The team behind LA’s biggest museum just visited Mumbai to learn more about Indian art

LACMA recently unveiled their new David Geffen Galleries building, designed by Pritzker Prize–winning architect Peter Zumthor, and is working up to a grand opening next April. “The entire building is designed to be ‘no hierarchies,’” Govan explains, “It’s three football fields long, it goes over the central boulevard of Los Angeles, it’s a whole different worldview.” Govan jokes that artists are the diplomats of our time, and he’s right; they carry ideas from one culture to another, revive forgotten technologies and tell stories that may otherwise be lost. And just as many artists are embracing AI as another tool in their belt, curators are tapping into an increasingly global network of artists and institutions to enhance their points of view.

Michael Govan. Photo © Brigitte Lacombe

It’s no longer enough for cultural exchange to be relegated to a few artworks shuttling back and forth between museums, which also aligns with the NMACC’s mission to meaningfully take India’s heritage and contemporary creativity to the world. “What’s new for me is the depth of personal relationships one can have in the long-term to embed people’s points of view,” Govan shares. “We have Isha Ambani on our board, we have board members in Seoul, Taipei and Doha. That’s new. Once you discover it’s possible, you feel it’s almost an obligation. Why wouldn’t we reach out for all those perspectives on an ongoing basis?”