2021 SCIENCE GALLERY BENGALURU
Contact us info@bengaluru.sciencegallery.com bengaluru.sciencegallery.com instagram.com/scigalleryblr facebook.com/SGBlr twitter.com/SciGalleryBlr linkedin.com/company/scigalleryblr Science Gallery Bengaluru is a Section 8 Not-For-Profit Private Limited Company, limited by guarantee not having a share capital; registered in Bengaluru, India. Corporate Identity Number U92419KA2015NPL083911
CONTENTS 01 /
Introduction
08
02 /
Milestones
12
03 /
The Building
14
04 /
Public Engagement
16
05 /
The Mediator Programme
74
06 /
Media Presence
78
07 /
Global Science Gallery Network
82
08 /
Financial Reports
88
09 /
Governance and Leadership
90
10 /
Leonardo Group
96
11 /
The Team
98
12 /
Plans for 2021
104
13 /
Partners
106
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Mediator with visitors at ‘Terra Mars’ by SHI Weili, SUBMERGE, 2019
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THE EXPERIMENT BEGINS Science Gallery Bengaluru is being established as a public institution for research-based engagement with the human and natural sciences, engineering, and art. Our main purpose is to reduce the reticence between research and the public. We do so by creating opportunities to provide insight into the creative processes behind making knowledge and behind artistic expressions. We have pioneered a public laboratory complex to reimagine public spaces for science and art in the new century. Until we open the doors to the laboratories in our new building, we are focussed on exhibitions. We have had a year of three firsts: ELEMENTS - our first pop-up exhibition; SUMBERGE - our first full exhibition-season; and PHYTOPIA - our first online exhibition. Our fourth exhibition CONTAGION, an online full exhibition-season, will launch this year. We are experimenting with formats of public engagement. In order to go beyond science communication and didactics, we are creating Live or Living exhibitions that have an in inbuilt dynamism: we prioritise exhibits that transform during the exhibition; we offer interconnected programming to explore the creative processes behind the exhibits, and, finally, in place of a guiding narrative, we present unique experiences of viewing the exhibition through interpretive conversations with a mediator. Our team is small and young, and for most this is their very first professional engagement. They bring energy, audacity, and a moral commitment to our collective endeavour. Moreover, they give us reason to believe that an institution such as ours is necessary while also giving us the confidence that, together, we will realise our goals at the best possible standards. You will find in here a record of our busyness over the last couple of years. We wanted to release an earlier version of this report last summer but the pandemic lay rest to that plan. Like many others, we have been working from home since 23 March 2020 and have continued efforts to establish our presence in Bengaluru and equally, on the national as well as international scene. With incredible support from the Government of Karnataka, we will continue our work to establish a vibrant and safe space for people across generations to explore, analyse, and create.
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw Chair, Board of Directors
Jahnavi Phalkey Founding Director
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01
INTRODUCTION
ABOUT US
Science Gallery Bengaluru is a public institution for research-based engagement at the interface between the natural and human sciences, engineering, and the arts. We offer exhibition seasons, fellowships, residencies, lab modules, learning and mentorship programmes, and Science with Society initiatives at our Public Lab Complex, Public Engagement Complex, and community spaces.
VISION
VALUES
Bring science back into culture.
Empathy
MANDATE To create a public institution for research-based engagement through a pioneering public laboratory complex and a new model for informal learning.
Our founding partner is the Government of Karnataka. We also draw on the intellectual capital of three of India’s leading research institutions: the Indian Institute of Science, which is our lead academic partner, and the National Centre for Biological Sciences and the Srishti Institute of Art, Design, and Technology, both of which are our collaborating academic partners.
MISSION
Science Gallery Bengaluru is the first Asian member of the Global Science Gallery Network and will remain the only Science Gallery in India. We are the only independent gallery in the network located outside the walls of a university, with a pioneering Public Lab Complex.
Deliver collaborations through openended, antidisciplinary experiments that inspire future research practices.
Empower Young Adults Nurture a generation of future research pioneers and active citizens primed for critical thinking with twenty-first century skills. Reimagine Research
Shape Culture Increase access to research for the public at large to catalyse informed cultural debate on science.
Visitors at ‘Munsell Richter’ by Jenifer Wightman, SUBMERGE, 2019
We commit to empowering diverse voices to participate in and shape our programmes and to increasing access to research for the public at large. Imagination We believe that daring questions that advance the frontiers of knowledge need unfettered exploration of the unknown. Responsibility We recognise the planetary emergency confronting us and commit to using resources judiciously, and we endorse action for the regeneration of earth’s resources.
SCIENCE CULTURE EXPERIMENT Neon exhibit ‘Science, Culture, Experiment’, ELEMENTS, 2019 10 / ANNUAL REVIEW
02
MILESTONES
SETTING UP THE INSTITUTION July 2013
November 2014
Honourable Chief Minister of Karnataka announced the setting up of Science Gallery Bengaluru in the budget speech for the financial year 2013-14.
Memorandum of Agreement signed between the Government of Karnataka and Science Gallery International and Memoranda of Understanding signed with the three academic partners.
ASSEMBLING THE TEAM April 2016
November 2017
Dr Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw appointed as the Chair of the Board of Directors.
Dr Jahnavi Phalkey appointed as the Founding Director.
LAUNCHING OUR PUBLIC PROGRAMMING October 2019
December 2019
First pop-up exhibition, ELEMENTS, to mark 150 years of Mendeleev’s Periodic Table.
First exhibition season, SUBMERGE, to explore our relationship to water.
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November 2015
January 2019
Science Gallery Bengaluru incorporated as a Section 8 NotFor-Profit Private Limited Company under the Companies Act, 2013.
Building construction began at Bellary Road on 1.65 acres of land allocated by the Government of Karnataka.
May 2017 - October 2018
June 2019 onwards
Recruitment of consultants, including architects, civil contractors, museum planners, finance, legal and project management consultants.
Recruitment of staff. The team stands at ten full-time staff members and interns as of 31 March 2021.
August 2020
August 2020
First long-term collaborative programme, Reading for Change, a monthly book club to discuss the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
First online pop-up exhibition, PHYTOPIA, to mark the International Year of Plant Health.
03
THE BUILDING
Breaking down disciplinary barriers is central to Science Gallery Bengaluru’s work. Our building complex, designed in partnership with CnT Architects, enables this by facilitating a free flow of ideas through its spaces. Galleries are interspersed with laboratories, and half-glass walls allow a glimpse into the messy, noisy, smelly, and exciting world of experiments.
Public Lab Complex
The location
Our public laboratory complex is home to antidisciplinary collaboration. Through fellowships, apprenticeships, residencies and learning modules, it offers researchers and young adults a space to experiment across disciplines and generations, and shape future research practices.
We want people to feel connected to and be stimulated by what they see around them. The building complex structures a sequence of experiences such that just being there creates the desire to participate in the making of knowledge— not just the consumption of it.
Public Engagement Complex
Science Gallery Bengaluru is located on a service road adjacent to Bellary Road, and it is within easy reach of our partner institutions and other key institutions of higher education. We are a 10-minute drive from the Indian Institute of Science, a 25-minute drive from the National Centre for Biological Science, and a 35-minute drive from the Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology.
The building’s architectural language is restrained so that its visual impact does not distract from our mission to engage and learn. An earthy vocabulary of exposed brick and textured surfaces helps blend the building complex into Bengaluru’s understated urban aesthetic.
Our public engagement spaces are open to all. They promote researchbased public engagement through living exhibitions, informal learning programmes, and immersive experiences, inviting participants to think about contemporary global concerns.
We are strategically placed on existing shuttle routes between these institutions to allow young adults and researchers from Bengaluru’s colleges and universities easy access to all our activities and workshops.
Community spaces Our community spaces provide a platform for the public to organise their own debates, discussions, and meet-ups, promoting a culture of open conversation and hands-on exploration.
Our building complex will be open to visitors in 2022.
Architect’s render of the Science Gallery Bengaluru building complex 14 / ANNUAL REVIEW
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04
PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT
Science Gallery Bengaluru began its public engagement activities in 2019. Since then we have organised three exhibitions: ELEMENTS, a week-long pop-up exhibition that marked the 150th anniversary of Mendeleev’s periodic table; SUBMERGE, our first 45-day exhibition-season which also supported the Government of Karnataka’s Year of Water initiative; and PHYTOPIA, our 10-day long, first fully online pop-up exhibition which also supported the UN General Assembly’s International Year of Plant Health 2020 initiative. As we began to establish ourselves as a cultural space in the city we participated in the Indian Institute of Science’s Open Day 2020. We further showcased PHYTOPIA at the India Science Festival 2021. We also began our programming on the global stage by showcasing events from SUBMERGE at the Science Gallery Garden in the Ars Electronica 2020 festival. In January 2021 we extended our reach by co-organising the International Youth Symposium with all the nodes in the Science Gallery Network.
