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The City, My Studio / The City, My Life

Kathmandu Triennale’s inaugural edition in 2017 was dedicated to the theme of The City. With the overall artistic vision and curation led by Philippe Van Cauteren (Belgium), along with invited guest curators, the 2017 edition saw a visitor count of over 50,000 from Nepal and abroad over the course of the exhibition dates.

The exhibitions were held between 24 March and 9 April 2017, at multiple venues across the Kathmandu Valley. The central exhibition, “The City: My Studio / The City: My Life” was directed by Philippe Van Cauteren. A ‘Historical Perspective’ on the edition theme surveyed Nepali art history and Children-Specific considerations/interventions were prioritized to make the central exhibition accessible to younger viewers. Additional ‘Curated Showcases’ were held alongside the central exhibition to present multiple world-perspectives on the theme of The City. These showcases were organized by institutional partners and curators independently, with support from KT 2017 as a local partner.

To find out more and visit the 2017 archive, please click here.

In 2011, Siddhartha Arts Foundation was registered to become the official organizing body of the Festival. The 2012 edition was much larger in scope and scale than its predecessor. It featured works by 97 artists exhibited at over 16 venues over the course of a month.

Use of unconventional spaces like the local zoo, trade fairs, renovated heritage complexes (Mulchowk, Patan Durbar Sqaure) and community squares brought the arts to newer audiences and communities and helped reach more than 480,000 people over the course of a month.
a month.

KIAF Collaborations lead to the publication of a national award-winning children’s book on climate change titled Prerana and Lalpila. The book was written by Buddhisagar Chapain (Nepal) and Rumana Hussein (Pakistan) and was illustrated by Adeel uz Zafar (Pakistan). In 2013, the book was donated and distributed to public schools in Nepal by Room to Read

First guided tour program in Nepal were initiated for the Festival. Through dedicated approaches, many schools were invited to visit the exhibition spaces and learn about the creations and their social messages

Installations

Many of the Kathmandu International Art Festival (KIAF) Artists continued their connections to Nepal post-event. Artists like Gary Wornell (Finland) even instigated long-term projects on Kathmandu. Wornell opened an exhibition, Treasure of Nepal, in Finland and launched the namesake book during Kathmandu Triennale 2017.
a month.

First, the guided tour program in Nepal was initiated for the Festival. Through dedicated approaches, many schools were invited to visit the exhibition spaces and learn about the creations and their social messages