‘The Free Space’, located in the central hall of Ishara House (Kashi Halegua House), is a grand steel cage with no doors or open spaces. It will probably stop you in your tracks, and maybe make you wonder a little bit about the work and the artist.
Artist Michelangelo Pistoletto was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2025, and the work was realized in 1999 in collaboration with inmates of San Vittore prison in Milan, Italy. Throughout his lifetime in the arts, the 93-year-old Italian artist has been trying to break down the walls between art and the ordinary.
Pistoletto’s work has a significant place in Amphibian Aesthetics, an exhibition at Kasi Halegua House. The work juxtaposes ideas of control and freedom while being located in a heritage building, a Jewish synagogue to be precise, that has lived through times of conflict, migration and coexistence. Built in 1568 by the overseas Jewish community of Kochi, the building and the art work interact on multiple levels, inspiring the viewer to try different ways of seeing, different ways of thinking.
Amphibian Aesthetics is the inaugural show of Ishara House, which marked its beginning as a center for contemporary art. Launched by Ishara Art Foundation (based in Dubai), Ishara House exhibits the works of 12 artists and groups from South Asia, West Asia and Europe.
Show amphibian aesthetics | Photo Courtesy: Anuj Daga
Amphibian Aesthetics runs parallel to the Kochi Muziris Biennale and is organized in collaboration with Aazhi Archives, a group of artists, writers, scholars and thinkers conducting collaborative research on Kerala’s maritime history and evolving artistic practices. It is an extension of its multidisciplinary project, Sea a Boiling Vessel, which used the sea as a metaphor to explore the history of Kerala.
Riyas Komu, Artistic Director of Ishara House and Co-Founder of AZI Archives | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Amphibious aesthetics consider multiple realities – climate and humanitarian crises, geopolitical shifts, and the fluid nature of human existence. “A world where binaries no longer work. Where ambiverts work better,” says Riyas Komu, artistic director of Ishara House and co-founder of Azzi Archives. “Art has to provide a space for contemplation and growth. We are looking at many things here, and one of them is how Kochi is emerging as an art production space. There is an art ecosystem here now and an important part of the discussion is also how art came here and started working with the history of the space. What does art give to the space?” Rias asks.
Inside one room of the gallery is a giant hull (of a ship), a work that reflects the space between art and commerce. Shanvin Sixtus, owner of Kochi-based architectural metalworks firm Winton Engineering, presents a mixed-media installation that uses steel and multiscreen video to explore the hull as both material and metaphor. ‘In Between’, analyzes the hull that is constantly negotiating between land and water.
‘In Between’ by Shanvin Sixtus at Ishara House Photo Courtesy: Biju Ibrahim
Visual artist and graphic novelist Appupane’s satirical wit shines through in ‘The World of Amphi Bien’, a series of print, online and graffiti interventions.
Ishara House’s unpainted walls and minimal use of light, except for open corridors that let in plenty of sunlight, add depth and drama to the work.
The doors of some rooms are deliberately closed, serving them as intimate spaces for videos and site-specific installations. Shilpa Gupta’s ‘When the Stone Sang to the Glass’ is one such, inviting the audience into two small dark rooms where pieces of furniture have been juxtaposed with drinking glasses collected from the neighbourhood, to create musical echoes. The installation came together when Shilpa was reminded of Pakistani poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s song of resistance ‘Hum Dekhenge’ while tapping on the surfaces of these objects during a site visit.
Ishara House Photo Courtesy: Anuj Daga
Since its first edition in 2012, the Kochi Muziris Biennale aims to take art to the masses, break down walls and connect with the local ecosystem. After five editions, it is interesting to see how the biennial season weaves itself into the fabric of the city, especially in Fort Kochi and Mattancherry, where residents, shop owners, visitors and tourists transform into artists themselves. Parallel shows and satellite events, pop ups and performances are all part of this vibrant arts environment. This, says Rias, is an example of what art can do as a soft power and can generate more interesting offshoots. He added, “There are vestiges of colonial history in this place; we are reviving these ancient warehouses. The site caters to the art…Half the work is done by the location.” The amphibious aesthetic, in that sense, says Rias, is “starting conversations about ecology, migration, culture and infrastructure…a very fluid state of existence.”
Amphibian Aesthetics is on at Ishara House till March 31.
Aazhi Archives is organizing two more shows at Uru Art Harbor in Mattancherry and Kara in Fort Kochi.
Pictures, Areas and Facts
Shilpi Rajan Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Self-taught sculptor and artist Shilpi Rajan’s retrospective, ‘Pictures, Fields and Facts’, covers more than 40 years of her life in art. The gallery of Uru Art Harbor in Mattancherry houses sculptures of different sizes made of clay, cement, wood, bamboo and laterite. Rajan, who started his journey as a mechanic in Thrissur, was inspired by his innate inclination towards art. Not bound by academic constraints, Rajan’s creative works reflect his distinctive style drawn from life experiences.
At Uru Art Harbor
Till 31st March.
archeological camera
A series of photographs and specimens from archaeological sites across Kerala opens a window into prehistoric times. Mohammed A. explores the cultural dynamics of the past in his archaeological photography. From the rock carvings at Edakkal and Towari to the microlithic artefacts at Anakkara and the excavations at Muziris-Pattanam, Mohammedan history is transformed into a compelling visual experience. In Cara, photographs in different shades of ocher and patterns take you on a journey where you least expect it.
Jail, at Fort Kochi.
Continued till 30th January.
published – January 17, 2026 05:53 PM IST