Entangled Ecologies Grant - Shared Ecologies and Science Gallery Bengaluru- First outcome April 2026. Very happy to see this!
/article/cities/bangalore/bengaluru-exhibit-walk-into-fragmented-forest-turns-ecology-data-into-art-10655104/?utm_term=Autofeed&utm_medium=echobox&utm_channel=echoboxfb&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwY2xjawRhKLxleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFKTVRoczBtMTZPM0c1NUVhc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHu2xKLLVLUK4Tb2jqmRN925uBGhqmveJwKi6DwdLtR1kEH1C5bUjftjpVE4K_aem_P8EVrlS5McQTc0kxgoECJA#Echobox=1777101705
@highlight
On the occasion of World Earth Day, let’s take a look at artists whose work captures the diverse narratives that centre the earth.
Nothing embodies resilience the way Mother Earth does; while abundant by instinct, she retorts to degradation and depletion, correcting any damage made to her being, and in this way, maintaining ecological balance.
What better way to appreciate the marvel of Mother Earth than to celebrate the unconventional artists who capture her this completely, and with such poignancy?
Swipe to discover how each one of the artists discussed in this post, interprets and portrays Mother Earth in a manner that reflects their artistic genius, which by the way, is more than just creating art!
Ankon Mitra is an architect, sculptor, and installation artist, who is recognized for his origami-inspired creations. Some of his most notable exhibitions take on earth as the central theme.
Ravi Agarwal is an interdisciplinary photojournalist, artist, writer, and curator dedicated to capturing the many facets of the earth.
His works are known for encapsulating the various nuances of earth such as abundance and depletion.
Ajit Kumar Das is a one-of-a-kind textile artist who creates for the Earth, by the Earth. Painting with dyes derived from the Earth, Das was intrigued by natural dyes since an early age owing to his upbringing in a washerman’s household.
With nature as a crucial theme in his art, Das finds his inspiration in the flora and fauna around him. He is surrounded by abundant resources that enable him to create ample natural dyes.
#worldearthday #indianfineart #artinstallations #foryou #explore
Reflecting on Historia Denaturalis 🌿🏛️
The doors have closed, but the dialogue continues. We’re diving into Dr. Rahul Dev’s critique of Ravi Agarwal’s ‘Historia Denaturalis,’ which beautifully unpacks the layers of this ambitious showcase.
Beyond the Natural History
Curated by Damian Christinger, the exhibition served as a “counter-archive” to Pliny the Elder’s Historia Naturalis. While Enlightenment systems (like those of Carl Linnaeus) sought to classify and dominate the natural world, Agarwal’s work asks: What has been lost in the process?
From the dehumanization of labour to the “zoo-fication” of wildlife, Agarwal explores the “denaturalized” history of our planet. Dr. Dev highlights how the artist moves between:
🌱 The Global & Local: Connecting the flow of global capitalism to the lived experiences of the Bishnoi community in Rajasthan.
🌱 The Research-Driven: Utilizing interviews with museum curators and studies on the Indus river dolphins to bridge the gap between science and art.
🌱 The Political & Personal: His triptych “I am leather—I am cotton (2024)” confronts the heavy intersections of caste, race, and Dalit Ecologies, drawing on the powerful literary work of Om Prakash Valmiki.
The Lingering Question
As we look back at installations like “Do I See You? How Do You See Me?”, we are forced to confront our own gaze. Do we see the “real” animal, or only the artificial specimens left behind by an industrialized world?
Agarwal’s practice remains a vital, political call for a cultural shift, one that rejects the separation of human and nature.
📖 Read the full critique by Dr. Rahul Dev via the link in our bio.
“The colonisation of nature is not just the history of colonisation… it exists in pre-colonial society, as well. I’ve seen it across landscapes across the world. Nature has been colonised and continues to be colonised. And my fear is that we will not be able to solve the ecological crisis unless we unpack this.”
~ Ravi Agarwal
Last weekend at Gallery Espace, artist Ravi Agarwal joined curator and art writer Premjish Achari for an in-depth conversation on the ideas shaping his ongoing solo exhibition, Historia Denaturalis.
The wide-ranging discussion explored the exhibition’s title, a conceptual play on Naturalis Historia by Pliny the Elder, and Agarwal’s long-standing interest in how natural history museums have historically constructed our understanding of ‘nature.’
