Aem Contemporary Presents Between Yesterday and Tomorrow Exhibition Curated by Vandita Misra

adminJanuary 23, 2025

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Between Yesterday and Tomorrow, explores the intersections between memory, identity and sustenance. Bringing together diverse practices and evolving trajectories of modern and contemporary Indian art. The exhibition gains further depth and resonance by seamlessly interweaving masters-Akbar Padamsee, Jamini Roy, Maqbool Fida Husain, Ram Kumar and Sayed Haider Raza; and contemporary artists-K. R Nariman, Neeraj Singh Khandka, Priyanka Waghela, Rohan & Roshan Anvekar, Rahul Mitra and Sonali Laha, further bridging the gap between past, present and future. This exhibition reflects on past through memories-personal and collective, putting the viewers in the centre of the exhibition as the artists engage with them about identity, vulnerability and resilience.

Artists to attend the exhibition: Akbar Padamsee, Jamini Roy, Maqbool Fida Husain, Ram Kumar, Sayed Haider Raza, K. R Nariman, Neeraj Singh Khandka, Priyanka Waghela, Rahul Mitra, Rohan & Roshan Anvekar, Sonali Laha.

“Art is a repository of memory, where personal and collective experiences intertwine, creating a dialogue that is at once reflective and transformative.” – Apinan Poshyanda, Modernity and Beyond: Themes in Southeast Asian Art.

Invite for the exhibition

Akbar Padamsee’s meditative landscapes evoke a timeless stillness, inviting introspection into the passage of time and memory. M.F. Husain’s vibrant explorations of cultural narratives and human emotions interweave the personal and the universal, offering a bridge to collective heritage. Ram Kumar’s abstracted, melancholic landscapes speak to a quiet vulnerability and resilience, reflecting the inner and outer worlds in flux. S.H. Raza’s iconic Bindu and his explorations of form and color anchor the exhibition in a spiritual inquiry that transcends temporal boundaries.

K. R. Nariman’s sculptural explorations highlight the fragile symbiosis between humanity and the environment, reminding us of our shared responsibility to preserve ecological memory. Neeraj Singh Khandka’s meditative compositions capture the dynamic interplay of urban existence and environmental fragility, presenting layered narratives that oscillate between chaos and introspection. Rahul Mitra’s practice, steeped in textual and visual interplay, interrogates the temporal shifts in societal structures and global concerns, creating a bridge between past struggles and future possibilities. The collaborative works of Rohan & Roshan Anvekar offer a multidimensional dialogue that connects the personal with the universal, questioning the permanence of identity in an ever-changing world. Sonali Laha’s deeply introspective works explore the layered and transient nature of human existence, seamlessly blending traditional Indian aesthetics with contemporary sensibilities, encouraging viewers to reflect on their own narratives within the continuum of time.

As Susan Stewart writes in On Longing, “Objects mediate experience-they carry the weight of memory and emotion, connecting us to the past while urging us to consider the present.”, the self reflective, meditative and autobiographical works merge the internal world of thoughts, emotions and spirituality with the narratives presented. Further blurring the line between the artist and the observer. Looking forward, Between Yesterday and Tomorrow also talks about the future through sustenance, nurturing and preserving, be it nature, the cultural heritage or the human spirit.