Sudarshan Shetty
The artist
Born in 1961 in Mangalore, India, Sudarshan Shetty lives and works in Mumbai. Shetty initially trained as a painter, later turning to sculpture and installations which now account for all of his output. A conceptual artist, he is renowned for his enigmatic and often mechanised sculptural installations. His hybrid constructions question the fusion of Indian and Western traditions as well as exploring domestic concerns and the notion of movement.
Exhibitions
-
Mimic Momento
June 4 - July 24, 2015
Brussels -
Between the teacup…
May 21 > July 23, 2011
Paris - Impasse Beaubourg -
Sudarshan Shetty
September 5 - October 24, 2009
Paris - Impasse Beaubourg
Biography
Born in 1961 in Mangalore, Karnataka, India
Lives and works in Mumbai, India
EDUCATION
1980
BFA in Painting at Sir J. J. School of Art, Mumbai, India
SOLO EXHIBITIONS (SELECTION)
2018
A Song A Story & The Empty Vessel, Leila Heller Gallery, Dubai, United Arab United
Shoonya Ghar – Empty is this house, Unlimited, Art Basel, Basel, Switzerland
Galerie Krinzinger, Vienna, Austria
2017
Sudarshan Shetty – The Cave Inside, Galerie Krinzinger, Viena, Austria
Shoonya Ghar, Al Serkal, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Shoonya Ghar, Dr. Bhau Daji Lad, Mumbai City Museum, Mumbai, India
2016
Shoonya Ghar, National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, India
Curateur de la Biennale de Kochi-Muziris, Kochi, India
A Song A Story, Rolls-Royce Art Programme, Maker Maxity, Mumbai, India
2015
Mimic Momento, Galerie Daniel Templon, Brussels, Belgium
2014
Every broken moment, piece by piece, GALLERYSKE, New Delhi, India
2012
The pieces earth took away, Galerie Krinzinger, Vienna, Austria
Indian Highway, Ullens Center, Beijing, China
2011
Between the tea cup and a sinking constellation, Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris, France
Listen outside this house, GALLERYSKE, Bangalore, India
2010
This is too shall pass, Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, Mumbai, India
The more I die the lighter I get, Tilton Gallery, New York, USA
2009
Sudarshan Shetty, Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris, France
Six Drops, GALLERYSKE, Bangalore, India
2008
Leaving Home, Gallery Krinzinger, Vienna, Austria
Saving Skin, Jack Tilton Gallery, New York, USA
2006
Love, GALLERYSKE and Bodhi Art, Mumbai, India
2005
Eight corners of the world, GALLERYSKE, Bangalore, India
Shift, a collaborative architectural installation with Shantanu Poredi and Manisha Agarwal, Philips
Contemporary, Mumbai, India
Party is else where, Jamaat Art Gallery, Mumbai, India
2004
Statics, Chemould Gallery, Mumbai, India
2003
Consanguinity, Nature Morte, Bose Pascia Modern at the Habitat Visual Arts Centre, New Delhi, India
2001
For Here or To Go, Installation at the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Japan
1996
Paintings, Max Muller Bhavan, Mumbai, India
1995
Paper Moon, Pundole Art Gallery and Framji Cawasjee Hall, Mumbai and Ravindra Bhavan, New Delhi, India
1991
A part of Spirit of India Celebration in The Netherlands, Holland Art Gallery, Rotterdam, Galerie Drie, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
GROUP EXHIBITIONS (SELECTION)
2019
Glasstress 2019, 6ème édition, curatée par Vik Muniz et Koen Vanmechelen, Fondazione Berengo Art Space, Venice, Italy2019
As far as the forest is, KEWENIG Palma, Palma de Mallorca, Spain
2018
Delirium//Equilibrium, Kiran Nadar Museum of Art – KNMA, New Delhi, India
as we become, Exhibit 320, New Delhi, India
In Tribute to Jack Tilton: A Selection from 35 Years, Tilton Gallery, New York City, NY, USA
2017
India Re-Worlded: Seventy Years of Investigating a Nation, Gallery Odyssey, Mumbai, India
Visions From India, Pizzuti Collection, USA
2016
Biennale of Sydney, Australia
2015
Construct Constructions, curated by Roobina Karode, Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, New Delhi, India
2014
