‘Labyrinth of Absences’ by Reena Saini Kallat

Nature Morte presents a solo show of latest works by talented artist Reena Saini Kallat. The series, entitled, ‘Labyrinth of Absences’, is comprised of a set of new paintings, depicting monument sites in the state of New Delhi. A press release by the gallery elaborates: "The surface of the paintings are marked with addresses of monuments listed as protected sites under the Archeological Survey of India, that have either disappeared or have been declared lost, swallowed up by the rapidly expanding urban fabric.

The works on paper are constructed from the names of people who have been denied visas on the basis of class, nationality or religion. In most cases, her images are fractured and deconstructed, creating maze-like maps - or as in the case of Synonym, a series of portraits crafted as mosaics of rubber-stamps, holding the names of people who are officially registered as missing - appear pixelated and fragmented.

Other works in the show include Crease/Crevice/Contour, a set of ten large-scale photographs tracing the fluctuating LOC between India and Pakistan from October 1947 to December 1948.

Two video works will also be exhibited: ‘Silt of Seasons-I’, projects the names of people who have signed the peace petition in 2004. The names are projected on to sand and are gradually blown away, suggestive of the vulnerability of the peace process itself. In ‘Preface’, she projects the text of the Preamble of the Constitution of India translated into Braille on to the surface of a large, opened book.

An artist of international recognition, she has participated in a number of group exhibitions including Maximum India at The Kennedy Centre in Washington DC; Samtidigt at Kulturhuset, Stockholm and the Helsinki City Art Museum, Finland; The Empire Strikes Back Saatchi Gallery, London; The Vancouver International Sculpture Biennale 2010; Urban Manners- 2 at SESC Pompeia, Sao Paulo, Brazil; View Points and Viewing points - 2009 Asian Art Biennale, National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts and Chalo! India: A New Era of Indian Art at the Mori Art Museum, Tokyo that travelled to the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul and the Essl Museum, Vienna among others.