The City as a Museum is DAG’s annual art and heritage festival. It began in Kolkata to connect artworks and objects in the DAG collection, and inside museums, galleries and archives, to the world outside. By visiting historic spaces across the city and beyond—from artists homes and studios to centres of craft production and spaces of arts patronage—we have been able to animate the larger histories behind the artworks we see in galleries and exhibitions, making our collection accessible in new ways. Exploring the work of artists like Abanindranath Tagore, Chittaprosad, Ganesh Haloi, and lesser-known artists who paint ‘shoras’, create metro mosaics and ‘sandesh.’ These programmes connected such artistic practices to the wider history of colonialism, reform movements, patronage, art education, craft and music. In this way, not only have we presented ways to experience art as an integral part of our shared legacy but have also seen the city around us through fresh perspectives.

After four successful editions in Kolkata, the programme travelled to Mumbai in 2025 starting with the exhibition ‘Shifting Visions: Teaching Modern Art at the Bombay School’ at the historic Sir J. J. School of Art. Through a diverse set of programmes, we explored the lesser-known narratives of art and the city; travelling to Elephanta Caves, the iconic Alfred theatre and the milieu of Bhendi bazaar to learn about the life and art of artists like Tyeb Mehta and M. F. Hussain and their connections to sites in the city. Owing to the overwhelming responses, The City as a Museum will make its way to Delhi in September 2025.