Rebirth of Detail, Sunaparanta Goa Center for The Arts, Goa, India
The Missing Pavilion, curated by Gayatri Sinha, School of Arts and Aesthetics, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
2013
Art Walk: Water, curated by Gayatri Sinha, Europalia, Liege, Belgium
2012
Kochi Muziris Biennale, curated by Bose Krishnamachari and Riyaz Komu, Kochi, India
Critical Mass, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv, Israel
Indian Highway, Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China
2011
Homespun, curated by Girish Shahane, Devi Art Foundation, Delhi NCR, India
The Matters Within: New Contemporary Art of India, curated by Betti-Sue Hertz, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Fransico, USA
Sympathy for the Devil, curated by Walter Vanhaerents and Pierre-Olivier Rollin, Vanhaerents Art Collection, Brussels, Belgium
Prague Biennale, Czech Republic
India Inclusive, World Economic Forum in Davos, India
Against All Odds, curated by Arshiya Lokhandwala, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, India
Indian Highway IV, Musée d’Art contemporain de Lyon, Lyon, France
Paris, Delhi, Bombay, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France
2010
Contemplating the Void, curated by Nancy Spector, Solomon R, Guggenheim Museum, New York, USA
Indian Highway, Herning Museum of Contemporary Art, Denmark
Looking Glass – The existence of difference, curated by Gayatri Sinha, Religare, New Delhi
2009
Vancouver Biennale, Vancouver, Canada
India: New Giants, Gem Museum for Contemporary Art, The Hague, The Netherlands
India Contemporary, Gem Museum for Contemporary Art, The Hague, The Netherlands
For Life: The Language of Communication, Tilton Gallery, New York, USA
Indian Highway, Astrup Fearnley Museum of Modern Art, Oslo, Norway
2008
Dark Materials, curated by David Thorpe, GSK Contemporary Royal Academy of Art, London, UK
The Destruction Party, The Royal Monceau Hotel, Paris, France
Ten Light-Years, Kashi Art Gallery, Kochi, India
Affair, 1 x 1 Gallery, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
2007
India 20, at Rabindra Bhavan, Lalit Kala Academy, Delhi, India
Unholy Truths, Initial Access, Frank Cohen Collection, Wolverhampton, UK
Pink, Gallerie Mirchandani and Steinreucke, Bombay, India
2006
With Love, curated by GALLERYSKE and Tilton Gallery, at Miami Design District, USA
2005
Shift, a collaborative architectural installation with Shantanu Poredi and Manisha Agarwal, Philips
Contemporary, Mumbai, India
Bombay Boys, Palette Art Gallery New Delhi, India
Configurations, Anant Art Gallery New Delhi, India
Group Show curated by Soumitro Ghosh, GALLERYSKE, Bangalore, India
Endless Terrain, New Delhi, India
2004
Bombay X 17, Kashi Art Gallery, Kochi, India
2003
Zoom, Contemporary art from India at Culturgest, Lisbon, Portugal
Highlights, Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai, India
2001
Installation at the Apparao Gallery, New Delhi, India
Excerpts from the Bestsellers, Installation, David Sassoon Library, Mumbai, India
Century Cites, curated by Gita Kapoor Tate Modern, London, UK
2000
Lone boat river song, interactive mechanical installation, Spike Island, Bristol, UK
Making Circles, Installation, National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai, India
Bollywood- passenger terminal, Foundation for Indian Artists, Amsterdam, Kwangju Biennale, South Korea
1999
Sothebys Prize Exhibition, Jehangir Nicholson Gallery, Mumbai, India
Private Mythologies, Contemporary Art from India, The Japan Foundation, Tokyo, Japan
A Brisk Walk Makes You Feel Good, a collaborative photo installation with Vinay Mahidhar and Sunitha Kumar, Sakshi Art Gallery, Mumbai, India
Completed commissioned public sculpture in Fukuoka, Japan, a part of Hakata Reverain Art Project, Fine Arts Company, Mumbai, India
Embarkations, curated by Yashodhara Dalmia, Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai, India
1998
Represented India at the Art in the World, Palace de Retz, Paris, France
