Founder:
The Advisory practises an agile working construct, emphasising specialised collaborations, including with independent specialists and consultants. Regular support is provided through a core group of gifted individuals, who manage process and project delivery, and specialises in supporting electic collecting practises and collections that reflect quality selection, curiosity, sophistication and aesthetic lifestyle.
Founder:
Founder:
Shalini Ganendra’s impact on cultural development and awareness has been defined by over two decades of informed project and educational engagement. Through specific programming, research, publication, and overarching commitment to transnational discourse, she has increased focus on, inter alia, the distinct and longstanding creative practices and histories of the South and South East Asian Regions. Her strengths include: strategic project implementation; expedient economic delivery; and a growing presence in dispute resolution multi-disciplinary scholarship enhanced by legal discourse.
Notable projects include: Gallery Weekend Kuala Lumpur, the pioneering annual cultural marquee featuring multi-disciplinary local and global constructs; the Vision Culture Lectures, a five year series which culminated in a dedicated Arts in Asia UNESCO Observatory publication; Artists and Research Residencies; and targeted, creative exhibition and education modules. These cultural endeavours of soft diplomacy have brought focus and recognition to new regions and creative practices.
Ganendra has advised governments, institutions, auction houses and collections. She was the first Sri Lankan art expert to be appointed to the Tate Gallery, Acquisitions Committee and has served on numerous cultural panels, including: Sovereign Art Prize, HK; Caochangdi Photo Spring Festival (Les Rencontres d’Arles Photography Festival), Beijing; Smithsonian Institution’s SARF program (Smithsonian Artist Residency Fellowship); and the Commonwealth Foundation Art Awards.
Shalini was educated in the US and UK, graduating from Phillips Exeter Academy where she was made a Life Harkness Fellow. She read law at University of Cambridge, Trinity Hall, has a LL.M. from Columbia University Law School, is a qualified Barrister and New York Attorney, and practised corporate finance law for 5 years on Wall Street before settling in Malaysia. She founded Shalini Ganendra Fine Art in 1998 which transitioned into the current advisory practise.
Other Leadership Roles & Fellowships:
Associated Academic, Art History Dept., Oxford University (2020 – 2022)
Research Associate, St. Catherine’s, Oxford University (2020 – 2022)
Academic Visitor, Magdalene College, Cambridge University (2022)
Visiting Fellow, Department of Anthropology (FRSG), Oxford University (2019 – 2020).
Tate Acquisitions Committee (SAAC), 2017 – 2020
Cambridge University, Trinity Hall Advisory Board, 2018 – 2020
English-Speaking Union, Malaysia Board, 2003 – Current
Past President & Advisor, Oxford & Cambridge Society Malaysia
Select Publications
Views of Ceylon – Narratives of A Collection, An inter-disciplinary investigation of colonial image from Ceylon. Oxford and Empire (2020)
Handmade in Serendip. Sri Lanka’s Craft Narrative, educating in the Crafts, The Global Experience. Publisher Springer, Netherlands
Discovering Joseph Lawton, Pitt Rivers Museum Photograph & Manuscript Collection, 2020
The Tin Mine Landscapes (Photography), Fabrications – The Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia & New Zealand 2019
Threading Tales, Bhutan’s Weaves, Robb Report, 2019
Vision Culture Lecture Programme, Arts in Asia Issue, UNESCO Observatory, Guest Editor, 2016
Seeing the Bigger Picture, Art in Basel, Edge Publications, 2018
Culture Connoisseur bi-monthly series, The Grid Publication 2016-2017
Art Review, Bazaar Art, Malaysia 2015
Art Funds, Edge Publications, Malay Mail, November 2013
Art in Investment, Malaysia Unreserved, September 2013
Art in Emerging Regions, Robb Report, Singapore, 2010
Twenty Years in Review, National Art Gallery of Malaysia Journal, March 2010
The State of the Art, The Peak, August 2009
Peradaniya Gardens, Sri Lanka, Paradise Found, Journey through Noble Gardens of Asia, 2008
Perspectives on Malaya – Photographic Stories, Asian Art Newspaper (UK), November 2007
Perspectives on Malaya – Photographic Stories, Asian Art Newspaper (UK), November 2007
The Journal of Sri Lankan Art, Mood Indigo (USA), March 2007
An Island of Art – Sri Lankan Contemporary, Asian Art Newspaper (UK), November 2006
Advisory
With over two decades of expertise in transformational projects that speak to local and global dynamics, Shalini Ganendra Advisory continues to grow transnational engagement and multi-disciplinary emphasis and cultural distinction.
The Advisory has developed and lead important platforms for multi-disciplinary and trans-national engagement and exploration, developing meaningful and impactful cultural encounters.
“We practise cultural entrepreneurship to include value creation through complementary quality access and scaling of economies. The development of ‘cultural capital’ for community and individual benefit has been the foundation of our work.”
Pioneering projects have been introduced to South East Asia, including the Gallery Weekend Kuala Lumpur, Residencies, Exhibitions and Education modules. The Advisory’s organizational objectives and philosophy support regional creators in the propagation and recognition of contemporary, “vernacular” languages and practices.
The Advisory practice continues to grow an extensive and varied project portfolio, whether for private or institutional collections, cultural education, or community marquees, always appreciating the need for identity and clear narrative to succeed.
contact: sgfa@shaliniganendra.com
