People strolling along the Seine near Pont Neuf next week may be startled by the sounds of drumming and the scents of cooking drifting from the Paris Mint.
In a courtyard of the Mint, a grand 18th-century building known as the Monnaie de Paris, women will chant Sufi verses in a rain dance as a drummer beats a tempo and another artist draws a giant fiery landscape. Nearby, cooks will dish out cuisine and conversation.
It is all part of Asia Now, an annual art fair dedicated to contemporary art made by artists from Asia and the Asian diaspora.
Each year, the fair selects a theme or country of focus, inviting exhibitors to curate their booths around it. This year, to mark its 10th edition, which runs from Friday to Oct. 20, the fair designated the theme “ceremony.”
“We wanted this edition to be participative, immersive, spiritual, and show the diversity of Asia through its ceremonial traditions,” said Alexandra Fain, co-founder of the fair, in a phone interview from Paris.