Colours of Independence – CIMA, Kolkata and National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, India
Tryst with Destiny, Contemporary Indian Art, Singapore Art Museum, Singapore
Inaugural Exhibition, Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai, India
Presences of the Past, Jehangir Nicholson Gallery, Mumbai, India
Nature Morte, Joint exhibition with Leslie Dill, New Delhi, India
1997
Shilpayan, 100 years of sculpture in India, National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, India
1996
165 Inches in Time, an installation at the Marischal College, Aberdeen, Scotland
Private Languages, Pundole Art Gallery, Mumbai, India
1995
Sculpture 95, curated by Madan Lal Gallerie Espace and Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi, India
1994
Installation with Morzottos Fashion show at Bhuli Bhatiyari, New Delhi, India
1991
Commissioned installation project, based on Indian Circus at Hotel Imperial, New Delhi, India
1990
Kanoria Centre for the Arts Exhibition, Mumbai, India
1988
Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, Ahmedabad, India
1987
Kala Yatra, Bangalore, India
1984
Lalit Kala Akademi Exhibition, New Delhi, India
1983
Monsoon Art Show, Jehangir Art gallery, Mumbai, India
1982
Bombay Art Society Exhibition, Mumbai, India
COLLECTIONS
Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, France
The Pizzuti Art Collection, Columbus, Ohio, USA
National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, India
Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, New Delhi, India
Devi Art Foundation (Anupam Poddar), Gurugram, India
Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, Fukuoka, Japan
Tiroche DeLeon Collection, Tel Aviv, Israel
Vanhaerents Art Collection, Brussels, Belgium
SPECIAL PROJECTS
2016
Curator of the 3rth Kochi Biennal, Kochi, India
2007
New installation by Indian Artists, The Mattress Factory, Pittsburgh, USA
1999
Charles Wallace India Award to work at the Art Space in Bristol, UK
1997
Sanskriti Award, New Delhi, India
1996
Worked at the Scottish Sculpture Workshop under Mobil Visual Arts project
1993
Artist in residence- Sanskriti Kendra, New Delhi, India
Press
Daily Sabah.com - octobre 2019
Sudarshan Shetty : Indian artist scrutinizes phases of self-transformation
Architectural Digest.in - novembre 2017
Sudarshan Shetty's Shoonya Ghar is an architectural allgory of stories
Uma Nair
Harper's Bazaar Arabia - février 2017
In conversation with Sudarshan Shetty
La Libre Belgique - juillet 2015
Les objets métaphoriques de Shetty
News
Jitish Kallat
Iván Navarro
Sudarshan Shetty
Kehinde Wiley
GROUP SHOW – AU BOUT DE MES RÊVES
Tripostal, Lilles
Until January 14, 2024
On the occasion of the group exhibition Au bout de mes rêves, Jitish Kallat, Iván Navarro, Surdashan Shetty and Kehinde Wiley are exhibiting their works at the Tripostal in Lille. The exhibition, organised by the Vanhaerents family, well known Belgian collectors, is a powerful statement on current social issues.
Sudarshan Shetty
SOLO SHOW – ONLY LIFE, MYRIAD PLACES
Ishara Art Foundation, Dubai
Through 9 December 2023
Surdashan Shetty’s solo exhibition Only Life, Myriad Places at Ishara Art Foundation in Dubai is on view until December 9, 2023.
Sudarshan Shetty
LOOK OUTSIDE THIS HOUSE – GROUP SHOW
OLD GMC, PANJIM, INDIA From 15 to 22 December 2019
Sudarshan Shetty will be the curator of the Visual Arts exhibition at Serendipity Arts Festival (SAF), one of the largest multi-disciplinary arts initiatives in the South Asian region.
His project Look Outside This House aims to present indigenous inventions and informal industries that have origins in catering to real life circumstantial needs with lasting social impact on communities at large. The exhibition will highlight the need to support and nurture various indigenous approaches for the production of knowledge that sit outside the framework of mainstream institutions.
