Talking about her latest exhibition titled Umbartha, artist Monali Meher says: “Umbartha is a Marathi word for doorstep or threshold. That architectural block in our house is important as one has to cross it in more than a literal sense.” Meher’s exhibition is a compilation of her immersive installations and performances — each carrying the essence of home, crossovers, change, time, transformation, and transitions. The exhibition will be on view at the VHC Contemporary Art Gallery in Pune’s Koregaon Park till March 5.
“I was born in the city of Pune and this is my first exhibition in the city. In some ways, it is like a homecoming for me to be able to present my work in this exhibition,” she adds.
A Sir JJ School of Arts alumna, Meher has always been curious about finding out how different materials react and work alongside one another. “My work has an ephemeral aspect… Much of my work is autobiographical and based on my experiences in the places I have been to and change and transformation are very much part of my work,” she says.
The exhibition encompasses two decades of Meher’s works — wrapped objects, residual performances, autobiographical diagrams, and photographs including her earlier immersive piece like Old Fashioned to her recent installation Tracing the Thread.
“Old Fashioned was performed for the first time in 2003 in Amsterdam and Holland. The installation has potatoes with negative words written on them like racism, war, violence, anger, and hate, in different languages. It started off as a small installation where the potatoes are then peeled, cooked, and eaten and the piece has grown since then. The performance sees involvement and participation from people of all strata and symbolises eating away old-fashioned thoughts and ideas in society. It is one of my most impactful works,” says Meher.
Referring to the film Umbartha starring Smita Patel, where the protagonist stands up for her own identity, and her profession, Meher says: “While I had a lot of freedom to pursue a career in art, back then it was a pickle for women to pursue a career. It was essential to move away from my comfort and live in a new place among different artists and I had to cross that threshold in life. Change is extremely important and it happens every day which brings about transformations. For instance, the change brought in by the pandemic transformed our lives completely in all aspects.”