As a part of our long term commitment to the Anthropocene, we co-hosted “Energiewende,” an exhibition about Germany’s renewable energy practices, at the National Centre for Biological Sciences in partnership with the Bengaluru Sustainability Forum, the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany, and the IndoGerman Energy Forum. Further building upon this we continued to work with the Bengaluru Sustainability Forum and the Champaca Bookstore to organise the Reading for Change programme, which encourages people to think about the UN Sustainable Development Goals as facets of their daily lives. In the face of the COVID -19 pandemic we also pivoted and shaped our community initiatives to contribute to the response to the crisis. We supported the Azim Premji Fields Institutes COVID-19 Frontline Response by creating a training programme for their young adult community volunteers. We also collaborated with the Agastya International Foundation and the Indian Scientists Response to COVID-19 (ISRC) to develop a set of learning modules about the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ice Painting workshop by Dorota Borowa, SUBMERGE, 2019
Our Public Engagement programmes reduce the distance between research, researchers, and the public, because science thus introduced into cultural conversations can create a critical appreciation for research in everyday life. .
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OUR EXHIBITIONS Science Gallery Bengaluru exhibition seasons are a unique format of public engagement that are both a generator and product of scholarship. Programming is an integral component of the exhibitions. They bring the artworks to life and deepen a visitor’s engagement with it. We create an interface between research and the public by using various formats of programming. We are conceptualising the idea of “living exhibitions”, a work in progress format aimed to extend the impact of our programmes. The characteristics of a living exhibition are:
Exhibits that are live, interactive, and evolving through the exhibition
FILM
WOR KSHO
P
MASTERCLASS
WFMLE EVENT
Programming that explores the creative processes behind the exhibits and makes them the starting points for new inquiries
LECTURE
Unique experiences of viewing the exhibition through conversations with mediators
Mediator with visitors at ‘Rotating Table’ by G.S. Bhat and Debasis Sengupta, SUBMERGE, 2019
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ELEMENTS 05.10.2019–11.10.2019 Rangoli Metro Art Centre We have long known that our world is made up of particular types of matter, each of which has properties, characteristics, and even character. The elements have been shaped, traded, exploded, created, destroyed, and even feared. Many attempts have been made to tame the elements in the pursuit to understand them, and Dmitri Mendeleev’s periodic table has been the most successful. The table continues to evolve and change in both content and form; the current periodic table has 118 elements whereas Mendeleev’s had 63, and we are still looking for more. While we are excited about finding new elements, our lifestyles have created the risk of losing the elements we already know.
and utility of its elements with eight exhibits and eight programmes spread over seven days, which engaged with disciplines including chemistry, physics, art, design, history, geography, and biology. ELEMENTS was held in the Rangoli Metro Art Centre on MG Road, which is close to public transport and is centrally located in Bengaluru. With this exhibition, Science Gallery Bengaluru also supported the International Year of the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements 2019.
ELEMENTS, Science Gallery Bengaluru’s very first exhibition, invited people to explore the iconic nature of the periodic table as well as the attraction
Visitors at ‘Through the Looking Glass’ by N.S. Vidhyadhiraja and Divya Chalapathi, ELEMENTS, 2019
Academic Advisors N.S. Vidhyadhiraja, chemist Shobhana Narasimhan, theoretical scientist
Curatorial Team Madhushree Kamak, designer Jahnavi Phalkey, historian of science
Mediator Team Aditya Iyer Akif Khan Divya Chalapathi Gauri Gharpure Manish Jayashekar Misha Gupta Nomaan Vinay Anand
Exhibition Partners
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EXHIBITION OVERVIEW
2200+
VISITORS
880+
YOUNG ADULTS
500
PROGRAMME PARTICIPANTS EXHIBITION EXPERIENCE 8 EXHIBITS
8 PROGRAMMES
7 DAYS
90%
45%
45
Visitors rated the experience 4 and above out of 5
Visitors left the exhibition with a new question to think about
Minutes, the average time spent by visitors
Visitors at ‘Bring Your Own Element’ (BYOE), ELEMENTS, 2019
“THE PROGRAMME HELPED ME MAKE SURPRISING AND UNEXPECTED CONNECTIONS BETWEEN FOOD AND THE ELEMENTS, AND THEIR IMPACT ON OUR BODIES. IT MADE ME CURIOUS ABOUT OTHER FOODS AND I WILL BE MORE AWARE OF WHAT I EAT” Participant at ‘Edible Elements’, an immersive experience
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Top: Participants at ‘Edible Elements’ by Elizabeth Yorke, ELEMENTS, 2019 Right: Mediator and visitors conducting experiments at the Testing Table, ELEMENTS, 2019
“IT WAS EYE OPENING FOR ME AS TO HOW CHEMISTRY PERVADES EVERY ASPECT OF OUR LIFE” Visitor
“TALKING ABOUT THE PERIODIC TABLE MADE ME THINK MORE DEEPLY ABOUT THE EFFORT AND CONCEPTS THAT HAVE GONE INTO MAKING A TABLE THAT IS EASY TO NAVIGATE: YET IT SUCCEEDS IN THE IMPORTANT TASK OF CAPTURING THE RELATIONS BETWEEN ELEMENTS. I COULD SEE PARALLELS TO ART, ARCHITECTURE, CITY PLANNING AND PROJECTIVE GEOMETRY.” Shobhana Narasimhan, Theoretical Scientist, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research
‘Scripting the Table’ by David Mazure, ELEMENTS, 2019 26 / ANNUAL REVIEW
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SUBMERGE 15.12.2019–30.01.2020 BANGALORE INTERNATIONAL CENTRE When we think of water, we are usually thinking of the 3% that is freshwater on Earth. But, what does it mean to think of water beyond it being a resource? It is, after all, a weird substance, present in the smallest of living cells as well in gigantic glaciers and oceans.
It showcased what could happen if geologists, hydrologists, artists, civil engineers, ecologists, social scientists, oceanographers, historians, and storytellers, among others, shared and created knowledge about water to address challenges and identify futures.
SUBMERGE, Science Gallery Bengaluru’s first full exhibitionseason, invited visitors to explore our collective experience of water in everyday life through 15 exhibitions and 45 programmes spread across 45 days.
Of the 15 exhibits, nine were selected from responses to our open call and the remaining six were developed in close conversation with researchers and cultural institutions. All of these served as starting points for our programmes, which differed in format but gave visitors access to the latest research across 17 disciplines and helped them find new connections to their own lives. Our programmes were especially aimed at young adults and welcomed them to interact with researchers and artists, explore the knowledge-making process, and try their hands at open-ended activities.
Visitor at ‘H2O Today’ by Smithsonian Institution, SUBMERGE, 2019
SUBMERGE participated in the Government of Karnataka’s “Year of Water” initiative and also featured “H2O Today,” a popular travelling exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution and the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service made possible by the United States Consulate, Chennai. The exhibition-season was held at the Bangalore International Centre.
