The India Foundation for the Arts (IFA) in collaboration with the Queer Archive for Memory, Reflection and Activism (QAMRA) Archival Project at NLSIU Bengaluru invites applications for an IFA-QAMRA Creative Project and an IFA-QAMRA Scholarly Project, under its Archives and Museums programme, which IFA will implement.
The Creative Project offers the Project Coordinator opportunities for curatorial and artistic engagement with the archive housed at NLSIU Bengaluru, reimagining the collections in innovative ways and presenting the collections through public programmes such as talks, workshops, exhibitions etc. both online and offline.
For the Scholarly Project, the Project Coordinator will need to research and critically engage with the collections at QAMRA housed at NLSIU Bengaluru, and create content that will further the public engagement of the archive with tangible outcomes such as a monograph, essays, etc. and present their research through public programmes both online and offline.
Collections
For the Creative and Scholarly Projects, QAMRA will open up the following collections:
Maya Sharma and Indra Pathak Collection: Maya and Indra are feminist, queer, grassroots activists based in Vadodara, Gujarat. This collection represents their work with queer communities in Gujarat and some of their organisational work with Vikalp and Parma/Sabrang.
Sangama Collection: Sangama is an organisation dedicated to protecting the rights of working class queer communities, sex workers and people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA). This collection gives a broad view of the functioning of Sangama and its daughter CBOs, and describes the context in which the queer movement developed in Bangalore.
Section 377 IPC Collection: This collection presents the various dimensions to the litigation process towards the decriminalisation of Sec 377 of IPC across different collections.
T Jayashree Collection: The material in this collection consists of unedited footage of public and private meetings, protests, community workshops, pride marches, and several in depth interviews with activists, lawyers, petitioners and queer folk.
Funding Information
The project cost should not exceed Rs. 2,00,000/-
You may budget for an honorarium of Rs. 12,000/- per month subject to a limit of Rs. 1,44,000/- for the entire duration of the project. Please note that the total amount is inclusive of the honorarium.
The Project will commence in January 2023 for a period of one year.
Eligibility Criteria
Applicants of diverse gender and sexual identities are encouraged to apply.
They seek applications from curators, artists, researchers, writers, performers as well other creative practitioners, and from scholars with background in research and keen interest in working with archival and museum collections.
They also encourage applications that demonstrate an ability to think through interdisciplinary and collaborative approaches and methodologies for their outcomes.
Since QAMRA is a physical archive based out of Bengaluru, applications from in and around Bengaluru will be given preference as the Project Coordinators will have to spend a considerable amount of time at the archives during the project period.
Only Indian nationals are eligible to apply.
The criteria to apply:
Only Indian nationals can apply. This does not include PIO (Persons of Indian Origin) and OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) Card Holders.
Applicants must have PAN card and one of the following for proof of identity and citizenship – Indian Passport or Aadhar Card or Voter’s ID in India
Only individuals can apply. Organisations of any kind cannot apply
If there are collaborators in the projects, they must also be Indian nationals
Persons who have a past history of financial delinquency with IFA are not eligible
Persons who have failed to deposit at IFA agreed deliverables from an earlier IFA grant are not eligible
Persons who have previously received a letter from IFA disallowing them from applying in the future for any reason are not eligible
More than one individual can apply if they have a joint account. If they do not, then only one among them should apply with the others as collaborators
