How these two exhibitions in Delhi are exploring Seema Kohli's artworks

Contemporary artist Seema Kohlis practice from her early exploration of the self in the mythical to her more recent works that explore the body as an archive of stories traverses across material histories mythic imagination and deeply personal narratives of feminine resilience and selfdiscoveryTwo new art exhibitions by Gallery Nvya at Triveni Kala Sangam Bodies of Sky Bodies of Earth and With Her Hair Running Wild offer a layered and expansive view of Kohlis artistic practice spanning sculpture painting printmaking embroidery and mixed mediaBodies of Sky Bodies of Earth brings together Kohlis works across terracotta woodcut embroidery sculpture and painting to explore the idea of the body as an archive of earth species and stories The exhibition features works that reflect her sustained inquiry into matter as simultaneously physical metaphysical and philosophicalThe exhibition unfolds as a conceptual passage that reflects Kohlis longstanding engagement with the body as a locus of experience Its arc moves from the idea of origin or womb through the conditions of earth and embodied life toward sky release and shedding with moksha functioning as an orienting horizon This progression is articulated materially rather than symbolically echoing philosophical traditions in which transcendence is understood not as a departure from matter but as transformation through it curator Satyajit Dave said in the curatorial noteAppearing as fragments markers or vessels the terracotta pieces evoke archaeological and vernacular forms without settling into historical quotation I am an artist And for me all these things are coming from a very personal space And its like pulling out different kind of memory through different layers of consciousnessSo whenever I am talking about my work I am talking about unseen bodies that are there which are around us which we dont see but we never considered them alive But there are beings always around us which are without body The clouds the sky everything is conscious everything is alive Kohli saidThe second exhibition With Her Hair Running Wild curated by Adwait presents works spanning key phases of Kohlis artistic journey from fleeting sketches made during the nights to early explorations of colour and eventually to the bold palettes and intricate patterns that define her mature practice todayAs she moves form her monochrome exploration of domestic narratives in the 80s with mythological icons to her vibrant mix of tribal natural and mystical now the art exhibition offers an almost intimate look at Kohlis own artistic and individual journeyBetween these moments lie narratives of domestic rupture feminine solidarity and the gradual reclaiming of artistic voice Drawing on stories of undomesticated goddesses and impassioned gods the works uphold the possibility of regeneration amidst stifling convention Adwait wrote in the curatorial noteAs she struggled to keep her skills sharp in a troubled marriage where colours were frowned upon Kohli found herself turning towards accounts of recalcitrant and unrestrained femininity in mythology folklore and daytoday life epitomised by the figure of Kali roaming the shamshanThe goddess transfixing gaze abject appearance and lolling tongue offer a sharp contrast to the demure devinities bestowing smiles and benedictions from the walls of Hindu homes In her truculent dishabille Kali offers a model of liberationa welcome break from gruelling social conventions regimenting womens bodies appearance and movement her streaming halo of hair like Medusas snakes pointing to myriad possibilities for bodily rewilding the curator saidIn a later phase after Kohli joind Triveni Kala Sangam in 1994 she turned towards painting saintly selfsacrificing profiles a reflection of the toll taken by years of mandatory matrimonyThe saintly selfsacrificing profiles are in contradistinction to the irreverent exploits of Kama Dev and Rati of former years a fact that only serves to emphasise her desperation for an escape even a renunciatory one Symbols of confinement hands grabbing at prison bars and plumb bobs signalling a stalemate between conjugality and creativity hint at torrential currents underneath surficial placidity Adwait said In contrast with her early and midcareer works Kohlis latest paintings are marked by the use of bright colours almost as if a celebration of lifeBefore long the muted palettes and sfumato of these paintings will yield to the bolder expressions typified by the Golden Womb series as a life of comforts gets swapped for a barsati of her own and a new domesticity discovered This emergent ebullient and ennobling domesticity will continue to animate her subjects and palettes for many years to come the curator added While Bodies of Sky Bodies of Earth comes to an end on January 25 With Her Hair Running Wild will run till March 15This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability 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