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Academic Advisors
Mediator Team
Srikanth Sastry, theoretical scientist Roddam Narasimha, fluid dynamicist S. Vishwanath, urban planner
Aarushi Susheel Abhishek Jain Abigail Silversmith Irfan Akif Khan Aman Anand Anagha Nadig Ananthapadmanabhan Aryaman Sharma Ashwini Anil Bevan Stanley Bina R CM Manasvi Gauri Gharpure Govind Patilla Jay Kulkarni Janhavi Bodele Suresh Lakshya Nahar Manish Jayashekar Maya Ramachandran Meghana Binraj Mitreya Vellala Niranjan Krishna Kumar Prajwel Joseph Priya B R Rahul Keshav Rajas Poorna Rebecca Tom Rishan Ahamed S. Partheeban Shrivathsa M S Sri Vrushank Ayyagari Vinay Anand Yamini Srikanth Yamini Undurthi
Curatorial Team Jahnavi Phalkey, historian of science Abhishek Hazra, artist Douglas Herman, geographer
Tutorial with water researcher Veena Srinivasan, SUBMERGE, 2019
Content Partners
Programme Partners
Reading Room Partner
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EXHIBITION OVERVIEW
5700+
VISITORS
2400+
YOUNG ADULTS
1400
PROGRAMME PARTICIPANTS EXHIBITION EXPERIENCE 15 EXHIBITS
45 PROGRAMMES
45 DAYS
90%
89%
76%
Visitors rated the experience 4 and above out of 5
Visitors felt they were exposed to a new way of thinking
Visitors said they would like to visit again
Experiments exploring currents on the Rotating Table at SUBMERGE, 2019
“EVEN THOUGH I AM NOT A SCIENTIST OR FROM A SCIENCE BACKGROUND, SUBMERGE MADE ME TAKE SCIENCE SERIOUSLY” Visitor
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Top: Mediator with visitors at ‘Munsell Richter’ by Jenifer Wightman, SUBMERGE, 2019 Right: Nobel Laureates Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee at SUBMERGE, 2019
“ABSOLUTELY THOUGHT PROVOKING. BANGALORE SHOULD STOP DOING WHAT IT’S DOING AND RUSH TO SEE THIS EXHIBITION” Visitor
“I AM JUST BLOWN AWAY COMING HERE AND SEEING THIS. THIS IS WHAT I OFTEN THINK WHEN I AM ABROAD AND SEE EXHIBITIONS –WHY CAN’T WE CREATE EXPERIENCES THAT ARE NOT DIDACTIC. AT SUBMERGE, THE THEME EXPANDED OUT IN SO MANY DIFFERENT AND CREATIVE WAYS. I THINK THIS IS UNIQUE AND I AM REALLY EXCITED.” Rajesh Gopakumar, Director, International Centre for Theoretical Sciences
Ice Painting created at Dorota Borowa’s workshop at SUBMERGE, 2019 36 / ANNUAL REVIEW
“THE MASTERCLASS PROVIDED ME A NUANCED UNDERSTANDING OF WATER - HOW IT IS SHAPED BY NOT JUST SCIENTIFIC, BUT ALSO SOCIAL, POLITICAL AND CULTURAL SCENARIOS” Masterclass Participant
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Top: ‘Creating Clouds’ workshop with Professor Roddam Narasimha at his lab, SUBMERGE, 2019 Right: Participants creating cyanotypes at Chirantan Khastagir’s workshop at SUBMERGE, 2019
“I REALLY ENJOYED MY TUTORIAL SESSION WITH YOUNG ADULTS. THEY POSED IMPORTANT QUESTIONS WHICH MADE ME THINK DEEPLY ABOUT MY WORK” Pradeep P Mujumdar, Hydrologist, Indian Institute of Science
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PHYTOPIA 21.08.2020–30.08.2020 Online Plants are critical to life: apart from being the source of the air we breathe and the food we eat, they also animate our lives in different ways. We hosted 14 interdisciplinary exhibits, ten talks and events, two films, and five workshops, all inviting people to explore the hidden depths of plant life and how plants are embedded within our language, histories, cultures, and imaginations.
The COVID-19 pandemic limited all of us to our own homes, but it also helped us at Science Gallery Bengaluru experiment and learn more than we may have otherwise. Taking PHYTOPIA online allowed us to work with many creative practitioners from around the world and present an engaging exhibition in spite of all the challenges.
PHYTOPIA was Science Gallery Bengaluru’s first fully online exhibition, and it was also one of the Network’s first fully online exhibitions.
PHYTOPIA’s exhibits were selected from an international open call and were coupled with programming that brought together creative practitioners from across disciplines. Both the exhibits and programmes were categorised under six themes that represent plants beyond their utilitarian and aesthetic values.
Red Yucca from ‘Archiving Eden’ by Dornith Doherty, PHYTOPIA, 2020
The exhibition also featured 74 Mediator-led Sessions and a “Take it Further” section, which encouraged visitors to explore PHYTOPIA beyond the programmes and the exhibits in their own homes. With this exhibition, Science Gallery Bengaluru also supported the International Year of Plant Health initiative observed by the United Nations General Assembly.
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Academic Advisors
Mediator Team
Content Partners
Shannon Olsson, chemical ecologist Harini Nagendra, ecologist Sita Reddy, sociologist and curator
Aarushi Susheel Bevan Stanely Bina R Govind Patilla Jahnavi Bodele Jay Kulkarni Manasvi CM Meghana Binraj Misha Gupta Rishan Ahmed S Partheeban Sri Vrushank Vinay Anand Yamini Srikanth
Programme Partners
Curatorial Team Madhushree Kamak, designer Jahnavi Phalkey, historian of science
Reading Room Contributors Antennae Magazine MARG Magazine Meena Menon and Uzramma National Centre for Biological Sciences
Still from ‘Symbiosis’ by Henry Driver, PHYTOPIA, 2020
Outreach Partner
EXHIBITION OVERVIEW
10,430 VISITORS
33
EXPERTS
3,609
PROGRAMME PARTICIPANTS EXHIBITION EXPERIENCE 14 EXHIBITS
17 PROGRAMMES
10 DAYS
95%
93%
81%
Visitors rated the experience 4 and above out of 5
Visitors said they were exposed to a new way of thinking
Visitors said they would like to visit again
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ONLINE EXHIBITION EXPERIENCE
5,600+
PROGRAMME VIEWS
2100+
READER ENGAGEMENTS
570+
PARTICIPANTS IN MEDIATOR-LED SESSIONS
89%
77%
64%
Visitors experienced a digital exhibition for the first time
Visitors found it easy to engage digitally with the exhibition, mediators and facilitators
Visitors from outside of Bengaluru
“WHAT I LOVED ABOUT PHYTOPIA IS THAT YOU REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT HOW TO MAKE CONTENT SUPER ENGAGING. IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT IMAGES…THERE ARE WORKSHOPS, THERE ARE FILMS, THERE ARE PANEL DISCUSSIONS. YOU’VE REALLY TRIED TO ENCAPSULATE WHAT MIGHT NORMALLY HAPPEN IN AN EXHIBITION EXPERIENCE BUT THROUGH...SORT OF A DIGITAL REALM... I DON’T THINK I’VE SEEN ANY INSTITUTION TAKE IT AS FAR AS YOU GUYS HAVE WITH PHYTOPIA. I THINK IN TERMS OF THE MUSEOLOGICAL WORLD... YOU ARE REALLY PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES OF WAYS TO CONNECT WITH CONTENT” Brad Irwin, Head of Global Engagement, Natural History Museum London
Print from ‘Arboreal’ by Rohini Devasher, PHYTOPIA, 2020. Image courtesy of Project 88 46 / ANNUAL REVIEW
“FOR ME IT IS BECOMING MORE AND MORE IMPORTANT TO BECOME A PUBLIC INDIVIDUAL...TO TALK TO A WIDER AUDIENCE BECAUSE ACADEMICS HAS HISTORICALLY BEEN CONFINED TO JOURNALS WHERE ONLY A HANDFUL OF PEOPLE SEE WHAT YOU WRITE, AND HAVING A FORUM TO PUBLICLY ENGAGE IS WHAT MAKES ACADEMIC WORK WORTHWHILE” Vinita Damodaran, Historian, University of Sussex
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Top: ‘Operasi Cassava’ by Lim Kok Yoong and Roopesh Sitharan, PHYTOPIA, 2020 Right: Process of creating Photosynthegraph. Image courtesy of Yoko Shimizu
“IT’S A REALLY INTRIGUING EXHIBITION... [IT] EXPLORES PLANTS IN MANY WAYS... NOT ONLY THE HISTORY AND MEMORIES OF PLANTS BUT ALSO... THE VERY EXPERIENCE OF PLANTS THEMSELVES... IT’S A VERY TIMELY EXHIBITION BECAUSE WE ARE ALL AWARE OF THIS WHOLE PERIOD OF UNCERTAINTY THAT WE LIVE IN... OF HUMAN-INDUCED CLIMATE CHANGE, BIODIVERSITY LOSS, AND SPECIES EXTINCTION AT AN ALARMING RATE” Visitor at PHYTOPIA
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BEYOND EXHIBITIONS Alongside our exhibition seasons, we collaborated with local, national and international partners to expand our audiences. Both our exhibits, along with our mediators were a part of various public engagement events in the country and abroad. Capitalizing upon the global accessibility of digital events, we took our exhibition events online. We showcased sections of SUBMERGE and PHYTOPIA in various online events. We also extended our global audience and built strong ties with our sister galleries by co-organising the International Youth Symposium: Boredom Rebellion which brought together young adults from across the world.
“WHAT YOU ARE DOING, TO MAKE KNOWLEDGE AVAILABLE TO ALL SOCIETY REGARDLESS OF THEIR AGE AND BACKGROUND, IS CRUCIAL... BECAUSE WE SHOULDN’T LOSE OUR CURIOSITY” Gabriela Soto-Laveaga, Professor, Harvard University
Glimpses of Science Gallery Bengaluru’s online public engagement programmes
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE: OPEN DAY 29.02.2020
01 DAY | 50,000
VISITORS
The Indian Institute of Science’s Open Day 2020 welcomed over 50,000 students, science and technology enthusiasts, and other members of the public to explore its exciting initiatives and activities. Science Gallery Bengaluru participated in this programme by presenting the exhibit “Munsell Richter.” This was the first time we toured an exhibit. Four of our Mediators presented “Munsell Richter” to an overwhelming number of young adults, school groups, families, and other visitors, and discussed lakes, water pollution, and shared notions of toxicity with them.
