New Delhi, Feb 1 (PTI) Their spirits still undamped by an overnight rain, art enthusiasts in the national capital thronged the NSIC Grounds here on Thursday to attend the opening day of the 15th edition of India Art Fair.

Touted as the "biggest edition yet," India Art Fair features 109 exhibitors, including 72 galleries and major regional and international art institutions, including seven new design studios in its first ever collectible Design section.

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The festival, which has on display the best of modern and contemporary South Asian art alongside major contemporary international artists, has added handmade and limited edition design by pioneering studios for the first time.

"For the past 15 years, the fair has been a celebration of the very best of South Asian creativity, and in 2024 we are taking this even further with our biggest edition yet and the inauguration of our very first Design section," Jaya Asokan, director India Art Fair, said.

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She added, "Complementing the gallery displays, we are also hosting our most ambitious programme of commissions, projects, talks and workshops yet, showcasing the diversity and power of artistic talent from across India and the wider region."

The fair's inaugural Design section has showcased limited edition and handmade collectible design by seven studios, including Vikram Goyal, Ashiesh Shah, Gunjan Gupta, Rooshad Shroff, Studio Renn, de Gournay, and Karishma Swali & Chanakya School of Craft.

This year's edition features some of India's leading contemporary galleries alongside established international names such as Vadehra Art Gallery, Art Alive Gallery, Gallerie Nvya, Emami Art, Method, Anant Art, Tao Art Gallery, 1x1 Art Galley from Dubai, Indigo+Madder from London, and Aicon Contemporary from New York.

Some of the showcased artists are Indian modernists like Jamini Roy, GR Santosh, Ram Kumar, Ganesh Haloi, and company school painters such as Sewak Ram, as well as lesser known modernists such as B Prabha, Radha Charan Bagchi and Rustom Siodia.

Also on view are some leading south Asian artists with a global presence, including photographers Tenzing Dakpa and Dayanita Singh, printmaker Jayati Kaushik, and installation artist Jonathan Trayte.

The Focus section at the art fair features mixed media works by veteran artists, represented by their respective galleries, such as Probir Gupta, Paresh Maity, V Ramesh, Chippa Sudhakar and Dibin Thilakan.

The Institution section has booths and projects by 16 leading cultural foundations, collectives and organisations, including the Foundation of Indian Contemporary Art (FICA), JSW Foundation, CP Kukreja Foundation for Design Excellence, Purushottam Public Trust, Egaro Photo Festival, Unnati Cultural Village, and The French Institute in India.

The grand art fair will come to a close on February 4.

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