Panda explores what lies beyond the realms of predictable vision and other usual sensory encounters. He enters conversations around the natural–unnatural spaces that humanity creates to maintain all living creatures alongside reflections on urban constructions derived from belief, culture and form. Panda’s deconstructive approach to one of the tenets of Hinduism sets up a fragmentary lens through which to explore a cosmic understanding of the every day, particularly the contradictions between infinite, meditative consciousness (prakriti) and manifested changes (vikriti). He likes to play with a kind of tactility in his works to home in on the disjuncture that exists in our contemporary understanding of nature, with a desire to activate ruptures. Such an artistic philosophy unlocks unseen worlds within the throes of what lies beyond the tangible world. He explores the boundlessness and qualities of belief that structure the omniscient as both a power and principle, which he then relates back to himself and the perceived world through reasoning and reflection, offering to the viewer an understanding of the infinite as a tactile concept.
With 26 works across scales and intent on view, Panda's presentation is an amalgamation of materiality and techniques that expound on diverse subjective areas, including philosophical purviews, architectural detailing, perceptive impressions of his natural surroundings as well as personal memories – all enmeshed in the grand expression of a cosmos.
The exhibition is accompanied by a literary note written by the curator, writer and film-maker Premjish Achari. To quote from Achari’s essay: “His [Panda’s] works are a defiant challenge to the very boundaries of reality, pushing us beyond our preconceived limits…stirring up profound depths within our consciousness…Here, the universe is not a far-reaching theory, but a living sensation that envelops us. It is not simply made up of planets and stars, but of intricate components – fabric, salvaged items, pieces of text – an intricate mosaic of myths, shapes, and the quintessential human spirit.”
In Echoes of Unfathomed Worlds, Panda translates such inspiration into a fantastical diptych, processed photographs of bodies in motion, and a collision of hues that challenge staunch theories of colour and symmetry. His canvases elaborate on his engagement with structures and forms, merging and distorting the visual world into the simultaneous unfolding of several realities. His sculptures are built from collage-making, paper-mâché, rice paper, rice weed, fabric, auto paint, plywood and found objects – including plastic toys and Lego from his son’s childhood, and cut-outs from almanacs and a how-to gardening book – blending the boundaries among artistic mediums, and those between art and craft as well. Panda’s photographs capture a group of Odissi dance performers being trained under their master; as a witness to their various movements and postures, he catches them in their most attentive state further treating their freeze-frames with details of wood, auto paint, wallpaper, fabric and pigments.
An e-catalogue with more information on the exhibition, artworks and artist is available on request. For general inquiries, please write to art@vadehraart.com. Please do extend proper credits and citations to the gallery when making use of any literature shared by us.