PARTICIPATING EXHIBIT “Munsell Richter” by Jenifer Wightman SUMBERGE, 2019
‘Munsell Richter’ by Jenifer Wightman at IISc Open Day, 2020 52 / ANNUAL REVIEW
ARS ELECTRONICA: SCIENCE GALLERY GARDEN 09.09.2020–13.09.2020
05 DAYS | 3,00,000+ VISITORS | 85000+ VIEWS | 160 PARTNERS The Ars Electronica festival is an annual festival that focuses on the relationships between art, technology, and society. 2020’s edition, which took place both online and in Linz, Austria, was conceptualised as a journey through “Kepler’s Gardens.” Science Gallery Bengaluru was part of the Science Gallery Garden, which showcased the best of the network’s public engagement with science and art. With contributions from all the sister galleries, it featured interactive workshops, live streamed events, and a digital archive. We presented four lectures from our exhibition-season SUBMERGE, in which the speakers captured water in its most intriguing forms.
Lead Partner
EVENTS AT A GLANCE “City of Water,” Harini Nagendra, ecologist “New Frontiers in Water Science,” Veena Srinivasan, water researcher “The Unquiet River: Brahmaputra,” Arupjyoti Saikia, historian “Water and Life,” Shashi Thutupalli, biologist
INDIA SCIENCE FESTIVAL 01.01.2021 -30.01.2021
30 DAYS | 20,000+
SESSION VIEWS |
1000+
PARTICIPANTS
The India Science Festival was an online event with talks, discussions, workshops, round-tables and demonstrations. We participated in this programme with Dr. Phalkey, Founding Director of Science Gallery Bengaluru delivering a short presentation about our upcoming exhibition season CONTAGION at the launch event. We also conducted two online mediator-led sessions of four exhibits from PHYTOPIA. We invited visitors from across India to explore the exhibits and engage with mediators about the exhibited works.
PARTICIPATING EXHIBITS “Foresta Inclusive” by Jane Tingley “Janaki Ammal – A Scientific Life” by Vinita Damodaran, John Innes Centre “Pandurang Khankhoje” by Savitri Sawhney “Symbiosis” by Henry Driver PHYTOPIA, 2020
‘Foresta Inclusive’ by Jane Tingley, PHYTOPIA, 2020 54 / ANNUAL REVIEW
BOREDOM REBELLION: 29.01.2021–31.01.2021
03 DAYS | 432 ATTENDEES | 527 REGISTRATIONS The Youth Symposium is the Science Gallery Network’s annual gathering of advisers, Mediators, staff members, and core audiences. 2021’s iteration was titled BOREDOM REBELLION, and its programme invited people to break monotonous routines and create together in a virtual space.
“THANK YOU FOR ORGANIZING THIS AND TAKING ALL THE PARTICIPANTS SO SMOOTHLY THROUGH THIS WORKSHOP. KUDOS TO THE AWESOME FACILITATORS AND CHEERS TO ALL THE OTHER PARTICIPANTS!”
Science Gallery Bengaluru participated by organising Contagious Ideas, a three-day design lab, in which participants cooked up new ideas and experimented with them. Alongside the Science Gallery Team and peers from around the world, participants selected and worked on a design challenge from ideation all the way through to testing.
Sambita Modak, programme participant
CONTAGIOUS IDEAS Facilitators
Komal Jain, Design Associate Madhushree Kamak, Programme Manager
Poster for Contagious Ideas Design Workshop at Boredom Rebellion, 2021 56 / ANNUAL REVIEW
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ANTHROPOCENE Science Gallery Bengaluru is developing a long term public engagement programme that investigates the cultural, socio-economic and scientific implications of the Anthropocene. In this new epoch, humans have become a force of nature, leaving their mark on the geological depths of the planet. With the objective of exploring a discourse on questions of the planet’s present and future, we hope to explore the Anthropocene through our research and public engagement programme.
Photograph of agricultural scientist Pandurang Khankhoje in Mexico by Tina Modotti, PHYTOPIA, 2020. Image courtesy of Savitri Sawhney.
ENERGIEWENDE 18.11.2019–23.11.2019
06 DAYS | 800 VISITORS | 06 PARTNERS “Energiewende” presented Germany’s approach to transitioning from fossil fuels to renewable energy while also increasing energy efficiency for consumers. Science Gallery Bengaluru co-hosted this travelling exhibition in partnership with the Bengaluru Sustainability Forum and the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS). It took place at the Institute of Stem Cell Research (InStem) in the NCBS campus and was organised with the Indo-German Energy Forum (IGEF) and the German Consulate General, Bengaluru.
“THIS WAS SUCH AN INSPIRING VISIT. I AM GLAD I COULD ATTEND THE PANEL DISCUSSION, IT REALLY OPENED MY EYES ON INDIA’S ENERGY SITUATION AND THE WAY FORWARD” Visitor
Partners
Visitors exploring the exhibition panels at Energiewende, 2019 60 / ANNUAL REVIEW
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READING FOR CHANGE 01.08.2020–ONGOING
1353 VIEWS TILL DATE | 02 PARTNERS The Reading for Change (RFC) programme is a monthly virtual book club that encourages people to think about the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as facets of their daily lives. Science Gallery Bengaluru cohosts this programme in partnership with the Bengaluru Sustainability Forum and the Champaca Bookstore. Each month focuses on one SDG. A book or two are chosen as introductions to that SDG, and a live public discussion is held with the authors and relevant subjectmatter experts to begin a dialogue about SDGs and the city and its citizens.
READING LIST Scavengers
Darren Simpson Inferior
Angela Saini Spillover
David Quammen Ordinary People, Extraordinary Teachers
S Giridhar Partners
I Will Save My Land
Rinchin
Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars
Kai Cheng Thom
Poster for the Reading For Change programme, 2020
THE ANTHROPOCENE CURRICULUM 26.10.2020–31.10.2020
06 DAYS | 100 PARTICIPANTS The Anthropocene Curriculum is a long-term initiative that explores new frameworks for knowing, investigating, and understanding the Anthropocene. The project brings together scholars, artists, and activists from around the world to co-create and think about research possibilities and cross-disciplinary collaborations to tackle the planetary challenges we face. Science Gallery Bengaluru participated in The Shape of Practise Seminar, a part of the 2020 Anthropocene Curriculum. We presented our format of “Living Exhibitions” as a means of using exhibitions as a form of public engagement that builds a dialogue on responsible stewardship of the planet. Our proposal was to use the exhibition space as a dynamic laboratory that challenges visitors with multi-sensory interactions, conversations, and debate— with the goal of building consensus on the critical issues of our times. We presented SUBMERGE as a part of the public programme “From a Living Exhibition to the DMZ” on 30 October 2020.
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Lead Partners
2020 ANTHROPOCENE CURRICULUM Participants from Science Gallery Bengaluru Jahnavi Phalkey, Founding Director Madhushree Kamak, Programme Manager
‘Street Puddle Fountain’ by Oren Ailam, SUBMERGE, 2019
THE SEARCH 01.11.2020–31.03.2021
10 LOCATIONS | 03 PARTNERS | 250 PARTICIPANTS Science Gallery Bengaluru is participating in the Clean Air Street Initiative of the Directorate of Urban and Land Transport (DULT). We have developed a game, “The Search,” in partnership with the Bengaluru Sustainability Forum and Xarpie Labs. Jhatkaa. org is our community engagement partner for this game. The interactive game encourages pedestrians to walk through Church Street, explore it, and think critically about sustainable choices in mobility and transportation. Ten real-world locations serve as points of engagement, and each highlights how the quality of our air impacts the quality of our lives. Pedestrians play the game on their mobile phones and unlock new content at each of the ten locations.
THEMES AT A GLANCE Partners
Alternative modes of transportation and last-mile connectivity Trees and air quality Cycling to work Reading about sustainability Pollinators, biodiversity, and food chains Aroma and air quality Measuring air quality Poster for The Search, 2021
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COMMUNITY INITIATIVES Our Community Initiatives aim to create a positive reciprocal relationship between Science Gallery Bengaluru and its diverse audiences. Our goal is to offer our audience the opportunity to shape programmes that are led by their interests and concerns, which helps develop a sense of shared ownership for the institution as well as a cultural narrative about science. We conduct these initiatives off site and online in order to improve access to learning and knowing, and to create a more inclusive dialogue. During the pandemic it became critical to utilise our partner networks to help young adults in the community have access to credible information about the pandemic and a channel to engage with leading experts in the fields of infectious disease and public health.
