In January 2008, the Dr Bhau Daji Lad Museum opened to the public once again, entering a new phase of its life as it transitioned from what was originally the Government Central Museum of Natural History, Geology, Archaeology and Economic Products (established in 1857) to its current state. Helmed by director Tasneem Zakaria Mehta, the museum has spent the last decade bridging the gap between contemporary art and the city, by inviting contemporary artists, first from Mumbai, and then from other parts of India, to engage with the museum’s existing collection and remains from its previous lives.
This ten-year effort can be seen coming together in Asymmetrical Objects, a month-long exhibition curated by Zakaria Mehta along with Himanshu Kadam. Looking at and questioning relationships and hierarchies between man and science, space, history and nature, the exhibition draws on the museum’s past as artists dig into records and objects from its previous lives.
Asymmetrical Objects begins with Jitish Kallat’s behemoth Aqausaurus, a skeletal and incredibly life-like version of the ubiquitous water tanker, an important fixture in the lives of many Mumbaikars—which the artist created based on images of vehicles destroyed during communal violence. The massive sculpture is installed where 142 years ago, was a similarly-sized whale skeleton.
New Delhi-based artist and amateur astronomer Rohini Devasher, whose recent BDL solo began with excavating into its past as a museum for archaeology, debuts Spheres, a work in four parts. The exhibition continues with artists known for working within environmental constructs such as Atul Bhalla, whose work is based around myths and realities of the river Vaitarna, the main water source for Mumbai; and Ranbir Kaleka, whose House of Opaque Winter talks of the disappearance of entire villages in the Sunderbans due to rising sea levels.
Manish Nai brings his signature compressions of waste material turned into sculpture while Prajakta Potnis explores the effects of sterile spaces on the human mind. Reena Kallat and Shilpa Gupta explore the myriad relationships between humans and various entities. In a continuation of her series Hyphenated Lives, Kallat creates new hybrids between species that have historically been seen as symbols of India and Pakistan, creating a narrative of convergence and healing between the two nations. There’s also Shilpa Gupta, who recreates her stunning installation – Shadow 3, last seen almost a decade ago. This interactive piece, loved by the young and old alike, spurs its audience to rethink the cause and effect of our actions in context to our immediate and global environments. The exhibit is rounded off by Mithu Sen’s multi-media installation I have only one language; it is not mine, which comes out of the time Sen spent entrenched in the world of minor female victims of abuse, creating a new language with them. And lastly, there are Sahej Rahal’s sculptures made of found objects fused together to give shape to creatures that are as familiar as they are strange.
These ten artists make up ten perspectives that speak to the last decade of the museum’s history. Its interest in contemporary art has resulted in many stand-out shows with Indian artists such as Sudarshan Shetty, Atul Dodiya, Nalini Malani, Thukral and Tagra and many more. Here’s wishing the BDL museum another decade of glorious, large scale exhibits that form new and interesting perspectives from our histories.
Asymmetrical Objects is open to the public till March 27, 2018
