Kumar Bahukhandi
Srishti Manipal Institute of Art, Design and Technology (SMI) successfully concluded three vibrant exhibitions from 18 December through 21st, which brought together emerging artists and designers to reimagine the future through creative practice. The exhibition unfolded across two venues from December 18-21, 2025, drawing visitors into immersive experiences that bridged disciplines, challenged conventions, and charted new territories in art, design, and technology.
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SMI’s transdisciplinary exhibition showcases immersive visions reimagining art of futur
Practices of Attunement: A Transdisciplinary Chorus
The exhibition opened at the Bangalore International Centre on December 18-19 with “Practices of Attunement,” a compelling showcase of postgraduate works that explored transdisciplinary as a mode of research and making. The opening highlighted three distinct clusters that emerged as a chorus of voices engaging with themes of community, climate action, histories, urban systems, and contemporary narratives.
Approximately 70-80 postgraduate students from the MDes and MA programs presented works that layered design, art, and technology in ways that speak to our contemporary moment.
Dr. Priya Joseph, Professor, SMI on the success of the event, said, “The exhibition of Post graduate work is called ‘Practices of Attunement’. The opening of the exhibition by the curators, our faculty at SMI, Jatin Gulati and Karthika Sakthivel highlighted the three clusters that emerged as chorus of voices. At SMI it is unique that MDes and MA courses bring design, art, technology and as layers that the students explore through these exhibits, making relevant arguments for a contemporary world with commune, climate action, histories, cities and more.”
Prologue: Make New Worlds – A Celebration of Possibility
The exhibition continued at the historic Venkatappa Art Gallery on December 20-21 with “Prologue: Make New Worlds,” a public showcase of visions from final-year undergraduate students across all 11 courses at SMI’s Undergraduate Professional Program (UGPP). The gallery came alive with short films, animations, products, publications, digital platforms, and systems that plant seeds for newer worlds across healthcare, education, sustainability, urban development, and diverse creative contexts.
Over 300 students of 7th semester represented a pivotal moment in the four-year UGPP journey. After three years of studios, workshops, and short-term ateliers, learners immerse themselves for a full semester in the context of their choice, pushing and pulling between tools, methods, media, and applications before their final semester.
“Creativity has grown beyond beautification and aesthetics, it is found in systems, processes and services present in all aspects of our everyday life, neighbourhoods, cities and economies,” says Dr. Arindam Das, Director SMI. “Art and Design is no longer peripheral, but they are at the centre of the new worlds that we are making.”
“For us, education is not just about preparing for a career, it is about nurturing the ability to shape the future,” says Ramesh Kalkur, Associate director (Academics), SMI. “The future, therefore, is not something to arrive at. It is something we create a future that builds new opportunities, strengthens communities, and fosters deeper connections with the world.”
Throughout all four days of the exhibition, visitors engaged directly with student artists and designers, experiencing firsthand the depth of inquiry and experimentation that defines SMI’s educational philosophy. The works presented were testaments to diversity, authenticity, and an inquiry that begins within and moves outward.
