has hosted several visiting artists in Auroville and organizes interactive sessions with Auroville artists and art enthusiasts. 

Gallery Square Circle is the gallery space, which is part of Kala Kendra, hosting all art exhibitions. It has various levels and interesting spaces for artists to have different exhibitions simultaneously depending on the nature of their work. The gallery has all the professional amenities and focuses not on sales but on the quality of work and the nature of shows. It also promotes various research projects, where different media artists come together to explore, work and exhibit on a theme.

 It is a non-commercial, not-for-profit, service unit, self-supported and funded partially by the Bharat Nivas Development and Activities fund yearly. However, the Bharat Nivas Maintenance is a self-supporting entity, which takes care of the electricity, maintenance, security and other expenses. 

The best time to exhibit at the Kala Kendra complex is from July-March. Summer months are warm and humid but are good for art workshops with children and Aurovilians. The months of January and February are busy due to festivities in the Auroville community.

The Resident Artist Studio has hosted a few artists in the past years from different countries and has recently been spruced up within the same complex right next to the gallery, café, audiovisual room and administration areas. It is a fully furnished spacious studio with accommodation facility, workspace, kitchenette and attached toilet and dressing area.

Kala Kendra welcomes artists from all over the world to come and explore the art activities within the Auroville community and be part of its artist-in-residence programme. We expect artists to stay for a few weeks to get the feel of the space and produce a body of work. Resident artists are expected to either exhibit at the gallery towards the end of their stay or present their work in an interactive session with the artist community of Auroville. If free, this artist studio also welcomes artists for short stays on their visit to Auroville. There are nominal contributions for the use of these facilities, details of which can be made available.

For further information on the artist-in-residence programme, you may write directly along with the details of your art project, duration of residency, CV and samples of your work.