India Art Fair

TARQ’s presentation at India Art Fair 2025 includes the works of seven womxn artists- Nibha Sikander, Apnavi Makanji, Amba Sayal-Bennett, Rah Naqvi, Saubiya Chasmawala, Garima Gupta, and Soghra Khurasani. Their concerns critically engage with ecology and the world we inhabit, linked through various individual approaches. In a world of constant environmental and social challenges, the need for a safe space for discussions and healing is greater than ever. The works exhibited situate the artists’ thoughts in archival exploration, fieldwork and research, personal and sensorial memory, material subtlety, and the politics of knowledge.  

Noticing the reduction in the sightings of certain species, Nibha Sikander brings our attention to the fragility of birds, moths, and insects. The work showcased focuses on the White Rumped Muniya - through fragmented, detailed paper cutouts, she captures dissected forms. The compositions and meticulous approach mirror the attention given to taxidermy, confronting the violence faced by these creatures and the ecosystem they inhabit. The display of Sikander’s Negatives (stencil-like remainders from cut-outs) offers a dialogue between the presence and absence of the real and imagined creatures that she represents.  

While Sikander’s expression lies in delicate textural representations, Apnavi Makanji turns to graphite on paper that resonates deeply with their personal connection to water, shaped by their life in Geneva, Switzerland. A part of Parallaxseries, Ghost Palm features an imagined or exo-planet that appear to be made of water, ether and other elements, redefining nature as the nuclear of our existence.  

Contrasting the organic forms in Makanji’s work are Amba Sayal-Bennett’s diagrammatic sculptures that employ industrial methods of production. Through inquiry into translation, boundaries, and the migration or erasure of knowledge across geographies, she takes a closer look at colonial botany and imperial gardens. For this series, she looks at a specific site called Rani Baug, formally known as Victoria Gardens in Mumbai.  

Also addressing ideological concerns, Rah Naqvi’s work are born out of personal experiences and are assertions of the self. In Etymology of the Erased a lush tree and a girl sitting under its shade, akin to a grandmother and child, is symbolic of how knowledge is passed on. As if from a child’s imagination, the figures refer to women featured in Fatema Mernissi’s book Forgotten Queens of Islam. Their works are a reaction to the socio-political fabric of the nation, seeking safety amidst the violence and constant apathy. They feature recognisable symbols, documenting and archiving ongoing history through their lens, reminding us of the forgotten or erased.  

Alongside Naqvi’s figurative works are Saubiya Chasmawala’s tender watercolours that meditate upon her relationship with identity, culture, and language through a method of abstraction and repetition of the Arabic script and alphabets. Intuitively drawn to the colour blue, the works made using ink and water break the rigidity of the forms of the letters and of the concentrated pigment, creating accidental stains and allowing the artist to lose control.  

Botany continues to feature in Garima Gupta’s work based on her research into medicinal plants that feature in Ayurvedic, Yunani and Tibetan medicine but grow exclusively in the trans-Himalayan belt, traded heavily across borders. Her work employs the softness of pastels and the denseness of charcoal to render and combine them in a collage. This is the first time we will see Gupta’s work at this scale.  

The landscape, in Soghra Khurasani’s work, is perceived through the poetics of a metaphor; her palette and carved strokes are dedicated by the sensitivity to felt emotions and are thus imbued in her compositions of nature. Living away from the concrete city, her observations of the flora around her allow for deep introspection and reflection. While the visuals serve as metaphors to the self and the body, the process of printmaking involves a rigorous involvement and attention to technique and material knowledge. 

The perspectives translated through this booth are thus tender and entangled, extending their expressions towards a deeper understanding of the world around us and also of each other.