Space Phrases I Lakeeren, Mumbai
2014
Space Phrases was my debut solo exhibition in Mumbai that was exhibited at Lakeeren Gallery in 2014. It explored an emerging body of work including linear drawings, architectural photographs and video works, that traced an evolving enquiry into line as a visual language, where it becomes an instrument to spatially engage and respond to the continuously evolving nature of the space it inhabits. The linear interventions within the visual compositions, displayed in a grid format in the exhibition, also introduced moments of displacement, expansion and reconfiguration in the due process.
The enquiry into the line began with an encounter with fallen hair, an organic and naturally occurring scribble irregularly delineating atop the surface of paper and was showcased in the Hairfall video work. This organic line was then contrasted with one-directional straight lines drawn with pen on paper as a subsequent exploration. Responding to the architectural spaces and other built spatial ambiences, through patiently drawn repetitive lines, they were displayed as ‘Pen Drawings’ on paper. The exhibition also showcased linear explorations with colored oil pastel as a textured medium of mark making on paper, depicting its distinct visual characteristics in ‘Green Drawings’ and ‘Shifting Spaces’. Gradually, it was the drawn line that continued to develop as a sustained artistic language. This artistic engagement moved beyond the constraints of spatial boundaries, gently disrupting and realigning the viewer’s perception towards dynamic architectural shifts.
Press Release: Space Phrases, her debut solo show in Mumbai, India, exhibits her recent drawings, photographs and video. Her inquiry slides from line as a language in itself, to the line becoming the medium to engage with the shifting dynamic of space. The medium of line converses with the space both by recognizing its existing architectural alignment, as well as finding newer sites of subtle insertions and realignments from within.
Gupta’s enquiry in regards the line started with witnessing her fallen hair, as organic line, and thereafter building comparisons with straight lines drawn by pen on wall. While the line drawn by hair didn’t find its way further, the straight line went on responding to architectural spaces and other built spatial ambiences. This process led her engagement to travel from the paper and enter into different kinds of spaces, through site responsive drawings and installations.
