Programmes

Asia Art Archive (AAA) and Siddhartha Arts Foundation (SAF) announce Mobile Library: Nepal, which will run from February 2021 to June 2022.

Mobile Library is a periodic initiative organised in partnership with cultural collaborators in different countries throughout Asia to provide a platform for the exchange of ideas. By co-organising events and enabling the circulation of printed matter, this programme activates new possibilities to engage with art as a form of knowledge.

The Mobile Library in Nepal provides reading materials—and through these ideas—to artists, students, and educators, so as to extend support to the local arts ecosystem. This project seeks to build infrastructure and provide foundational support to community-based, collaborative initiatives and universities in Nepal, and to enrich reference points to the geographies within Asia and beyond.

Image: The logo has been designed by Kathmandu-based Ujala Shreshtha. It is an origami rendition of a Sarus Crane, which is a large non-migratory bird that inhabits varied geographies - the Southern Plains of Nepal, but also parts of India, South-East Asia and Australia.

To activate the collection of books, AAA and SAF will present a series of talks and workshops, providing Nepal’s artistic community with a platform of exchange and a chance to share their history, visual culture, and art with their peers in greater Asia. As part of a multi-pronged approach, the Mobile Library will share resources to generate learning and to facilitate the unlocking of other libraries and collections within Nepal by bringing them into circulation.

The collection of the Mobile Library will stay in Nepal, remaining as a crucial resource for local art practitioners, independent organisations, and educational institutions. SAF will be responsible for ensuring that the collection continues to circulate in creative and meaningful ways. Simultaneously, a selection of reference material related to Nepal generated during the project will become part of AAA’s collections, increasing its exposure to international audiences.

Building Mobile Library: Nepal

The contents of the Mobile Library were developed during a research trip in December 2019 by members of AAA and SAF in Kathmandu and Janakpur, and through follow-up discussions on themes and book suggestions.

Visit to Thribuvan University.

Programmes & Collaborations

The Mobile Library collection will be used as a point of departure for discursive and educational programmes that take place throughout the project. The books will be housed in flexible, modular shelves, and the programming takes a range of formats, including capacity building workshops (especially related to archives), teacher training programmes, modules in universities, student fellowships, and pop-up exhibitions. The Mobile Library project provides material resources as well as a venue for discussions and the exchange of ideas. We will be collaborating with like-minded individuals, initiatives, organisations, and universities on different aspects of the programming over the course of the project.

You can access updates on programmes for the project here.

You can read about the conclusion of the programme and its programme highlights here.

Mobile Library Nepal (MLN) is a collaboration between Siddhartha Arts Foundation (SAF) and Asia Art Archive (AAA), building on past editions in Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Myanmar. MLN is a collaboration with Nepal's art universities, artists, and independent art organizations who remain at the centre of this programme and builds on the Kathmandu Triennale 2077 curatorial team's research efforts and conceptual contributions. This project is made possible by the generous support of the Foundation for Arts Initiatives (FfAI).

Siddhartha Arts Foundation (SAF) is a nonprofit that promotes and supports the development of Nepali arts, using an inclusive lens and approach. SAF is involved in establishing lasting educational exercises with a focus on art research, practice, criticism, and management. SAF is the principal organiser of the Kathmandu Triennale, Nepal’s premier international platform for global contemporary art.

Project Team:
Susanna Chung, Asia Art Archive
Samira Bose, Asia Art Archive in India
Sharareh Bajracharya, Mahima Singh and Pooja Poudel, Siddhartha Arts Foundation

Acquisitions:
Linda Lee and Lydia Lam, Asia Art Archive

Bibliographies Project:
Sneha Ragavan, Asia Art Archive in India
Deepmala Maharjan, Siddharta Arts Foundation

Funded by:

Foundation for Arts Initiatives