Akar Prakar will inaugurate its new gallery space in Delhi's Defence Colony on August 21 with 'Becoming', an exhibition curated by Siddhi Shailendra that brings together the works of C. Douglas, Debasish Mukherjee, Ganesh Haloi, Jayashree Chakravarty, Leang Seckon and Manish Pushkale.
On view until September 17, the inaugural exhibition explores artistic evolution as an ongoing process of transformation, featuring works inspired by the themes of abstraction, memory, landscape, ecology, architecture, and history.
'Becoming' looks at how artists continually develop and reinvent their visual languages through sustained engagement with material, memory and experience. The six artists, working across different geographies, offer distinct approaches to making art.
Akar Prakar was founded in 2004 by Reena Lath and Abhijit Lath. According to the founders, the new space would allow the gallery to include more younger voices and contemporary practices. Speaking about the new space, Abhijit says, "We are glad to move into the next phase of our journey with a renewed vision to include more younger voices and practices while keeping our roots of three generations of building collections in place." On the other hand, Reena remarks: "Along with a new space, our refreshed identity signifies a more free-flowing approach, much like the gallery itself, envisioned to accommodate fresh voices in contemporary art."
Designed by architect Ashish Karode and his team at Design Atelier, the new gallery has been conceived as an adaptable space where artworks remain the central focus. The design uses non-reflective finishes and museum-grade lighting to accommodate varied forms of exhibition-making.