A show of paintings by Tulika Ladsariya

Artist Tulika Ladsariya examines two severe influences – city construction and environmental impact – which at once represent the pinnacle and the nadir of human activity. Her comprehensive collection of ' Lofty Assimilation' at Jamaat Gallery gives a surreal perspective of the artist’s window view from her studio in the city of Mumbai.

Having lived for more than two decades in Mumbai, she is constantly struck by the incessant need for renovation. The city threatens to fall apart at the seams but always stops just short, with everything held together by duct tape. To the artist, bamboo scaffolding is an allegory of this fragility. The matrix of bamboos creeps up skyscrapers, gingerly holding on. Surely the frail jute strings are not enough and the same invisible glue is at work here.

Adopting the principle that inspiration is best found in one's own surroundings, Tulika Ladsariya’s work is inspired by the contrasts and extremes of urban cities - how they are constructed, who constructs them, how inhabitants react to them and how they affect the natural environment. The influence of the urban landscapes of Mumbai, London and Chicago- the three major cities where the artist has spent significant years of her life- form the basis of her images and work .

Born and brought up in Mumbai in a traditional family with a financial focus, she followed her dream and passion and in 2005, she moved to London to study at the Chelsea College of Art and Design. On her return to Mumbai, she studied Indian Aesthetics, simultaneously working as a General Manager for an art fund and auction house. The artist has shown her work in Mumbai and in Chicago over the past few years. She presently lives and works in Chicago.

In her more recent scaffolding paintings, the city is reduced to mere explorations of shape and manipulation of surface. The carefully composed recurring visual motifs of spatial divides suggest at the physical and emotional isolation of urban life.

The use of molding paste and gels lends a rugged, three-dimensional view to the scaffolding and makes it almost come to life against the colorful patterned background. The workmen, hanging on to the bamboos are mere black silhouettes and their identity remains irrelevant and obscure.

(Information courtesy: Jamaat Gallery)