Art Deco Mumbai Explained

Art Deco Mumbai (ADMT) is a public charitable trust that is actively involved in spreading awareness about Mumbai's Art Deco heritage since May 2016.^{[1] [2]} It is a digital initiative that uses social media (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter) and a website to showcase the built heritage.^[3] The website is the only repository of information on Art Deco in Mumbai in the public domain.^{[4] [5] [6]}

Since April 2018, Art Deco Mumbai Trust has been a member of the International Coalition of Art Deco Societies (ICADS).^{[7] [8] [9]} This membership has enabled the institution to forge partnerships that have fostered knowledge sharing, cultural and educational exchange at a global level.^[10]

The organisation (ADMT) believes that documentation is a crucial step towards enabling conservation and that transferring heritage from one generation to another is imperative.^[11] They aim to bring Art Deco heritage into Mumbai's mainstream dialogue on heritage and empower the different stakeholders to make conscious decisions.^{[12] [13] [14] [15]}

Since its inception, ADMT has undertaken the documentation of art deco heritage in various neighbourhoods within Greater Mumbai.^{[16] [17] [18]} Through their documentation initiative, they have catalogued numerous Deco buildings in socio-culturally diverse neighbourhoods like Churchgate, Marine Drive, Mohammed Ali Road, Shivaji Park, Matunga, Chembur, and Bandra, among others.^[19] Their research initiative focuses on disseminating studies that explore social, cultural and political themes around Art Deco buildings in Mumbai, especially building work conceived by first-generation Indian architects in collaboration with homegrown contractors and independent artists.^{[20] [21] [22]}

As part of its outreach initiatives, the organisation engages with different educational and cultural institutions of local and global relevance to spread awareness amongst the youth about this 20th-century heritage.^{[23] [24] [25] [26]} They also host public lectures that enable city residents to broaden their understanding of Mumbai's Art Deco movement.^{[27] [28] [29] [30]}

From October 2017 to January 2018, the organisation was commissioned by Mumbai Mirror, a single edition local newspaper, to author a weekly column "Have a Decco" aimed at exploring the relationship of the city with the architectural style (Art Deco) across neighbourhoods.^[31]

On the occasion of International Day for Monuments and Sites 2020, Art Deco Mumbai came online on Google Arts & Culture platform through a new partnership between Google and the Trust.^{[32] [33]}

For over a decade, trustees of ADMT have led stakeholder representation in the preparation of the UNESCO Nomination of "The Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai" successfully inscribed as a World Heritage Site on 30 June 2018.^{[34] [35] [36]} This nomination aims to safeguard a total of 94 buildings of which 76 are Art Deco.^{[37] [38]} The organisation has incorporated hashtags #WHSOval and #WHSMarineDrive in their website inventory to ease search related to these Art Deco buildings.^[39] Art Deco Mumbai Trust has also designed a pocket-sized map of the UNESCO World Heritage Site that celebrates the architectural legacy of the city in a visually engaging and informative manner.^{[40] [41] [42]} Additionally, ADMT, along with the other stakeholders of Federation of Residents Trusts have produced a short film that spreads awareness about the World Heritage Site and the unique relationship these spaces share with the citizens of Mumbai.^{[43] [44]}

