India Art Fair 2024: 10 Must-See Sculptures that Steal the Show

Ready to immerse yourself in the highlights as India Art Fair 2024 takes center stage, boasting an eclectic array of artistic wonders that promise to steal the show. Featuring 108 exhibitors from across India and South Asia, including 72 galleries and art institutions, this 15th edition of the India Art Fair is set to dazzle New Delhi with a celebration of modern and contemporary art.

From February 1 to February 4, Okhla is the place to be. Art lovers are losing track of time exploring the fantastic pieces on display. So, buckle up as we dive into the heart of creativity, unveiling the 10 show-stopping sculptures that are absolute must-sees at India Art Fair 2024!

Bijili Wali

Artist: G Ravinder Reddy

One art piece that garnered prolonged attention was a sculpture titled ‘Bijili Wali’, created by Ravinder Reddy. The sculpture, depicting a woman’s face with a red-colored skin base, intrigued many onlookers. Reddy explained, “During our age, there used to be ‘batti wali’, who would carry the light, for wedding procedures and decorations. But now, in modern days, men and women prefer LED lights, hence the title Bijili Wali.”

Muda Wala Bicycle Throne

Artist: Gunjan Gupta

The New-Delhi based designer Gunjan Gupta brings a playful journey with the Muda Wala Bicycle Throne. This piece explores the conceptual tension between the pedestrian muda and the grandeur of a throne. Crafted from steel, bicycle parts, bamboo, and leatherite, Mudas are used as temporary, portable seating but their inherent beauty is highlighted by placing multiple pieces into a new context.

दीवारों के भी कान होते हैं। (WALLS HAVE EARS TOO)
 

Artist: Sajid Wajid Shaikh

The Hindi idiom, “दीवारों के भी कान होते हैं।” or “Walls have ears too” literal in this kinetic installation of meticulously crafted human ears. Armed with antenna structures, the ears collectively follow us as we move alongside them, evoking the presence of a perpetual vigilante in our midst. A metaphor for the digital age, the work emphasises “the broader social and ethical implications of pervasive surveillance, including its impact on democracy, human rights and trust in institutions,” according to the artist. Look over your shoulder, someone may be listening.

Manka Moli Ganesh Panel

Artist: Ashiesh Shah Atelier

Enter the enchanting world of craft with the Manka Moli Ganesh Panel. "Manka" because it's made out of beads, which are also from the heart. We've been working with Chanapata beads for a couple of years. Now, they are made in a toy-making village outside Bangalore in Karnataka. It's made with Ivory wood and beeswax lacquer. It's very exciting because it's the first time I'm using them to create a textile. Textiles are usually made out of threads or fabric, but this is the first time it's crafted from a different material.

To give it connotation, I've been working with Moli, which I wear on my hand all the time. It's a very religious thing. They are tied on the hand during a ritual or a havan, providing protection. It's something that wards off evil and gives you strength, and that's what I wanted to do. I wanted to create this kind of textile out of the Moli, through which the Chanapata beads emerge, forming what almost feels like the shape of a Ganesha," says Shah.

COSMIC EYE

Artist: Shovin Bhattacharjee

A mesmerising sculpture “Cosmic Eye” mesmerizes with stainless steel kinetic art, a journey through unity and diversity in Indian culture. The rotating wheel at its core signifies life’s cyclical nature and perpetual growth, shaping our past, present, and future. Crafted with precision, the reflective surface mirrors viewers, fostering oneness. Illuminated by red lights, it transforms into a celestial marvel at night, adorned with steel balls radiating like a diamond.

It can seem like an eye, the sun, a wheel, a globe, or even the cosmos, depending on where you stand. He is a renowned artist from India, known for his work in painting, sculpture, digital art, new media art, and public art installations. Currently based in New Delhi, he continues to create art that inspires and captivates his audiences.

INpLAY

Artist: Mumbai-based Designer Rooshad Shroff with T. Venkanna's Art

Titled ‘inPlay’, this collaboration aims to blur the lines between art, design and craft by lending tactile forms to Venkanna’s art through chairs, tables, sofas, screens and benches that lend a playfulness to the spaces they occupy. The drawings were born as a spontaneous response to the individual pieces of furniture. The drawings were then translated into marble inlay by master craftsmen from Agra and then carefully inlayed into recycled old Burma teak wood.

Conversation Bench

Artist: Sandeep Khosla and Tania Singh Khosla

Art is better when shared! And where better to talk about art than on this ‘Conversation Bench’ at India Art Fair by Architect Sandeep Khosla and Graphic Designer Tania Singh Khosla. this award-winning Conversation Bench, a limited-edition series that lies at the intersection of design & art, beauty & functionality, the mechanised & the hand-crafted.

The bench explores the dialogue between two materials — concrete and wood and two contrasting aesthetics — the austere and the decorative. The elemental form of the concrete is juxtaposed with a flourish of botanical motifs, hand-crafted in wood by a master- craftsman. 

Silken Passage

Artist: Vikram Goyal

As you step inside Vikram Goyal’s New-Delhi based workshop, his mastery of metal will struck you. Silken Passage—This expansive mural, stretching 28 ft in length and towering at 8 ft, inspired by the legendary Silk Road. Silken Passage, a vast sinuous metallic tapestry of carefully selected designs that lead one from nature’s blooms to crafted vessels, of sculptural forms and topographies. Designer, known for working with the repoussé technique of shaping metals, showcases collectible design brass objects that capture the rich legacy and excellence of Indian crafts, but in contemporary iterations, thereby widening their reach and appeal.

RAAH RAFTAN

Artist: Veer Munshi

Delhi-based artist Veer Munshi is recalling the dying traditions and crafts of his homeland Kashmir through a solo presentation of his recent works titled “Healing Wounds” within the Aicon booth, and at Palette Art Narayan Biswas is paying homage to his father, who was a carpenter, through metal works in architectural designs created with a wooden finish. One notable piece from Munshi's collection is "RAAH RAFTAN," a hand-painted artwork in the Kari-e-kalamkari tradition on resin fiberglass metal, measuring 92 x 76 x 18 inches (233.68 x 193 x 45.72 cm).

Infinity

Artist: Isha Pimpalkhare

Infinity, a 43 X 43 in, 8-panel cotton fabric artwork, captures the joys of being alive. Through delicate installations and textiles, Pimpalkhare explores the innate connection between humanity and nature, highlighting the fundamentals of 'being alive' through biophilia.

Using the textile medium to create delicate and fragile installations she brings this experience to her audience, encouraging a deeper emotional engagement. Pimpalkhare attempts to highlight Biophilia (a love of the living), through breathing, movement, transformation and reciprocity, as some of the fundamentals of ‘being alive’. 

Conclusion

As the curtains fall on India Art Fair 2024, we're left awestruck by the artistic marvels that graced the stage. These sculptures not only stole the show but etched themselves into the memory of art enthusiasts. One visitor said, “Looking at all the beautiful art is like being lost in a really cool dream. Each piece is like a super cool picture that you just want to keep staring at forever.” The people at the event got caught up in lots of different kinds of art, turning the whole thing into a super exciting show at one of the most famous art places in the city.