Quizmaster Berty Ashley with participants of ‘Elementary, my dear Bengaluru’ at ELEMENTS, 2019
LEARNING MODULES 01.07.2020–01.12.2020
1,10,000 LEARNERS REACHED | 02 PARTNERS The Agastya International Foundation (Agastya) developed a series of learning modules on the COVID-19 pandemic for students in government schools in the age group of 12-16 years. Science Gallery Bengaluru worked with Agastya and the Indian Scientists’ Response to Covid-19 to produce the written content for four of the ten modules and validate the content for the other six modules.
THE MODULES AT A GLANCE Lead Partner
Mental Health History of Pandemics Social Impact of COVID-19 Economic Impact of COVID-19 World of Germs Immune System Antibiotics, Antivirals, Vaccines Disease Outbreak Dynamics (I and II) Viruses
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Snapshot of a learning module developed at the programme
“I AM A FRONTLINE WORKER AND I AM GOING TO GET THE VACCINE TOMORROW. MANY OF MY FAMILY MEMBERS HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE VACCINE AND ARE HESITANT TO TAKE IT. I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR ARRANGING THIS SESSION BECAUSE NOW I CAN HELP THEM UNDERSTAND WHY IT’S SAFE TO TAKE VACCINES” Ratna, Field Coordinator at CFAR
“THERE IS SO MUCH MISINFORMATION AND FAKE NEWS FLOATING AROUND. AND THOSE WHO HAVE TESTED POSITIVE FOR COVID-19 EXPERIENCE SO MUCH STIGMA. THIS EXPERIENCE HAS HELPED US DIFFERENTIATE FACTS FROM FAKE NEWS” Sumitra M.B, Frontline Volunteer
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COVID-19 VOLUNTEER TRAINING MODULES 18.01.2021 - 06.02.2021
08 SESSIONS | 245 PARTICIPANTS | 03 PARTNERS | 18 EXPERTS The Azim Premji Foundation’s Bengaluru Frontline Health Work project was developed in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Through the project, the foundation has funded organisations to onboard volunteers who work with Bengaluru’s most vulnerable communities on issues such as awareness, prevention, and testing. Science Gallery Bengaluru has partnered with the Azim Premji Field Institutes, the Indian Scientists Response to COVID-19 (ISRC), and CovidGyan to conduct a training programme for young adult frontline volunteers working on COVID-19 awareness. We connected the young adult volunteers with experts across India who are deeply embedded in research and awareness campaigns about COVID-19. We conducted online workshops on themes ranging from the basics of virology to good communication skills, in which volunteers ask the experts questions and share their own experiences in the field.
MODULE THEMES AT A GLANCE COVID-19 - What? When? Where? How? Everyday Life During the Pandemic Handling Information
Partners
Vaccines Quarantine and Isolation Treatment and Care How Does Testing Work? Mental Health - Yours and Others
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THE MEDIATOR PROGRAMME
Mediators are integral to Science Gallery Bengaluru’s public engagement programme. Our target audience of young adults not only visits and learns, but also drives the experience on the exhibition floor. Mediators are drawn from a variety of academic backgrounds and are typically current undergraduate or postgraduate students. They are selected through an open call and undergo multiple training sessions with our team and the exhibition’s artists and researchers to develop their skills of communication and public engagement. Mediators engage and provoke visitors into a conversation sparked by our exhibits, events, and learning programmes. They ask questions, trigger debates, tell stories, listen, and facilitate experiences throughout exhibitions.
“THE EXHIBITION WAS BRILLIANT AND THOUGHT-PROVOKING. IT WAS MADE EVEN MORE SPECIAL AND MEANINGFUL BY THE ENTHUSIASTIC AND KNOWLEDGEABLE MEDIATORS” Visitor at SUBMERGE
Mediator with visitors at SUBMERGE, 2019
“AS MEDIATORS, WE ARE ABLE TO THINK ABOUT SCIENCE THROUGH CULTURAL, SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL PRISMS. IT IS AN EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN NEW THINGS WHICH WE DO NOT USUALLY ENCOUNTER IN OUR COLLEGE CURRICULUMS” Akif Khan Mediator at ELEMENTS and SUBMERGE
“THREE THINGS I LEARNT AS A MEDIATOR - TO SLOW DOWN, WIDEN MY CONCEPTUAL LEARNING, AND TO CONNECT THE DOTS” Meghana Binraj Mediator at SUBMERGE and PHYTOPIA
“BEING A MEDIATOR MEANS... BEING A GOOD CONVERSATIONALIST. IT’S NOT EASY TO BREAK DOWN SCIENTIFIC TOPICS INTO INFORMATION THAT CAN BE EASILY UNDERSTOOD. BUT HAVING A VISITOR UNDERSTAND [IT] AND ASK QUESTIONS IS EXTREMELY REWARDING” Yamini Srikanth Mediator at SUBMERGE and PHYTOPIA 76 / ANNUAL REVIEW
MEDIATOR EXPERIENCE
173
APPLICATIONS
43
MEDIATORS
9 LANGUAGES
24 TRAINING SESSIONS
100%
68%
Mediators rated their experience as positive
Mediators felt an improvement in their communication and engagement skills
*For ELEMENTS, SUBMERGE and PHYTOPIA
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MEDIA PRESENCE
More than 7,900 visitors engaged with our programmes in person in 2019 and the early days of 2020. But, many more connected with us through our digital channels, particularly during our fully-online pop-up exhibition, PHYTOPIA. We began building our digital and social media presence in May 2019. We transitioned to our current website in January 2020, which has an improved user experience and a more streamlined presentation of information. Our social media channels include Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn. We will continue to experiment with diverse formats and new approaches to digital engagement. Additionally, Science Gallery Bengaluru is working its way into Bengaluru’s cultural conversations through coverage in print and digital media and by participating in programmes hosted by other institutions. other institutions’ programmes.
“SUBMERGE EXPLORES WATER AND ALL THINGS WATER, FROM GLACIERS TO WATER CURRENTS, OR EDDIES WHICH ARE DEPICTED ON A LARGER-THAN-LIFE CANVAS….ONE MIGHT BE FORGIVEN FOR IMAGINING THAT THIS WAS BUT A REIMAGINING OF VINCENT VAN GOGH’S THE STARRY NIGHT” Business Standard, on SUBMERGE
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MEDIA COVERAGE HIGHLIGHTS 24x7 Newsworld Bangalore Mirror Deccan Herald E-Narada Hindu MetroPlus Mint Mumbai Mirror National School of Journalism and Public Discourse Research Matters Survarna News The Hindu The New Indian Express The Print The Week The Wire Science Udayavani United News of India
DIGITAL PRESENCE 2019-2020 UNIQUE VISITORS PAGE VIEWS
SUBSCRIBERS VIEWS
FOLLOWERS REACH
FOLLOWERS REACH
FOLLOWERS IMPRESSIONS
8,300 22,000 13 173 1,238 1,89,043 2,282 83,659 974 4,24,500
2020-2021
455% 603%
2069% 3599%
27% 94%
9% 109%
78% 33%
46,077 1,54,814 282 6,400 1,573 3,66,526 2,486 1,74,721 1,737 5,66,200
Gaillardia from ‘Archiving Eden’ by Dornith Doherty at PHYTOPIA, 2020 80 / ANNUAL REVIEW
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GLOBAL SCIENCE GALLERY NETWORK
2019
June
July
Science Gallery Detroit June
Hosted PERFECTION, which reflected on the ever-changing ideas of scientific precision, body augmentation, perfect imperfection, and the science and technology that allow us to modify and transform our lives. PERFECTION originated at Science Gallery Melbourne
Hosted the second annual Science Gallery Youth Symposium. Bringing together young people from Dublin, Detroit, London, and Venice to meet, think, and co-create, it featured creativity bingo, sensory storytelling, and even participatory rap.
Launched DEPTH, which explored water’s power to spread life and rejuvenation, as well as death and destruction. It asked visitors to consider how we can value the power of water, understand why it brings us joy and life, and wonder about the undiscovered and unknown
Science Gallery Dublin March Launched OPEN LABS. It celebrated collective curiosity, challenging the expectations of what a lab can do and why it should exist.
May Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden visited Science Gallery Dublin. She took part in an OPEN MIND workshop with students from local secondary schools, aimed at finding solutions to mental health problems faced by young people.
September Launched PLASTIC, and examined the necessity and usefulness, but also the terrible aspects, of plastic as a material.
