How these two Mumbai collectives are making art fun again for enthusiasts

Yoursquore looking at a seemingly ordinary woman On her face is a cryptic smile She has no eyebrows or eyelashes yet her stare feels piercing and complete Mountains a calm lake and winding roads stretch all the way to the horizon behind her but she is here breaking whatever the artistic equivalent of the fourth wall isDo you think you understand what Da Vinci was trying with Mona Lisa Whatever it is the whole painting perhaps feels foreign boring somber and even a little intimidating All things said perhaps art doesnrsquot seem to be your cup of tea There are people in Mumbai who are actively trying to change that and trying to make art fun and accessible for those who havenrsquot got much exposure to itAbhishek Lamba interacting with participants playing lsquoBut I Donrsquot Understand Artrsquo at Artcade NightldquoI always felt that art galleries were a very passive spacerdquo says Abhishek Lamba He is a game designer one of the brains behind the Shasn and Shasn Azadi board games who now brings his design expertise and ingenuity to the world of art with ldquoArtcade Nightsrdquo He creates original games tailored to every exhibit that help the attendees understand the narrative and historical context behind the artwork His process is a long one of examining all pieces and conversations with the curators and artists and brainstorming how the theme or essence of the exhibit can be gamifiedMumbai Sketch Club members sharing their work with each otherThe results are always interesting His most common game is But I Donrsquot Understand Art in which everyone walks through the gallery and picks up the small printed copies of three artworks which they understood the least A race ensues as the participants hunt down people who have understood the pieces that baffled them In a flurry meanings and themes of every piece are discussed and the first person to collect the explanation for all three of their cards wins a book tied to the showParticipants at Artcade Night working together to decipher the meanings of the artworks at an exhibition in the cityldquoThe games turn a passive space into an active one where you can build a community around artrdquo as Lamba puts it Camaraderie aside the games are a very effective way for people to learn and understand ldquoAs a game designerrdquo Lamba states ldquoI believe that games are our most natural systems of learning When you think about it you would notice that the progeny of most species play games Kittens and puppies play hide and seek We grew up playing it too Across species why do we play the same kind of games Games are our bodyrsquos natural way of learningrdquoMumbai Sketch Club members displaying new work after a productive meetupWith a number of repeat attendees it is safe to say the games have succeeded in bringing more people to the galleries For some they have even given birth to a new outlook Viveka Sah considers herself among the latter ldquoDespite my educational background in art I do feel like Artcade has helped me engage with art in ways I had never encountered before Itrsquos helped me approach art from a more personal and narrativised perspective that is really hard to encounter in any other capacityrdquoParticipants with the artworks they have made during Artcade NightWhile Artcade Nights has made a convert out of many a person who thought art wasnrsquot for them ldquoI would say one of the first converts was actually merdquo says Lamba ldquoI came into this world as an outsider Now I am reading so much more about art history reading so much more about all these artistsrdquoTo admire and understand is one thing but what if you want to create something yourself A small cartoon a silly doodle something you put on paper without fear of judgment You can always take up sketching with the Mumbai Sketch ClubAarohi Devasthale and Nikita ThakurIt was founded by two artists Aarohi Devasthale and Nikita Thakur in an attempt to soothe an increasing sense of isolation that they were feeling as creatives Devasthale recounts ldquoNikita and I wanted to create a third space where people can come with their art supplies on a weekend morning meet strangers who are also into art and draw together A social gathering where people donrsquot have to shell out money to attendrdquoThe result of their efforts is a thriving community of artists including beginners and experienced artists alike ldquoWe have met people who havenrsquot drawn in years and are restarting with us or those who are professionalsrdquo Devasthale is proud to admit ldquoI still remember one woman who told me she never used to sketch and draw and actually discovered she was great at it by attending Sketch Club She is now a regular and we love seeing her gorgeous paintingsrdquoAbhishek LambaPeople of different ages and professional backgrounds meet up at cafeacutes in Andheri and Bandra on Saturday mornings and let their creative juices flow Across 17 meetups they have managed to invite over 200 people ldquoThe speed with which we have grownrdquo Thakur believesldquois a testament to the fact that people really need recurring lowpressure meetups in the city We are so happy to see people become regulars form friendships with each other and share their love for artrdquoSayali Parkar a member shares ldquoI was stuck between wanting to create and being burnt out I found myself procrastinating all the time But joining the club changed things It gave me purpose to wake up get ready and get going to make art I started treating it as a priorityrdquoSayali ParkarThanks to people like Lamba Devasthale and Thakur understanding and making art is becoming easier and much more fun There are no excuses anymore All that is left is for us to thank Mona Lisa for piquing our interest and start drawingHow to joinArtcade Nights Find tickets for upcoming events at Lambarsquos page on Instagram lambashake or his website lambashakegithubioBombay Sketch Club Join upcoming meetups through Instagram at mumbaisketchclub