Holy waters
Exploring the cultural and spiritual significance of water in India and around the world
Contemporary Art
Collecting art & artefacts
Sarmaya Founder Paul Abraham and Brand Custodian Pavitra Rajaram acquire objects to continually enrich our museum’s collection. In this Guide, they share some great advice with young collectors on how to engage meaningfully with the art and culture of India
Shadows under my sky – 4
This artwork titled ‘Shadows under my sky – 4’ is a woodblock created by Soghra Khurasani (b. 1983), contemporary artist based in Vadodara (Baroda), Gujarat. Landscapes are a significant feature in Soghra Khurasani’s work as inspiring, open spaces that can be explored. This woodblock was part of Khurasani’s solo show, Shadows under my sky, at… Read more »
“Beauty that unhinges you” – Inside Varunika Saraf’s brilliant art
Varunika Saraf’s paintings draw you in with their vibrant splashes of colour, only to unnerve you with the details veiled underneath. She speaks to Sarmaya about her process, politics and perennial love for the miniature art tradition
Koh-e Asmai – The unspoken words of Havva
In this essay, Arshi Irshad Ahmadzai takes us into the beating heart of her art practice that carries the fragrance of Najibabad and Kabul, and the poetry of Rumi and Ghalib
Untitled (Horizon Scroll)
This Untitled work is part of a series showcasing Horizon lines by artist Aditi Singh (b.1976), made using Ink on Washi Paper in 2020. The work showcases the horizon line of a city, which Singh explored by walking. The artist took meditative walks in Nepal, Sierra Nevada, the lake district of the UK, and more… Read more »
Untitled (Horizon Line, Turkey)
This Untitled work is part of a series showcasing Horizon lines by artist Aditi Singh (b. 1976), made using ink on Washi Paper in 2015. The work is the artist’s interpretation of the horizon line of Turkey. It has emerged from a long and deep reflection on the natural world and the artist’s imagination. It… Read more »
Untitled (Horizon Line, New Delhi)
This Untitled work is part of a series showcasing Horizon lines by artist Aditi Singh (b. 1976), made using Ink on Kozo Paper in 2016. The work is the artist’s interpretation of the horizon line of Delhi and is a product of ‘meditative walking’ by the artist. For Singh, walking in different places worldwide brought… Read more »
Cloud over the landscape
“Cloud over the landscape” is a deep engagement with the subjectivity of maps and their inherent function as history-making devices.Using interventions like painting, erasing and burning the photographic image before it is transferred onto wood, artist Saju Kunhan creates room for accidents, mistranslations and loss of information. In elaborating on his method in the catalogue… Read more »
Name, Place, Animal, Wings!- Virtual Workshop
Artist Shailee Mehta conducted a fun virtual workshop for children ages 9 to 14 inspired by the themes of Sarmaya’s Mumbai show, ‘Shifting Selves’
Anju Acharya and the circle of life
Artist Anju Acharya’s gaze may seem coolly observational at first, but it is in fact informed by deep wells of emotion and sensitivity towards her environment
‘majha’ by Gaurav Ogale x Farah Mulla
Notes by the artist on ‘majha’, an audio-visual mix media installation by Gaurav Ogale x Farah Mulla
Making Meaning: The art of Saubiya Chasmawala
Is there a way to return to the site of an old injustice and reclaim our power? Saubiya Chasmawala’s haunting, hypnotic art attempts a revision of exactly this sort
Mining Mythology: The art of Rithika Merchant
The colours of Gond art, the figures of ancient Egypt and the stories of Greek mythology flower organically on her canvas and demand a closer re-reading
Mapping Mirages: The art of Saju Kunhan
Walking the path of the historian, archivist and craftsman, Saju Kunhan creates room for cultures, centuries and civilisations to constantly collide and create new meanings
Shifting Selves
Something beautiful and bizarre starts to happens when you place disparate works of art and history next to each other. Like a creeper putting out tendrils to investigate higher ground, these objects begin to reach out and whisper to each other. Connections crackles across mediums, styles and eras. Universal themes shine through like iridescent threads.… Read more »
Havva ki Nakahi
Havva ki Nakahi is part of a suite of seventeen works called Naguftaha – e – Hawwa (The unspoken words of Hawwa) that, in gallerist Mortimer Chatterjee’s words, “explores the relationship of Adam and Eve (Havva ) in the Islamic tradition and the ejection of Eve from heaven”. The work is a typical example of… Read more »
Untitled
Dhruvi Acharya’s paintings portray the urban woman. She creates a canvas that most often depicts a comic-like female figure in a visual world unique to each painting. In this world thoughts exist as real entities and human forms take on aspects of their emotional personalities. Often these figures are represented with blank expressions and blank… Read more »
The Interview Panel
‘The Interview Panel’ is a typical example of the works of Alexander Gorlizki and Riyaz Uddin; quirky and humorous. Here, the artists have worked over an unidentified painted photograph in miniature style. They toy with and expand the ideas of painted photography and miniature art. The compositions, colours and intricate patterns drawn on these family… Read more »
Gathering on a Family Farm
Quirky and humorous, ‘Gathering of a Family Farm’ is a typical example of the works of artist Alexander Gorlizki with Riyaz Uddin. Here, the artists have painted over an unidentified family portrait in miniature style. They toy with and expand the ideas of painted photography and family portraiture. In the photograph, characters appear to be… Read more »