Science Gallery London February Launched SPARE PARTS, which invited visitors to discover what the future of medical engineering might mean for us all in the future.
June Organised DARK MATTER. It explored matter and materiality, the concept of invisibility and infinite divisibility, and the human quest for absolute truth and knowledge.
Visitors at Science Gallery Dublin’s exhibition-season PERFECTION, 2019
October Launched ON EDGE. ON EDGE sparked conversations around the causes of and responses to anxiety today through art, design, psychology, and neuroscience.
November Won an award for Best Refurbishment at the 2019 Architects’ Journal Architectural Awards. The refurbishment of an 18th Century building on the Guy’s Campus of King’s College London was recognised for its stunning sustainable design and for demonstrating exceptional collaboration.
Science Gallery Melbourne August Organised DISPOSABLE, which explored creative responses to the global waste problem using pop-up installations, experiments, and events across Melbourne.
Science Gallery Rotterdam January Science Gallery Rotterdam at Erasmus University Medical Center—one of Europe’s premier medical schools— became the seventh member of the Science Gallery Network.
Science Gallery Venice October Organised a pop-up exhibition that explored chemistry for the 150th anniversary of the periodic table. It was inspired by Science Gallery Dublin’s 2011 exhibition, ELEMENTS
2020 Network-wide events April Science of Grief, an online event, took place. This was a three-hour online exploration of loss, hope, and creativity. It featured scientists, poets, musicians, researchers, artists and healthcare workers.
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September
September
The Galleries took part in the Ars Electronica 2020 festival, which took place both online and in Linz, Austria.
Organised FUTURE PRESENT, which focused on the impact of design on society, and in equitable and sustainable social change.
Science Gallery Atlanta January Science Gallery Atlants at Emory University, one of the world’s leading research universities, became the eighth member of the Science Gallery Network.
November Organised its first virtual series, CONNECT AND COPE, which explored coping mechanisms and how to develop a resilient mindset with a sense of compassion and kindness.
Science Gallery Detroit April Devon Akmon started as Director of Science Gallery Detroit.
May Science Gallery Detroit was awarded a grant in excess of $2,00,000 from Science Sandbox, an initiative of the Simons Foundation.
July Launched RAPID RESIDENCIES, a virtual residency program for creatives residing in Detroit. It seeked to foster conceptual ideas that address and appeal to young adults, and that serve as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Science Gallery Dublin February Science Gallery Dublin organised the REBOOT sessions. These consisted of workshops, town hall sessions, and discussions in the Gallery space with the public and multiple stakeholders to ask the community where the Gallery should go next.
March Launched RAPID RESIDENCIES. This was a virtual residency programme that supported artists to collaborate with expert researchers on developing a new project or idea over five weeks.
May Art+Science Reading Group was launched. The Art + Science Reading Group is a virtual group where researchers, artists, thinkers, and revolutionaries come to share ideas. It explores the ways art and science shape one another and society.
June INVISIBLE opened virtually. INVISIBLE highlighted the critical role of science, art and philosophy in imagining the unseen and questioning the invisible
August INVISIBLE opened as an in-person event.
October Gerard McHugh joined Science Gallery Dublin as Director.
Science Gallery London February Ogranised GENDERS. GENDERS presented a playful and kaleidoscopic view of genders and its relationship with science, as well as factors like class, culture, race, age and sexuality. It aimed to open conversation through personal perspectives on and beyond the female and male ‘binaries’.
Science Gallery Melbourne August The STEM Centre of Excellence is announced. The STEM Centre of Excellence is a partnership between the University and Victorian Government and will allow Science Gallery Melbourne to further its mission of encouraging jobs in science, technology, engineering, and maths.
Science Gallery Rotterdam April Organised (UN)REAL opens, which dove into the science and art of gaps between the actual, the perceived, and future possibilities. It investigated how science and art influence our idea of what is “real” and what is “unreal”.
Science Gallery Venice January Presented ILLUSION, an exhibitionseason that offered insights into the human mind through an exploration of the motivations and mechanisms of sensory deception. It joined magic with psychology, optical illusions with scientific reasoning, and confusion with clarity. ILLUSION was first organised by Science Gallery Dublin.
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‘Mirror Matter’ by Emilija Škarnulyte at Science Gallery London’s exhibition-season DARK MATTER, 2019
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FINANCIAL REPORTS
Balance Sheet as on
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Amount in INR
Income and Expenditure for the period ending
Amount in INR
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GOVERNANCE AND LEADERSHIP
(AS OF 1 MARCH 2021)
KIRAN MAZUMDAR-SHAW (CHAIRPERSON OF THE BOARD)
JAHNAVI PHALKEY (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
E V RAMANA REDDY
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw is the Executive Chairperson of Biocon Limited. She is a pioneering biotech entrepreneur, a healthcare visionary, and a passionate philanthropist. She is committed to equity in healthcare through access and affordability as she pursues a path of making a difference to billions of lives globally.
Jahnavi Phalkey was appointed Executive Director of Science Gallery Bengaluru in November 2018. Prior to that she was faculty at King’s College London. She started her academic career at the University of Heidelberg, following which she was based at Georgia Tech-Lorraine, France, and at Imperial College London.
Dr Mazumdar-Shaw is the proud recipient of India’s highest civilian honours, the Padma Shri (1989) and the Padma Bhushan (2005). She was also honoured with the Order of Australia, Australia’s Highest Civilian Honour in January 2020.
Dr Phalkey was an external curator to the Science Museum London, and was a Scholar-in-Residence at the Deutsches Museum, Munich. She is the author of Atomic State: Big Science in Twentieth Century India and has co-edited Science of Giants: China and India in the Twentieth Century.
E V Ramana Reddy is an Indian Administrative Service Officer of the 1988 batch. His primary objective in his current position as the Additional Chief Secretary for Electronics, Information Technology, Biotechnology and Science and Technology is to promote industry innovation and research in the State by mobilising startups, academia, and corporates. Dr Reddy also holds charge of the Department of Higher Education, Government of Karnataka.
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Dr Reddy holds BSc and MSc degrees in Agriculture and PhD in Agronomy from Andhra Pradesh Agricultural University, Hyderabad.
GEETHA NARAYANAN
GOVINDAN RANGARAJAN
I S N PRASAD
Geetha Narayanan is Founder-Director of the Srishti School of Art Design and Technology and the Mallya Aditi International School. She is the author and principal investigator of Project Vision, an international research initiative that is looking at the development of appropriate instructional strategies and technology-related tools that foster creative cognitive architectures in young children from urban poor communities.
Govindan Rangarajan is currently the Director of the Indian Institute of Design. He obtained an Integrated MSc (Hons) degree from the Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, and a PhD from the University of Maryland, College Park, USA. He then worked at the Lawrence Berkeley Lab, University of California, Berkeley, before returning to India in 1992. He has been a faculty member of the Department of Mathematics, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), since 1992.
I S N Prasad is an Indian Administrative Service Officer of the 1986 batch. Over the last 33 years he has served in various departments in the State and Central Government. He is currently the Additional Chief Secretary at the Finance Department in the Government of Karnataka.
Dr Narayanan holds a BEd from Bangalore University, pursued MA in International Education from Oxford Brookes University, and has an Honorary Doctorate from Oxford Brookes University. She has dedicated her life to finding and establishing new models of educational institutions that are creative, synergistic, and original in their approach to learning.
Professor Rangarajan is a JC Bose National Fellow. He is also a Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences, India. He was awarded the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Palmes Academiques (Knight of the Order of Academic Palms) by the Government of France.
PRAKASH M SOBARAD
RAHUL PANDIT
ROHINI NILEKANI
Prakash M. Sobarad served as the Managing Director, Karnataka Science and Technology Promotion Society (KSTePS) until 2021.
Rahul Pandit is a Professor of Physics and the Chair of the Division of Physical and Mathematical Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. He obtained his 5-Year-Integrated MS in Physics from IIT Delhi and his PhD at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign, USA.
Rohini Nilekani is the Founder-Chairperson of Arghyam, a foundation she set up for sustainable water and sanitation, which funds initiatives all across India. She is Co-founder and Director of EkStep, a non-profit education platform. She sits on the Board of Trustees of the Ashoka Trust For Research In Ecology And The Environment, and serves on the Eminent Persons Advisory Group of the Competition Commission of India.
Dr Sobarad completed his B.Sc. Agriculture, M.Sc. in Agronomy from University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad. He has a Doctorate in Agronomy from Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi. He has completed post-graduation Diploma in Rural Development from Indira Gandhi National Open University. He has been felicitated with District Level Rajyostava Award in 2008 and State level Sarvothamma Award in 2016.
