Though much is taken, much abides: Art makes a return from Covid exile

KOCHI: The season of online-only art exhibitions seems to have ended with Invictus, a show by a group of artists that pays tribute to resilience of art which began at David Hall in Fort Kochi on Saturday.
The two-day show, organized by architect and artist Vivi Jojo has works by 13 artists on display and will conclude on Sunday.
“It does not have a common theme but features work by established artists and upcoming talents.There are landscapes, murals, and abstract works. Everyone has pursued diverse and vivid themes for the show,” said Jojo, an architect by profession.
Invictus is the first ever physical exhibition to be held in the gallery space after a hiatus of nine months, he said.
“Though much is taken, much abides. The works pay tribute to those of us who strive to live by an old Tennysonian paradigm in this post-pandemic world,” said Jojo.
According to him, the name of the show Invictus, which means unconquerable, is inspired by the poetry of William Earnest Henley. In a year that tested everyone around the world, it was oftentimes easy to lose sight of the almost poetic beauty of the indomitable human spirit around us.
“It is a trying time for all and it was very difficult to have a show and for people to get out. Art must live on in any condition. That’s the reason why we chose the title,” said Jojo.
The show has works by Dhwany Jojo, Asha Nair, Prasanth K P, N V Sreejith, Renuka Acharya, Sunija K C, Nakshatra K R, Rahul Prasanna, Doyil Joy T, Vaishnavi Thankam, Saira Netto and Ganga Suresh, besides Jojo. Except Jojo, who is from Kottayam, all artists are based in Kochi.