Over the past two decades, Gallery Ragini has quietly but steadily
carved a niche for itself in India's contemporary art landscape. Known for its
inclusive approach that bridges the gap between modern, contemporary, and
traditional art, the gallery has nurtured both emerging talents and established
artists. To celebrate its 20th anniversary, Gallery Ragini is organizing a
major exhibition, curated by Meena Wari, at Bikaner House in New Delhi,
starting October 24, 2025.
The exhibition brings together 52 artists from different generations and
genres, offering a comprehensive view of the evolving sensibilities of Indian
art. The gallery presents both fundamental principles of art and new concepts.
This is evident in the exhibition's display of traditional art forms, from oil
paintings and sculptures to photography, as well as innovative experiments in
art. This exhibition transforms the exhibition into a dynamic dialogue on
contemporary art.
Tradition and Change
Since its inception, Gallery Ragini has been committed to presenting
works by both senior artists and young talents, and this spirit continues in
this commemorative exhibition. The curatorial vision allows traditional
mediums—such as oil painting and sculpture—to coexist with mixed media,
digital, installation, and conceptual art. The resulting dialogue between forms
and materials creates a vibrant, layered experience that reflects the diversity
of Indian contemporary art today.
Gallery Director Nidhi Jain's preparation and vision are particularly
commendable. Her ability to weave diverse artistic voices into a coherent
narrative demonstrates the maturity of a gallery that has evolved alongside
India's evolving art scene.
Expanding the boundaries of the visual
Participating artists include some of the most influential names in
Indian art: Rekha Rodvittya, N. Pushpamala, Kanchan Chander, Veer Munshi, G.R.
Iranna, Pooja Iranna, Arun Kumar H.G., Jagannath Panda, Bose Krishnamachari,
Vivek Vilasini, Puneet Kaushik, T.V. Santosh, Sambhavi, Sanjay Das, and Vibha
Galhotra, to name a few.
The exhibited works collectively underscore a significant shift—painting
and sculpture are no longer confined to canvas, stone, or metal. Instead, they
expand into material experimentation, conceptual layers, and sensory
engagement. Here, art becomes a broader realm of experience, transcending the
purely visual and entering the realms of perception, memory, and consciousness.
Art as Experience
In this context, Ayesha Seth's works add a different dimension to the
viewing experience by transporting the current visual experience into memories.
Similarly, Veer Munshi's works expand the experience by awakening a new process
of thought with the displacement of form. Thus, the act of seeing becomes a
more conscious state, and seeing then becomes not just seeing, but a lived
experience.
Artists like Gayatri Santosh and George Martin PJ highlight the delicate
relationship between memory and the future—creating works that resonate with
the past and also point to the future of art. Mithu Sen adds another dimension,
focusing on the boundaries of identity in contemporary life, pointing to new
signs within it.
A Historic Moment
This anniversary exhibition is not merely a retrospective celebration;
it is a visionary statement. It affirms that contemporary Indian art is
vibrant, turbulent, and endlessly inventive. By providing space for both
contemplation and experimentation, Gallery Ragini reestablishes its role as a
platform for dialogue between artists, materials, and audiences.
As the exhibition demonstrates, art today is not just what we see—it is
what we feel, remember, and imagine. It transcends form and becomes an
extension of human experience.
Celebrating twenty years, Gallery Ragini not only takes a look back at
its journey but also casts a bright eye on the future of Indian art.
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