Having grown up experiencing and absorbing the physical richness and cultural heritage of Rajasthan, especially Jaipur, where he was born and brought up, along with getting opportunities to travel frequently with his geophysicist father, helped installation artist Vibhor Sogani witness diverse landscapes, rural scenarios and indigenous cultures. He is famous for creating India’s largest and most visible public art installation, Sprouts, a 40-ft-high stainless steel installation spread in Delhi. He also executed a 30-ft-high installation, Kalpavriksha, the wish-fulfilling tree, in Ahmedabad.
Interest in design and environment
As an adolescent, Sogani loved playing with forms and materials, creating imaginary stuff which perhaps triggered in creative thought. His design journey started after schooling. A session with a career counsellor and an aptitude test later, Sogani was told that his 3D visualisation was good.
Thus happened NID. Five-and-a-half years at the premier design institute gave direction to his creative indulgences.
“This is where I gained multi-disciplinary exposure to creative fields like films, textile, furniture, ceramics, graphics, engineering and machining, and insights into arts and crafts,” he says.
“The constant support of my parents built an encouraging environment at home while travels with my father fuelled my desire to pursue my passion further,” he shares. Design, thus, got seamlessly integrated with his way of life, his thought process and his way of observing the world around him.
Establishing business
Post-NID, Sogani worked at the R&D centres of a few large organisations gaining knowledge about industrial production, management, operations and logistics. However, the environments were strictly structured and lacked a creative atmosphere. “My time there pushed me to start my independent practice immediately and I started a small studio in New Delhi. For the first few years, I picked up a range of projects in an effort to expose myself to the industry and all the opportunities it has to offer,” Sogani adds.
He consulted on a variety of projects covering graphics, communication, retail, exhibition and industrial design. These were crucial years and acted as the catalyst in opening up his canvas of design practice. In 2002, he launched his signature collection of table top accessories.
It marked a shift from the service industry to design and creation. Thereafter, his expanded into lights and furniture.
Lights, his signature line
It was in 2007 that Sogani got an opportunity to create some lights for an event which was showcasing a few top international lighting brands. The response to his designs was encouraging at various levels, following which he ventured into lighting design. Ever since, Sogani has remained involved with this stream of design.
Public installations
He made his first public art installation, Sprouts, 11 years back. It is a 40-ft-high stainless steel installation spread across six acres of greens at the AIIMS Flyover in New Delhi. “The one-line brief given to me by the CM of Delhi was From the Walled City to World City. That had to be interpreted in our context. The idea behind Sprouts was ‘when the seeds begin to sprout’ depicting India as a growing nation,” he shares.
“Public art is a much-needed expression. It can bring joy to one’s life and add life to a dull space; it can also communicate socially-relevant aspects of society. Therefore, it has to be meaningful, sensible, maybe with a social message and last but not the least, engaging for larger percentile of the viewers,” Sogani says.
“Since art catches the attention of all, be it young or old, public art should be used as a powerful tool to convey messages about pressing topical issues,” he adds.