Durbar Hall Art Gallery

The hall where the Cochin royals once held audience now works as the city's main exhibition space. The Kerala Lalithakala Akademi manages it, and a renovation by the Kochi Biennale Foundation brought it up to international standard (museum lighting, climate control, wheelchair access) without stripping the proportions of the old durbar. Shows run all year, national and international, and the collection includes masters such as Raja Ravi Varma. Most exhibitions are free, and it stands in central Ernakulam, easy to drop into.

The Biennale spirit between Biennales: serious shows, free, in the city centre