Notes and References

1. News: Heritage hunting with Mumbai Art Deco. Sharma. Komal. 2017-07-07. livemint.com. 2018-01-10.
2. Deco Dreams. JetWings International. October 2018.
3. News: City’s art deco-ding now just a click away – Mumbai Mirror -. Mumbai Mirror. 2018-01-10.
4. News: A Digital Diary of Mumbai’s Art Deco. NatGeoTraveller. 2018-07-24.
5. News: Chandrashekhar. Vaishnavi. 21 October 2019. Discovering Mumbai's Art Deco Treasures. The New York Times. 25 June 2020.
6. News: Shaikh. Shehzin. 24 November 2018. An Ode to Heritage. Times Property. 25 June 2020.
7. News: 4 May 2018. City's Art Deco gets global stamp. Mid-Day. 25 June 2020.
8. News: Kumar. Atul. 2 October 2019. Mumbai Mirrored – Dreaming a modern city. Mumbai Mirror. 25 June 2020.
9. Web site: Art Deco Mumbai – International Coalition of Art Deco Societies. 2018-07-24. www.icads.info. en-US.
10. Web site: Mumbai: Art Deco Jewel of India Video Event. 2020-10-21. ArtDeco.org. en.
11. News: The battle to save Mumbai's art deco buildings. Dore. Bhavya. 2017-06-22. BBC News. 2018-01-10. en-GB.
12. Web site: Chronicling Mumbai's Art Deco Architecture. 25 June 2020. Live History India.
13. News: An Eyeful of Mumbai Art Deco. CityLab. 2018-01-10. en-US.
14. News: Borges. Jane. 21 June 2020. Armchair Deco Tour of the Subcontinent. Sunday Mid-Day. 25 June 2020.
15. Web site: Deco Dekho – Bombay Deco and its Elements. 21 October 2020. Art Deco Mumbai Trust.
16. News: Mumbai has the world’s second-largest collection of Art Deco buildings but no one notices them. Thomas. Maria. Quartz. 2018-01-10. en-US.
17. Web site: Photo Documentation of Mumbai's Deco – Art Deco. 25 June 2020. Art Deco Mumbai Trust.
18. News: G. Seetharaman. Facades from the past. The Economic Times Magazine. 25 June 2020.
19. Web site: Inventory Art Deco Mumbai. 25 June 2020. Art Deco Mumbai Trust.
20. Web site: Architects and firms that shaped Mumbai's World Heritage Site. 25 June 2020. Art Deco Mumbai Trust.
21. News: Art Deco's forgotten hero. Mid-Day. 25 June 2020.
22. Web site: Carving the Legacy: N. G. Pansare, his life and works. 25 June 2020. Art Deco Mumbai Trust.
23. Web site: Youth Outreach Programme – Art Deco. www.artdecomumbai.com. en-US. 2018-07-24.
24. Web site: Decoding Art Deco: Revisiting Modernity. 25 June 2020. Avid Learning.
25. Web site: Deco Detective at School. 25 June 2020. Art Deco Mumbai Trust.
26. Web site: Art Deco Mumbai. www.facebook.com. en. 2018-07-24.
27. News: Hasan. Snigdha. 8 June 2018. Art History Professor Dr Fredo Rivera Talks About Art Deco in Mumbai. Mid-Day. 25 June 2020.
28. News: 14 January 2020. Talk of the Town. Mumbai Mirror. 25 June 2020.
29. News: Fernandez. Fiona. 20 January 2020. Picture Abhi Baaki Hai. Mid-Day. 25 June 2020.
30. Web site: India's Single Screen Cinemas: Reimagined and Repurposed. 25 June 2020. Art Deco Mumbai Trust.
31. News: Thomas. Skye A. 30 October 2017. Art Deco: the style that heralded a new future. Mumbai Mirror. 24 July 2018.
32. Web site: Partner Art Deco Mumbai. 25 June 2020. Google Arts & Culture.
33. News: 14 May 2020. Four for Deco. Mid-Day. 25 June 2020.
34. Web site: Four sites added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Centre. UNESCO World Heritage. whc.unesco.org. en. 2018-07-24.
35. News: Mumbai: Victorian Gothic Art Deco buildings bag city s 3rd World Heritage tag. 2018-07-01. mid-day. 2018-07-24.
36. News: Mumbai's Victorian and Art Deco Ensembles inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage Site – Times of India. The Times of India. 2018-07-24.
37. Web site: List of Buildings, Architectural Styles & Maps of the UNESCO Precinct – Art Deco. www.artdecomumbai.com. en-US. 2018-07-24.
38. Web site: Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai. Centre. UNESCO World Heritage. whc.unesco.org. en. 2018-07-24.
39. Web site: Research Art Deco. www.artdecomumbai.com. en-US. 2018-07-24.
40. News: Ayaz. Shaikh. 4 November 2019. Mapping Mumbai's Marvels. India Today. 25 June 2020.
41. News: Ramos. Dalreen. 12 October 2019. Putting Mumbai On The Map. Mid-Day. 25 June 2020.
42. Web site: Map of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. 25 June 2020. Art Deco Mumbai Trust.
43. Web site: 25 January 2020. Short Film on the Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai, World Heritage Site. 25 June 2020. YouTube.
44. Web site: 13 October 2019. Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai, World Heritage Site. 25 June 2020. YouTube.