The third floor of The Met Breuer in New York is drawing mammoth crowds eager to see Phenomenal Nature: Mrinalini Mukherjee—an unusual exhibition of anthropomorphic pieces crafted from hemp. The show is on till September 29. Striking in their structures, at times unsettling, grotesque and often sensual, the collection by the renowned Indian sculptor, the late Mrinalini Mukherjee, is the first comprehensive display of her work in America. The collection of 57 pieces marks her lifelong fascination with fibre and the gradual foray into ceramics and bronze later.
Says Shanay Jhaveri, assistant curator of South Asian Art in The Met’s Department of Modern and Contemporary Art, “There is daring yet subtle eroticism in Mrinalini’s works. Her art borders on the dystopian. It took quite a while to fully appreciate the transatlantic appeal that she makes with modernistic art. She has crafted her own language in art, which is unlike anything else seen in India and Asia.”
An artist far ahead of time, Mrinalini’s works have the potential to shock. The free-hanging structures made with hemp fibre and suspended by wires at times embrace the ground, or fall just an inch or two short of the floor as if aching for the touch of the earth. The ceramic and bronze sculptures seem dual-faced like most of her works—simultaneously sensuous and eerie.
Born to artist parents Leela and Benode Behari Mukherjee, Mrinalini grew up in Dehradun and Shantiniketan. She imbibed the deep artistic colours of both the worlds. Deeply influenced by traditional Indian and historic European sculpture, folk art, modern design, local crafts and textiles, this ‘fearless’ artist—as she is often called—made Nature her muse.
Though she lived and practiced in Delhi, her art is anything but urban. By her own admission, Mrinalini never worked on sketches or models since they “limited her”. Rather, she worked intuitively and let her art flow free. She used knotting to craft hauntingly beautiful pieces, sometimes pleated and folded, at times bulging, but always vegetal.
If having artist parents and the legendary KG Subramanyan as a teacher at The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda helped her art evolve, it also must have been difficult for Mrinalini to carve her own niche independent of their influence. When she chose hemp fibre as her medium, she must have been cautioned against the material’s stubbornness.
But the outlier sculptor persisted—and why not, after all her mother sculpted in wood, another non-conventional medium. Says Shanay, “Such influences helped her forge her own path. Mrinalini probably drew a lot of inspiration from her mother. She was not afraid to venture into the unknown. The entire sweep of her work is like a natural phenomenon—attractive and beautiful, and also violent and sinister at the same time.”
Made possible by Nita Ambani, Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani and the Reliance Foundation, the retrospective brings to the fore a strong female voice from the annals of art history—one which has long been under-represented and neglected. It took Shanay three years to put together an ensemble worthy of Mrinalini’s impressive work. “We are proud of what we have managed to achieve. Mrinalini’s works have long been overlooked and I would want her now to regain her place in the global art arena, where she truly belongs,” she smiles.The exhibition proves that great art belongs to the world.