Curator of the 7th edition of Kochi Muziris Biennale Kader Attia.
| Photo Credit: R.K. Nithin
Kader Attia, the curator of the seventh edition of Kochi Muziris Biennale (KMB), will unveil his curatorial vision for the art exhibition in Mumbai on November 14, 2026.
The organisers of the KMB said that the noted Algerian-French artist has initiated site visits and conversations in Kochi ahead of the next edition of the international art event. His current research visit began in Mumbai, where he met cultural practitioners and others, they said.
He shared images of his work at a media interaction here on Wednesday (September 16, 2026). He spoke about aspects of a practice that, for more than two decades, has engaged with questions of memory, history, repair and the continuing legacies of colonialism, according to a communication.
He said that the idea of “traces”, the marks left by history, trauma and experience, remains central to his artistic inquiry. The human psyche, he said, carries traces linked not only to trauma but also to joy, opening up political, philosophical, metaphysical and poetic questions.
“The question of traces is very much what I put at the centre of my interest in understanding the legacy of colonialism in the 21st century,” he said. He described observation as something learned socially rather than academically and described repair not simply as a concept but as a phenomenon.
Beginning with memories of his mother and the invisible traces left by those who are gone, he explored ideas of the wound and repair, while also reflecting on Kochi’s unusually engaged local audience and the sense of reciprocity he has encountered in the city.
Mr. Attia, who has a longstanding association with Kochi, delivered the inaugural Vivan Sundaram Memorial Lecture in 2025 and had previously participated in two exhibitions in Kochi curated by Jitish Kallat, Whorled Explorations, presented as part of the 2014 KMB, and Tangled Hierarchy in 2022.
Venu V., chairperson of the Kochi Biennale Foundation (KBF), Jitish Kallat, president, KMB, Adeeb Ahamed, trustee of the KBF, and Thomas Varghese, its chief executive officer, attended the interaction.
Published – September 17, 2026 07:59 pm IST
