What’s the value of adding India Mahdavi to Bonnard?

The demand for more immersive exhibitions has played a part in bringing on India Mahdavi, for NGV’s Bonnard blockbuster exhibition.
Designer India Mahdavi photographed against patterned red wallpaper

Double billing is something we have seen more traditionally across the performing arts – especially in dance and music performance – a marketing strategy where different artists, or events, are given equal footing. It is a trend that we are also seeing today in the visual arts, used to add a fresh tone to the old, or extend a nuance or connection.

A good example of this model was National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) International’s 2018 exhibition, Escher x Nendo: Between two worlds, which paired the Tokyo/Milan-based design studio Nendo, with the early 20th century Dutch graphic artist MC Escher. The Gallery is doing it again with its 2023 Melbourne Winter Masterpieces exhibition, Pierre Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi.

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Gina Fairley is ArtsHub's National Visual Arts Editor. For a decade she worked as a freelance writer and curator across Southeast Asia and was previously the Regional Contributing Editor for Hong Kong based magazines Asian Art News and World Sculpture News. Prior to writing she worked as an arts manager in America and Australia for 14 years, including the regional gallery, biennale and commercial sectors. She is based in Mittagong, regional NSW. Twitter: @ginafairley Instagram: fairleygina