The India Habitat Centre Fellowship for Photography

Visual Arts Gallery of the India Habitat Centre invites applications for India Habitat Centre Fellowship for Photography 2009. The winner will be awarded an amount of Rs.1.20 lakhs and his works will be showcased in a week-long photography exhibition at the gallery in the summer next year.

Visual Art Gallery of the India Habitat Centre has come a long way since its inception in the July 2000. The India Habitat Centre has established itself as a locus, a platform for cultural activity, where there is an opportunity to display creative talent or witness excellence on display. The Visual Arts Gallery has been a hub of uninterrupted art activity spanning different genres, and crossing many a boundaries. From the visual art to seminars, and now traversing the path of the digital world, the Visual Arts Gallery has a finger on the pulse of contemporary art trends leading to a sharing and union of energies and ideas. The Gallery works in a multi-dimensional manner. From showcasing two-dimensional works to three-dimensional works, we are trying to bring the best of art traditions both nationally and internationally. There is also an interface between what is termed 'high art' to popular art traditions, very much in keeping with the philosophy and vision of the India Habitat Centre.

In the last seven years, as perhaps the largest non-profit centre in the country, we have been supporting art, crafts, material culture, emerging talent, and also the medium of photography. The immediacy of the medium of photography forms an inherent trajectory of the visual arts. Photography is now a serious art practice and we have hosted works by some of the well-known photographers of the country, namely Amit Pasricha, Amit Mehra, Prabir Purkayastha, among others. Their photo exhibits indeed herald the coming age of photography, and speak of the new levels to which photography is being taken.

In an effort to promote photography as an art form, the Visual Arts Gallery instituted an award for photography in the year 2003. The “India Habitat Centre Fellowship for Photography 2008 has been awarded to Sameer Tawde, for 2007 to Zubin B. Pastakia, while Ashish Patil was recommended for a special showing at the Experimental Art Gallery. Fellowship for 2006 went to Neeraj Mahajan and that for 2005 was given to Sandeep Biswas while Veeresh S Babu received “Special Recommendation for Eye in Progress” to develop his body of works further. Sumeet Inder Singh, a young and emerging photographer, received the Photography Fellowship 2004, and Anay Mann in 2003.

Eligibility:

1)	For Indian Nationals only,
2)	For individual photographers only. Collaborative applications are not acceptable.
3)	Applicant must be between 21 – 40 years of age.
4)	Applicant must not hold any other fellowship/scholarship for the submitted project.

Fellowship Criteria:

The India Habitat Centre Fellowship for Photography is a grant aimed at supporting emerging photographers already working on a project. It is not a portfolio competition. The award will go to a photographer who demonstrates his/her ability to work on a long-term project by conceiving and writing a concise, focused and meaningful story proposal. The accompanying images need to justify the written proposal. The written proposal must be well defined in scope, with a time frame of approximately one year from start to finish. A three-member jury committee of experts in documentary arts, arts management and publishing will evaluate applications to select the winner of the Fellowship.

Application Procedure:

There is no application fee for this Fellowship. An application shall comprise the following:

1)	Project Summary – summary must clearly specify the intent of the project, the project title, relevant background information and expected course of the project. This summary will play a decisive role in the overall evaluation by the jury committee. This summary should be typed on an A4 sheet and not exceed one page. Please note: The project should be focused on one subject only.

2)	Image submissions – 12 images should be enclosed with the application. Only Color and B&W photographic prints are acceptable. Should the applicant be using transparency film, then digital prints of the same should be enclosed. The specification for the print size is 10X12 inches. Each print must have the name of the photographer and the project title on the reverse. Entries on CDs or any other media will not be acceptable. Please note: Entries with less/more than the required 12 images will be eliminated.

3)	Caption and/or Title List – should be typed on a separate A4 sheet listing information for each image enclosed in the application.

4)	Resume/Curriculum Vitae – – typed on an A4 sheet must be enclosed. It should not exceed one page. It should include the applicant’s date of birth and contact details.

Submission of Proposal:

Applications should be forwarded either by registered mail or courier. Please write ‘no commercial value’ on the package to avoid extra costs and delays. Submissions will not be returned without a self-addressed and self stamped envelope. Applicants can also opt to collect their submissions from the Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi 110003, India.

Submissions will not be returned without a self-addressed and self stamped envelope. Applicants can also opt to collect their submissions from the Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi 110003, India.

All submissions must be sent to:

Dr. Alka Pande,
Visual Arts Gallery,
India Habitat Centre,
Lodhi Road,
New Delhi – 110003.
Tel: +(91) 11-43662024 - 25
Fax: +(91) 11-24682010, 24682011
Email: alkapande@indiahabitat.org, visualartsgallery1@gmail.com

Confirmation of Awards:

The winner of the Fellowship will be declared in December 2009 and awarded during the Annual Arts Evening in December 2009. The recipient will be contacted directly by the IHC. The grant amount will be given to the fellowship winner in four instalments over a period one-year. Before each instalment is given, the candidate will have to furnish a one-page progress report and 15 work prints indicating the direction of the project. He will be encouraged to meet with the jury members who will mentor him through the duration of the fellowship to enable him to produce a substantial body of meaningful work in sync with Habitat philosophy. The IHC will provide the winning candidate exhibition space after the completion of the project. The IHC will keep 15-framed images from the final body of the project for its permanent collection.

Waiver:

Please note that the entries will not be returned. The entries will become the sole possession of the India Habitat Centre. The IHC reserves the right to use the images for promotional and non-commercial purposes. The images can also be used in any IHC publication and as well as its website. However, should the images be reproduced in any medium other than this, the fellowship candidate will be reimbursed for the same.

Last date of submission: 31 October 2009