Imago Mundi, an Italian arts initiative seeking to map contemporary artists around the world, was launched in Nepal at an event held at the Nepal Art Council on Monday. The initiative was launched by curator Jennifer Karch Verze, who will be managing artworks from Nepal for the project.

Imago mundi, which has been promoting contemporary art around the world, hopes to provide Nepali art with an international platform. With more than 1657 artworks from artists the world over, the initiative plans on bringing together a wide-array of artists and use their work to create an artistic map of the world.

“We want to create dialogue through art and document the art of every country to promote coexistence of expressive diversity,” said Jennifer Karch Verze at the event. She further added that artists will be asked to paint on 10 by 12 cm canvases, which will act as business cards for the artist to be recognised by.

140 artists from Nepal will be creating artworks for the project, with the creations slated to be exhibited around the world. Along with the opportunity to exhibit their art, artist will also be featured in a catalog which will include all the artworks representing Nepal, along with brief biography and artistic visions of each artist.

“This is great news for the Nepali art scape as it will provide a great international platform for Nepali artists. Even though the art will be small, Nepal and its art will be promoted throughout the world,” said the artist Bidhata KC.

Various artists from around the country are slated to participate in the event. The catalog featuring the Nepali artists will be published late next year.