“Beyond the Blue” is an exhibition of new work by Indian artist Vibha Galhotra (born 1978) that is conceptually divided into two parts: The first imagines looming catastrophe as the planet’s resources are depleted, and the second examines questions of survival and interplanetary escape. Together they act as a warning, imparting a sense of urgency as we face environmental displacement.
The artist’s process-oriented practice centers on environmental concerns and the consequences of industrialization and globalization. Based in both research and intuition, her work dwells between the personal and public and science and spirituality to explore the shifting landscape of society.
The first series, “Wounded,” features molded paper works imagining the earth’s landscape after resources have been exhausted. By working with paper, an inherently delicate material, Galhotra meditates on the ephemerality of the planet’s resources and the fragility of our existence. In these subtle works, the paper terrain is cast from a concrete mold, resulting in a scarred topography that is a visual record of the creative process.
The second series, “Life on Mars,” offers a vision for the future, and turns specifically to evidence of water on Mars in response to our current water crisis. Using intricately woven metal ghungroos characteristic of her practice, Galhotra deconstructs images of the surface of Mars sourced from NASA research to create surreal, celestial landscapes. Through a meticulous, effortful process, Galhotra interrogates this utopian vision, the shimmering beauty of the resulting works revealing both the hope and delusion of an interplanetary escape.
Rather than offer only images of escapism, Galhotra instead urges us to also embrace our wounded, fragile planet.