Prune Nourry
Jan Fabre
Sudarshan Shetty
GLASSTRESS – GROUP SHOW
FONDAZIONE BERENGO, VENICE, ITALYFrom 9/05/2019 to 24/11/2019
On the occasion of the 58th Biennale di Venezia, Jan Fabre, Prune Nourry, Sundarshan Shetty is participating in Glasstress 2019, show curated by Vik Muniz and Koen Vanmechelen. The sixth edition of Glasstress brings together a new lineup of leading contemporary artists from Europe, the United States, Latin America, India, and China in an ambitious exhibition exploring the endless creative possibilities of glass. Glasstress is a project by Adriano Berengo dedicated to supporting his mission of marrying contemporary art and glass. Since its debut in 2009 as a collateral event of the Venice Biennale, Glasstress has revived the traditional craft of Murano glassblowing by forging new alliances with internationally renowned artists and designers and has since become an unparalleled platform showcasing ground-breaking new works in glass.
Sudarshan Shetty
SHOONYA GHAR – SOLO SHOW
DR. BHAU DAJI LAD MUMBAI CITY MUSEUM, MUMBAI, INDIAFrom 07/11/2017 to 26/12/2017
‘Shoonya Ghar’ will be on display for the first time in Mumbai. Who is asleep and who is awake in this city, this home, this settlement, and this fortress of nothingness? Sudarshan’s exhibition ‘Shoonya Ghar’ is titled after a poetic work by 12th century poet Gorakhnath who also influenced his celebrated successor Kabir. The exhibition features a large scale multimedia installation piece that draws on sculpture, found objects and film. The sculptural piece in the outdoor plaza is constructed like an architectural set, while the film involves building and construction of the set alongside characters enacting scenes in which dramatic action mobilizes conventions of representing birth, death, dance, play and violence in local traditions of story-telling. Thus the set becomes the mise-en-scene for viewing the film. The film reflects on the construction of the set or the stage, musical score and performance, and the viewer is offered these components in various states of construction and has the opportunity to put these modular pieces together in constructing a narrative that may draw upon their experience, imagination and history.
Sudarshan Shetty
Chiharu Shiota
20TH BIENNALE OF SYDNEY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIAFrom 03/18/2016 to 06/05/2016
Titled ‘The future is already here – it’s just not evenly distributed’, the 20th Biennale will be gathering 83 artists from 35 countries, presented across 19 locations including the city’s major art institutions and Cockatoo Island in Sydney Harbour.
More than 200 works spanning all mediums – with a focus on performance – will be presented free of charge to the public.
The 20th Biennale is curated by Stephanie Rosenthal, associated with an advisory group of 13 international curators, writers and theorists.
Sudarshan Shetty
SHOONYA GAR
NATIONAL GALLERY OF MODERN ART, NEW DELHIFrom 01/15/2016
Sudarshan Shetty (b. 1961) is a leading contemporary artist living in Bombay. His practice encompasses painting, drawing, installation, video/film and sculpture. He has exhibited widely both in India and internationally. He has been appointed artistic director and curator of the third edition of the Kochi Muziris Biennale. The artist lives and works in Mumbai. The exhibition comprises an entirely new body of work in various media: video/film, sculptural installation and photographic images. The work draws on a poetic work by 12th century poet Gorakhnath. These poetic traditions populated their verses with the concrete symbolism of the built world and things within it, with references to nature and the environment as metaphors for the body and its beyond.
Sudarshan Shetty
APPOINTED ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AND CURATOR OF THE 2016 KOCHI-MUZIRIS BIENNALE
KOCHI, KERALA, INDIAFrom 12/01/2015
The Kochi Biennale Foundation announced Sudarshan Shetty as the artistic director and curator of the third edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale. Shetty, best known for his enigmatic sculptural installations, has long been recognized as one of his generation’s most innovative artists in India. The artist declared he was happy to work towards the vision of a “People’s Biennale”. The first two editions of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, held in 2012 and 2014, had a combined draw of nearly a million visitors. The biennale as a contemporary art project has renewed India’s cultural positioning and has placed Kochi and Kerala on the global cultural map.