Reflecting on his research-driven practice, Ravi also spoke about global water systems, referencing his 2006 photo-performance work ‘Immersion.Emergence,’ alongside the cultural histories of glaciers and the complex intersections of genetics, geology and politics that shape the evolution of the Ganges and Indus river dolphin species. The conversation further touched upon the colonial histories of plants such as cocoa extracted in the 18th century by European imperial powers and transplanted across continents into new ecological and economic contexts.
The lively session drew an engaged audience who questioned Agarwal on the intersections of art, ecology and activism, and how these strands converge within his broader practice.
If you were unable to attend and would like to listen to the talk, drop a comment below or send us a dm and we’d be happy to share the link with you.
Historia Denaturalis remains on view at the gallery until March 10th. We encourage you to visit the exhibition before it closes.
Three voices and one unforgettable conversation.
Gallery ONKAF cordially invites you to an evening of reflections with Inder Salim along with author and Associate Professor (SAA-JNU) Dr. Kaushik Bhaumik, well-known artist and environmentalist Ravi Agarwal. Join this free-wheeling conversation that engages in a dialogue with the exhibition on view 'i belong to the missing side' and attempts to articulate the artist’s journey and their multidisciplinary practice over the past decades. The session also stands as a testament to artistic camaraderie and sharing of creative ethos among each other and with the wider public.
The session will be introduced and moderated by the curator of the show, Neha ‘Zooni’ Tickoo.
The talk is open and free for all. Age restriction 16+.
Monday, 9 March 2026 at 6.30 PM
#conversation #artandideas #dialogue #creativevoices #performances #galleryartist #museums #artisttalk #artisttalks
It was a pleasure to welcome a distinguished group from the San Diego Museum of Art to Ravi Agarwal’s solo exhibition ‘Historia Denaturalis’ at Gallery Espace.
The visit offered an opportunity to engage closely with Agarwal’s exploration of ecology, natural histories, and the shifting relationships between landscape, science, and culture—central themes in his ongoing artistic practice. Encounters such as these create meaningful spaces for dialogue between artists, museums, and audiences across geographies.
We are grateful to the visiting group from the San Diego Museum of Art for spending time with the exhibition and contributing to a thoughtful afternoon of conversation around contemporary art and environmental discourse.
Historia Denaturalis by Ravi Agarwal remains on view at Gallery Espace until March 10th.
Artist Ravi Agarwal on water ecologies and reimagining natural history
/article/news-today/artist-ravi-agarwal-on-water-ecologies-and-reimagining-natural-history-10551373/
Join us for a talk with Ravi Agarwal and Premjish Achari at the “Historia Denaturalis” exhibition.
📅 Date: Saturday, February 28, 2026
☕️ Tea & Refreshments: 4:30 - 5:00 PM
🕔 Talk: 5:00 - 6:00 PM
📍 Location: Gallery
Espace, 16, Community Centre, New Friends Colony, New Delhi 110025
We’ll see you at the gallery. ✨
🖼️ In frame: Installation views of ‘Historia Denaturalis’—A solo by Ravi Agarwal, curated by Damian Christinger.
In this episode, #ThePhotobookPodcast features Ravi Agarwal, an interdisciplinary artist who investigates the relationship shared between humans and the non-human world through photography, video, text and installation. His work ranges from from the long documentary to the conceptual and performative. Author of several photobooks and diaries including The Power Plant – Fragments in Time, In the Shadow of the Vulture and Down & Out, he has exhibited widely at international museums and at the Biennials in Havana, Yinchuan, Kochi, Sharjah and Documenta XI. He is the recipient of the UN-IFCS Award for Chemical Safety and the Ashoka Fellowship for social entrepreneurship.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗛𝗢𝗧𝗢𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞 𝗣𝗢𝗗𝗖𝗔𝗦𝗧 𝗜𝗦 𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗘𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗦𝗟𝗬 𝗦𝗨𝗣𝗣𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗘𝗗 𝗕𝗬 𝗣𝗛𝗢𝗧𝗢 𝗦𝗢𝗨𝗧𝗛 𝗔𝗦𝗜𝗔
@photosouthasia
#raviagarwal #environment #ecologyart #photosouthasia #photographypodcast #contemporaryartindia #galleryespace #photography #interdisciplinary #yamuna #environmentindia #artpodcast #documentaryphotography #activism
