For twenty months now, India is living a dark night, from which we are yet to awake. It would not be incorrect to say that the anguish that India is suffering today has not been seen since the Bengal Famine of 1943 or the Partition of 1947.
We invited artists to come together to hear this anguish and register it for posterity, lest history forgets. The works in this initiative encapsulate a time of despair and anxiety, when artists withdrew into the studio as the only space of refuge. Executed in a space of isolation, these prints look from deep within to the spectre without … but also from darkness to light.
Even as we in India await a possible third wave, Living a Dark Night stands as a stark reminder of our folly.

LADN-KCT Emerging Printmaker Grants
‘Living a Dark Night’ with The Kala Chaupal Trust welcomes applications for grants to encourage innovative practices amongst emerging Indian printmakers.
Four grants of Rs. 25000/- each will be awarded to four individual printmakers to support the research, works and artist practice for new projects that advance knowledge and application across all printmaking streams.
The grants will be administered zonally – North, South, East and West.
Eligibility
- Indian artists who have completed an MFA in Printmaking in/after 2020.
Application requirements
- Completed application form Google Form Link
- Proof of Indian citizenship and place of residence
- MFA degree/marksheet/certificate of completion from competent authority
- C.V.
- Portfolio of ten works in PDF format (not exceeding 25 MB)
- Artist Statement
- Project Proposal (in not more than 500 words) that includes the following:
– A short description of the idea intended
– Timeline (six-month plan)
– Budget (utilization of the grant)
Duration of Grant – Six months from date of award
Application deadline – 31 May 2023
Selection Process – Five proposals will be shortlisted from each Zone, out of which one grant will be awarded in each Zone through a juried process.
Deliverables – Grantees will be required to submit a brief report, images and other documentation of their Grant project at the end of six months from the date of award. The Grantee projects will be featured on the LADN website.