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Professor Pandit is a recipient of the S S Bhatnagar, Meghnad Saha, and Goyal Awards, and of the J C Bose National Fellowship. He is an elected Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences, the Indian National Science Academy, and The World Academy of Sciences.
Ms Nilekani has written for many leading publications such as the Times of India, India Today and Mint. In 2017 she was inducted as Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She is also a member of the Advisory Board of the Well Being Project from 2019.
SATYAJIT MAYOR
SENAPATHY GOPALAKRISHNAN
VIJAY CHANDRU
Satyajit Mayor is a biologist and serves as the Director of the National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore. He obtained his PhD in Life Sciences from Rockefeller University, New York. He has worked in the Department of Pathology at Columbia University and has taught at the Woods Hole Microscopy Course.
Senapathy “Kris” Gopalakrishnan is the Chairman of Axilor Ventures, an accelerator that helps start-ups during the early stage of their business journey. Mr Gopalakrishnan served as the Vice-Chairman of Infosys from 2011 to 2014, the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director from 2007 to 2011, and was one of the Co-Founders.
Professor Mayor’s academic honours include the Chevalier de l’ordre national du mérite (National Order of Merit, France); Foreign Member, US National Academy of Science; Foreign Fellow, EMBO; the TWAS Prize in Biology, Indian National Science Academy and National Academy of Science, India; the Infosys Prize in Life Sciences; the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award; and Wellcome Trust International Senior Research Fellow.
In January 2011, the Government of India awarded Mr Gopalakrishnan the Padma Bhushan, the country’s third-highest civilian honor. He holds Master’s degrees in Physics and Computer Science from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. He is a Fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineers and an Honorary Fellow of the Institution of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers of India.
Vijay Chandru is an academic and an entrepreneur. His academic career in decision sciences spanned over four decades at Purdue University and at the Indian Institute of Science. Dr Chandru is an (Emeritus) Distinguished Technologist of the Indian National Academy of Engineering and Adjunct Professor in BioSystems Science and Engineering at the Indian Institute of Science. At Strand Life Sciences,he served as Founder Executive Chairman from inception in 2000 till 2018. He is currently associated with the International Institute of Art, Culture and Democracy (IIACD), where he pursues his interests in digital heritage, and with OPFORD Foundation, a platform for orphan diseases and genomic medicine.
FORMER DIRECTORS
ANURAG KUMAR (UNTIL AUGUST 2019)
GAURAV GUPTA (UNTIL AUGUST 2019)
H HONNE GOWDA (UNTIL MAY 2020)
Anurag Kumar has been the director of Indian Institute of Science from 2014-2020. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in technology from IIT Kanpur in 1977 and his PhD from Cornell University in 1981. He was a Member of Technical Staff at AT&T Bell Laboratories from 1981 to 1988 before returning to India and joining the Indian Institute of Science as a faculty member.
Gaurav Gupta, is the Additional Chief Secretary of Commerce & Industries in the Government of Karnataka. Over the past 30 years in Indian Administrative Service, he has served in the fields of Commerce and Industries, Infrastructure, Power and Urban Development.
H Honne Gowda was Managing Director of the Karnataka Science and Technology Promotion Society (KSTePS) until 2020. He obtained his PhD in Aquatic Biology from College of Fisheries, University of Agricultural Science, Bangalore in 1989. He worked as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Department of Bioscience, Mangalore University from 1989 to 1991.
Professor Kumar has received the 2015 Vasvik Award for Information Technology, a 2016 IIT Kanpur Distinguished Alumnus Award, and is also a recipient of the J C Bose National Fellowship, which is awarded by the Department of Science Technology, for the period 2011-2021.
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A graduate from IIT Kanpur in Electrical Engineering and Post graduate from IIT, Delhi, Mr. Gupta has been conferred the Distinguished Alumnus award by IIT Kanpur in recognition of his achievements of exceptional merit in 2010. He attended program in Public and Finance Management at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University in 2005, Leadership programme at the LKY school of Public Policy, National University of Singapore in 2012, and recently in 2018, program in University of California at Berkeley on ‘Negotiations for Leaders’.
Dr Gowda has an illustrious career at Indian Space Research Organisation, Government of India for ten years. Thereafter, he worked as Director of the Karnataka State Remote Sensing Applications Centre from July 2000 to 2007. He has been the recipient of several awards for professional excellence in the field of Geoinformatics and Science and Technology.
RAJKUMAR KHATRI (UNTIL MARCH 2019)
VINJAMURI MANJULA (UNTIL DECEMBER 2017)
Rajkumar Khatri studied medicine at Delhi University and an MBA from the University of Birmingham, UK. He joined the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) in 1988.
Manjula Vinjamuri is a post-graduate in Organic Chemistry from Osmania University, Hyderabad, India. She was selected for the Indian Administrative Service in 1987. Currently, she is working at the Directorate of Urban Land Transport in Karnataka as Commissioner & E/o Additional Chief Secretary to Government.
Dr Khatri was Director, Ministry of Mines, Government of India; State Project Director, Sarva Shikshana Abhiyana Mission; Commissioner, Industrial Development and Director of Industries and Commerce; Secretary, Infrastructure Development Department; Managing Director, Karnataka State Industrial & Infrastructure Development Corporation; and Commissioner, Bangalore Development Authority. He has written articles and case studies for Indian Institute of Public Administration and National Institute of Rural Development.
Ms Manjula worked in diverse sectors like Rural and Urban development, Power, Information Technology and Biotechnology, Urban Transport, Education including Medical Education and Administrative reforms & training department of the Government of Karnataka. During her tenure in various posts, she played a significant role in formulating policies like State startup policy, Animation and Visual graphics policy; implementing public awareness campaigns like total literacy campaign and “Cycle day” to popularise cycling as a preferred mode for short urban commutes.
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LEONARDO GROUP
The Leonardo Group brings together exceptional people from a range of backgrounds—science, technology, the arts, media, education and business—to inspire new exhibition themes, spark creative ideas, and support new collaborations.
ANURADHA PARIKH
JIGNESH KHAKHAR
Anuradha Parikh the founder and artistic director of the G5A Foundation for Contemporary Culture. She is a cultural practitioner, practicing architect, production designer, and film producer, who studied at the Rhode Island School of Design and the Parsons School of Design, New School for Social Research.
Jignesh Khakhar is the Dean of the National Institute of Design, Gandhinagar Campus. He is an Architect of Environments (Spaces, Places, and Objects) and Information (Data, Interface, and Interaction Design).
She began her architecture career by working with Kalla Cicognani Architects, Rajeev Sethi, and Charles Correa. After this, she set up her own multidisciplinary practice, MATRIX Architecture and Design in 1991.
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He received his Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the Leicester School of Architecture and his Doctoral degree from the Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University. At the National Institute of Design, he has led significant transformational academic and administrative initiatives in research, education, publications, admissions and space.
MUKUND THATTAI
RANJIT HOSKOTE
SHOBHANA NARASIMHAN
Mukund Thattai is the Academic Head at the National Centre for Biological Sciences. He obtained a BA in Physics from Cornell University in 1999, and a PhD in Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2004. Immediately following his PhD, he took up an independent position as a Young Investigator at the National Centre for Biological Sciences in Bangalore, India, and in 2007 he joined the NCBS faculty.
Ranjit Hoskote is a curator, critic and the author of more than 25 books, ranging across poetry, art criticism, cultural history, and poetry in translation.
Shobhana Narasimhan is a Professor of Theoretical Sciences at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research. She obtained her Msc from IIT Bombay and her PhD from Harvard University. After doing postdoctoral work at Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA, and the Fritz Haber Institut, Berlin, Germany, she joined the faculty of JNCASR in 1996.
His laboratory at NCBS uses both experimental and computational techniques to study how cells work. He is deeply involved in public engagement efforts and art/science collaborations, working with conceptual artists and theatre practitioners to explore the practice of biology and its impact on society.
He has been a writer-in-residence at Villa Waldberta, Munich (2003), Theater der Welt, Essen/Mülheim (2010) and the Polish Institute, Berlin (2010). He has been a research scholar-inresidence at BAK/basis voor actuele kunst, Utrecht (2010 and 2013). As a curator of contemporary art, he has organized 30 exhibitions since 1993. He co-curated the 7th Gwangju Biennale (Korea, 2008), and he was the curator of India’s first-ever national pavilion at the Venice Biennale.
Her area of research is computational nanoscience. She has a strong interest in improving diversity in the scientific community, and in this context she has been conducting workshops for women in science, and teaching physics in developing countries.
