Vogue India June 2019

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112 VOGUE INDIA JUNE  http://www.vogue.in

COURTESY

MRINALINI

MUKHERJEE;

MMF;

RANDHIR

SINGH

IrememberthefirsttimeIcameacross

MrinaliniMukherjee’sart—it was the

early 2000s at a private collector’s

home and a sculpturetitledAdiPushp

II(1998-99).Theboldevocationofsex-

uality, the exceptionalhandlingof fi-

bre, and the deft deployment of col-

our...itwas a revelation.I was a PhD

studentwhen I met her for the first

time in 2014. The followingyear we

had planned to spend more time to-

gether in Delhi after her retrospective

at the NGMA, but sadly she passed

away a week after the opening.I never

imaginedthen,thatonedayIwouldbe

curatingher first international retro-

spectiveandalsoeditingthemostcom-

prehensive monograph on her prodi-

gious practice.

In April 2016, I joined the Metropoli-

tan Museum of Art as its fi rst incum-

bent curatorfor Modernand Con-

temporary art from South Asia

and almostimmediately proposed

Mukherjee’sshow. The Museum’s

Modern and Contemporary de-

partmentunder the leadershipof

SheenaWagstaffhasbeencommit-

ted to reconsidering received art

history.The Met Breuerwas inau-

guratedwith a solo show of Nas-

reen Mohamedi,and this set the

paceandspiritfortheprogramme.

I felt that Mukherjeewould be the

right artist to follow Mohamedi,as

they occupy the furthestends of

the artisticspectrumin their visu-

al idiom. Recently,while research-

ing on the exhibit, I learnt from

artist Nilima Sheikh that Mukherjee

initially lived in the same Delhi barsati

that had once been Mohamedi’s resi-

dence—a fortuitous connection be-

tween the two artists who will now

both have had retrospective shows

at the Met. >

MrinaliniMukherjee’s upcomingretrospectiveat theMetis a chronological

presentationofthismastersculptor’sradicalvisionofknottedhemp and twisted

bronze.CuratorShanayJhaveritakesyouinsidethissummer’smost anticipated exhibit

SCULPTED BEST

ART

Adi Pushp II

(1998-99)

Black Devi

(1980)

Mrinalini

Mukherjee

(1949-2015)