Dahlia Aggarwal’s exhibition is as curiously titled as her name. For an artist named after the national flower of Mexico, Esoteric Conscience as the title of her debut solo exhibition attracts as much mystery as her name. Dahlia also stands for wealth and elegance, as for love and involvement. As is Aggarwal’s
art where she wants her viewers to appreciate the nuances of her work through their “own esoteric conscience”.
In very simple terms, as Aggarwal explains, esoteric conscience means, having an open mindset especially to things that seem to be out of our control, but are truly inherent to us. “There is a secret order to how our universe works, we don’t have the slightest idea how it all happens. I have created this art from the esoteric realm of my conscience, beyond form, beyond convention and beyond limitation. I do not want to confine my art to any one thing or feeling,” Aggarwal explains.
Her recently-concluded exhibition in Delhi highlighted this idea through her works in acrylic. As the world locked itself down during the pandemic, Aggarwal took to her paintbrush to figure out the vast expanse of universe through various geometric patterns.
“I have always been fascinated by the works of impressionist and impasto artists such as Claude Monet and Van Gogh. Also, Hilma af Klint, SH Raza, Mark Rothko and Wassily Kadinsky are some other artists whose work has inspired me,” shares the 25-year-old Delhi-based artist. It’s not difficult to understand why Aggarwal’s work is around geometric shapes and textures.
“The desire to achieve a sense of geometry and accuracy comes from my background in computer science and graphic design,” she confesses. A self-taught artist, she has a degree in Informatics with specialisation in Human Computer Interaction Design from Indiana University, Bloomington. In Aggarwal’s words, most of her art education was through various art competitions while in school which allowed this young artist to hone her skills. “My grandmother’s newspaper-wrapped art books have always been a source of knowledge for me. My most prized possession is my grandmother’s wooden easel, which is almost 40 years old and is still as good as new,” she shares.
Even though Aggarwal’s curiosity led her to experiment with diverse career opportunities ––computer science, designing—it was art that had her heart. “Everywhere I went, creativity and art followed and persisted as an influence in all my experiences,” she concludes. Dahlia also signifies new beginnings. Like this computer professional-turned designer-turned artist.