LIKE THE SWORD OF DAMOCLES, THE THREAT OF SEALING AND DEMOLITION HAS BEEN hanging over the heads of gallery owners in Delhi for the past couple of years. In the run up to the Commonwealth Games, scheduled to be hosted in the capital in 2010, there has been a major drive to shut down commercial establishments located in residential/institutional areas. Faced with the risk of closure, galleries have had to move out perforce from the city's centre and relocate to its periphery. Consequently, they have shifted to industrial areas, to pockets of Lal Dora land (the revenue term for abadi areas or rural settlements that existed in 1908, many of which have been absorbed by the city and are now 'urban villages') and even to the satellite towns of Gurgaon and Noida.

It is ironic that at a time when the art market is booming, prime property in the centre of town cannot be bought for the love of money. Art aficionados now have to commute longer distances to see shows. However, this enforced movement of galleries has not been without its upside.

Installation view of City Cite Site, an exhibition curated by Latika Gupta at Anant Art Gallery in 2008.

Spaced Out

Galleries have more room at their disposal, now that they have shifted from small, cramped residential quarters to large, factory like spaces. Vadehra Art Gallery, for instance, re-located from its premises in Defence Colony to a bigger gallery. It now occupies two floors in a building in the Okhla Industrial Area.

A number of galleries which are now in close proximity to each other in Lado Sarai - like Gallery Threshold, Gallery Art Motif, Artpilgrim Art Gallery and Anant Art Gallery - are working together to promote the area as an art hub. They are also in the process of synchronizing the openings of their exhibitions, which would be a boon for art lovers.

Areas outside the city centre were given a further fillip when Bodhi Art moved to Gurgaon. Bodhi Art's exhibitions in Delhi, however, have been nothing to write home about - save, perhaps, for the odd preview. The Devi Art Foundation is another important initiative in Gurgaon. Its first show was titled Still Moving Image (from August to November 2008) and was curated by Deeksha Nath. The founder Anupam Poddar is a serious collector of cutting-edge contemporary Indian art, which he has been interested in for a long time. Still Moving Image drew from his collection and reflected Poddar's eye for spotting risk-taking talent.