Jaaga

J...is a beautiful place in central Bangalore, which I visited thanks to my boss Jitu. He thought that I would like it, and that I would meet there interesting people. He was totally right.
Jaaga means "space" in Kannada (the local language), and it is a creative community giving artists from all over the world the opportunity to stay for some months in Bangalore and to work with local artists. It exists since 2009 and is unique here. I attended a vernissage of an exhibition called "Sound and Lights" showing sound and light installations of artists from Italy, UK, Germany, Japan and India, and it was a very pleasant evening where saw a lot of young Indians and a good amount of foreigners. Sipping on a glass of coke with Old Monk (the local rum), I chatted with an indian architect and the guy who did the sound installation, and they both told me that the Jaaga is unique, but that there are also other nice galleries in town (something that I will explore in the future). Later on came also Jitu, and we had a great discussion about the relation between arts and science. I am so glad that I fortunately found a boss, who likes art, is open minded and supports my interests to explore Bangalore and Indian culture.
For all of you who want to read more about Jaaga and its actions, here the link to their web site: www.jaaga.in
and here a more detailed description of the exhibition: Jaaga Sound & Lights

 

Jitu (left) discussing with the Sufi singer (right) and his musician

 

 

Murale - an interactive wall with flowers that react to movements or sounds

the floors of the Jaaga were staggered

a canvas on top of the building tilting in the wind