Art fairs may only last a few days, but the conversation and connections they cultivate exist year round. ART MUMBAI Gateway, ART MUMBAI’s year-round Indian art programming and cultural events initiative, aims to nurture this by creating opportunities of access and cultural expansion beyond just the fair months and walls.

A nod to Mumbai's Gateway of India, a symbol of welcoming, exchanging, and introducing culture to those who pass through, ART MUMBAI Gateway aims to be like its namesake—a ‘gateway’ of sorts. It stands as a nomadic portal into the Indian art scene—wherever it is located becomes a place for the exchange of ideas, introduction to the centre of Indian art, and meaningful connections with India's contemporary art community.

Gateway Programming gives art enthusiasts access to unique experiences and new ways to experience art. Visitors have gotten a chance to participate in exclusive art tours and visits to art institutions, studio visits and unique curated experiences in Mumbai and beyond. In Mumbai, participants have visited art studios at the Immerse Fellowship at Somaiya Vidyavihar University, and embarked on a sail from the Bombay harbour, during which they learnt about how India’s maritime cultural heritage has shaped Indian art. ART MUMBAI Gateway have also organised exclusive tours of the conservation lab at MAP Bengaluru, Ecoworld 30 by the RMZ Foundation and a walkthrough of the Zirad Art Heritage Foundation in Alibaug. And internationally, ART MUMBAI has hosted Gateway events at St. James’s Street in London and at the SOAS University, extending its reach across the global Indian art diaspora.

Gateway programming is curated and led by notable figures in the art world, offering art collectors and enthusiasts rare behind-the-scenes access. Attendees have the opportunity to visit prestigious institutions and be shown around by the people making decisions about these institutions. Our walkthrough of the Tate was led by Giulia Sartori Conte, who heads the Collection Committees & Patrons at the Tate, and Mortimer Chatterjee provided his own personal insights in a talk about institutionalised collecting at TIFR. Our visits to exhibitions at the Victoria & Albert Museum were led by the curators of those exhibitions and Salima Hashmi took us around SOAS University.

Gateway events also allow art enthusiasts to build and develop a community of people who are similarly interested and engaged with art. At every Gateway programme, artists, gallerists, collectors and enthusiasts all gather together to engage deeply with art, which can lay the groundwork for interesting conversations and connections– and the learning can go even beyond what ART MUMBAI has planned.

ART MUMBAI Gateway Programming thus connects its audience to art beyond the fair, offering Indian art experiences year-round. By opening doors to institutions, conversations and experiences, it can enrich the way we encounter art, creating a community of engaged and informed art lovers.