Dotwalk Ajitara Art Residency will open its studios to the public from 12 to 14 December 2025, marking the culmination of the fourth edition of its two-month Winter Solace residency programme. The open studio hours will run from 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM daily, with a curatorial walkthrough led by Sibdas Sengupta, Curatorial and Programme Manager at Dotwalk Ajitara, scheduled on 12 December at 5:30 PM.
The Winter Solace 2025 residency, which began on 15 October 2025, brings together eight emerging painters from across the Indian subcontinent: Bansi Dholakiya, Baptu Debnath, Harsha PS, Joseph J Joseph, Mehja VS, Pushpa Kumari, Ritwika Ganguly, and Sahil Kumar. Over the residency period, the artists have engaged in intensive studio practice, collaborative exchange, and critical dialogue leading to the new works now being presented.
The selection of this year’s cohort was overseen by a jury chaired by Bose Krishnamachari, Founder–Director of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, alongside the residency’s Founding Patrons, Sreejith SN and Neetu Ambwani. Their combined expertise contributed to identifying artists whose practices demonstrate both conceptual depth and evolving visual language.
The residency is structured to provide participants with comprehensive facilities, including individual studios, shared workshop access, curatorial guidance, weekly reviews, peer discussions, and a research library. These provisions are designed to support artists in exploring new materials and refining their approaches within a focused environment.
Dedicated to fostering emerging talent, Dotwalk Ajitara Art Residency situates its programmes within a larger vision of mentoring young practitioners, facilitating professional visibility, and encouraging sustained engagement with contemporary painting. Through initiatives like Winter Solace, the residency continues to strengthen networks for early-career artists while contributing to the broader development of the visual arts ecosystem in the region.
Athmaja Biju is the Editor at Abir Pothi. She is a Translator and Writer working on Visual Culture.