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THE TEAM
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Jahnavi Phalkey ADMINISTRATION Executive Assistant and Project manager: Yamuna Bhagwat BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Design Associate: Komal Jain Architects: CnT Architects Audiovisual and Data Architecture: T2 Consultants Project Coordination Consultants: Kris Cooper Project Management Consultants Project Management Consultants: A N Prakash Construction Project Management Consultants Construction Contractors: JMC Projects Museum Planning Consultants: Batul Raj Mehta and Associates Building and Works Advisor: Prashant Bhatnagar (until October 2020) Head of Project Delivery: Anil Kumar Sheshagiri (until September 2020) FUNDRAISING AND DEVELOPMENT Development Manager: Neha Arora Development Consultant: Savita Aiyyar (until November 2019) EXHIBITIONS Programme Manager: Madhushree Kamak Programme Associate: Gayatri Manu Research Intern: Vasudha Malani PHYTOPIA Production Manager: Aruna Keshavamurthy (until February 2021) 98 / ANNUAL REVIEW
Design Intern: Sunaina Desai (until October 2020) Design Intern: Arfa Anam (until September 2020) SUBMERGE Season Producer: Shyam Patel (until February 2020) Exhibition Manager: Pavneet Pal Singh (until February 2020) Research Intern: Ashwini Petchiappan (until December 2019) ELEMENTS Research and Production Associate: Berty Ashley (until January 2020) ACCOUNTING AND FINANCE Accounts Manager: Vartika Saxena Financial Consultants: Sarthena LLP Company Secretary: CS Pramod S Auditors (CAG appointed): MVR and Company Legal Consultants: Mani, Chengappa and Mathur Finance Intern: Arti Pateriya (until November 2019) MEDIA AND COMMUNICATIONS Design Associate: Shweta Jangir Design Intern: Sankalp Singh Translator: Usha B K Media and Communications Manager: Stuti Shankar (until February 2021) Media and Communications Manager: Ishani Chaudhary (until September 2020 ) Social Media Intern: Mallika Prasad (until August 2020)
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Jahnavi Phalkey
EA/PROJECT MANAGER Yamuna Bhagwat
COMPANY SECRETARY
AUDITORS (CAG APPOINTED)
LEGAL CONSULTANT
FINANCE CONSULTANT
CS Pramod S.
MVR and Company
Mani, Chengappa, & Mathur
Sarthena LLP
TRANSLATOR Usha B.K.
BUILDING AND WORKS ADVISOR
DEVELOPMENT MANAGER
PROGRAMME MANAGER
ACCOUNTS MANAGER
Neha Arora
Madhushree Kamak
Vartika Saxena
Prashant Bhatnagar
MUSEUM PLANNER BRMA
AUDIO VISUAL AND DATA ARCHITECTURE
PROJECT COORDINATION CONSULTANT
T2 Consultants
KCPMC
ARCHITECT (+ CONSULTANTS)
PROJECT MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT
CnT Architects
DESIGN ASSOCIATE
PROGRAMME ASSOCIATE
DESIGN ASSOCIATE
Komal Jain
Gayatri Manu
Shweta Jangir
RESEARCH INTERN
DESIGN INTERN
Vasudha Malani
Sankalp Singh
ANP Consultants
CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTOR JMC Projects
Employee Consultant
GAYATRI MANU Programme Associate
KOMAL JAIN Design Associate
MADHUSHREE KAMAK Programme Manager
Gayatri is a writer and researcher who has worked in the field of reporting, publishing, and conducting oral history interviews. She completed her Master in Creative Writing and Literary Arts from Ambedkar University Delhi, where she focused on literary devices and narrative techniques employed in the Science Fiction/ Speculative Fiction genre. Apart from fiction, Gayatri writes about gender, cultural discourse, and other subjects that pique her interest.
Komal is a graduate of Bachelors in Design from National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. She enjoys learning more about and working on museums, game strategies and its applications, learning spaces and digital media to create memorable experiences. She has been involved in the design processes of Science Gallery Bengaluru’s building as well as the online exhibition and programmes.
Madhushree is a maverick scientist, illustrator and information experience designer. While she completed her Master’s degree in Biological Sciences from the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, her other passions are illustration and User Experience Design. She completed her Master in Design from the National Institute of Design, focusing on accessible graphic representations of complex scientific concepts.
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NEHA ARORA Development Manager
SANKALP SINGH Design Intern
SHWETA JANGIR Design Associate
Neha has been a management professional in the information technology sector for several years and then moved to the arts and culture industry. She is part of the core team of an independent music project in India and has previously managed programmes and partnerships at the Kochi Biennale Foundation. She is interested in cultural institutions – their role, impact, and challenges of mobilising resources to sustain initiatives. She did an MBA from Xavier Institute of Management, Bachelor of Information Technology from Delhi University, and Diploma in Community Media from Tata Institute of Social Sciences.
Sankalp is an electronics and communication engineer and an audio visual communication designer. He completed his bachelors in technology from IIMET Jaipur in 2013, after which he did his Postgraduate diploma in commercial visual communication in photography from Light and Life, Ooty. Sankalp is expected to complete his post graduate from the National Institute of Design, Gandhinagar in 2021. His work paradoxically centres around contemporary commercial visual practices, and late stage capitalism.
Shweta is a graphic designer and a documentary photographer. She graduated from Symbiosis International University in 2015, in Audio-Visual production. She was previously part of filmmaker Anand Gandhi’s production house and a creative director at Artem, an independent print magazine. She is interested in the fusion of social concerns, arts and communication.
VARTIKA SAXENA Accounts Manager
VASUDHA MALANI Research Intern
Vartika is an accounting professional for fifteen years. She has previously been part of the Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies in Environment and Development (CISED), Bangalore, which later got merged with Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and Environment (ATREE), Bangalore. She completed an MBA in Banking and Finance from Bharathiar University, Tamil Nadu and a bachelor degree from Bundelkhand University, Uttar Pradesh.
Vasudha is an graduate of English Literature from Ashoka University. She is passionate about interdisciplinary work, and hopes to pursue a career that spans multiple fields of inquiry. Her latest research looked at dust in literature, and how it may be connected to ideas of modernity and colonialism. In addition to her academic interests, she enjoys event planning and management.
YAMUNA BHAGWAT Executive Assistant and Project manager Yamuna is a PMI certified Project Management Professional with a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. She is a strong administrative professional with more than 15 years of experience working for large Corporates, managing various administrative, operations and MIS roles. Besides work, she loves the Indian Classical dance form Bharatanatyam and holds a Master’s degree in Bharatanatyam.
The team installing ELEMENTS, October 2019 102 / ANNUAL REVIEW
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PLANS FOR 2021
Our first three exhibitions explored in great depths the questions that stem from humanity’s relationship with nature. In 2021, we will ask critical and urgent questions on what happens when this relationship is disturbed. In April, our exhibition season CONTAGION will investigate not just infectious zoonotic diseases and pandemics, but also the viral nature of information today. The transmission of fear, panic and distrust can lead to lasting personal and societal changes. We will bring together scholars from all disciplines to build a broad understanding of the nature of contagion and why it matters. Later in the year, we will turn our lens inwards as we ask our audiences to step back and reflect upon our PSYCHE. As we enter an era defined by increasing mental health challenges especially amongst the young, we must begin a larger public dialogue on the human mind. Experiments and explorations into the brain, our emotions and the way we think and feel will form the foundation for incisive questions into health, well being and what it means to be human.
Learning from our experiences during the pandemic in 2020, we will engage with young people both on ground and increasingly through our digital offerings. We will continue to build collaborations with diverse scholars and artists around the world to create exciting programmes.
We warmly invite everyone to join us on our journey in 2021 as we bring together new and unheard voices and shape a vibrant cultural conversation on science.
Experiments creating clouds at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research during SUBMERGE, 2019
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PARTNERS
Founding Partner
Lead Academic Partner
Collaborating Partners
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Know More For more information about Science Gallery Bengaluru, please visit our website at www.bengaluru.sciencegallery.com. To browse our past exhibitions and to learn more about previous programmes, visit our archives at https://bengaluru.sciencegallery.com/past-exhibitions. Contact Us Write to us at info@bengaluru.sciencegallery.com. To support Science Gallery Bengaluru, please contact Neha Arora, Development Manager, at neha.arora@bengaluru.sciencegallery.com. To stay informed about our upcoming exhibitions and programmes, sign up for our newsletter or follow us on social media. @SGBlr @SciGalleryBlr @SciGalleryBlr Science Gallery Bengaluru Science Gallery Bengaluru
Science Gallery Bengaluru National Centre for Biological Sciences (Tata Institute of Fundamental Research) GKVK Campus, Bellary Road, Bengaluru 560065 Karnataka, India E: info@bengaluru.sciencegallery.com bengaluru.sciencegallery.com
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