Art and the body

Sunaina Bhalla

From textiles and Japanese Nihonga paintings to sculptures and fibreglass, contemporary artist Sunaina Bhalla has tried it all. "My textile background has come full circle," she says in a telephonic interview with mid-day. In 2015, Bhalla was diagnosed with breast cancer and was told that she couldn't use paints since they contained chemicals. As a result, the Singapore-based artist switched to textiles and worked with techniques like block printing and embroidery. Body Terrains, Bhalla's ongoing show supported by Nine Fish Gallery and Dot Line Space is a collaborative exhibition between Tapan Mittal-Deshpande, founder of Mumbai-based Thotpot, a not-for-profit organisation working with communities and the arts, and UK-based curator Uthra Rajgopal.

Sunaina Bhalla worked with handmade paper and suture thread embroidery for the exhibition

Through this exhibition and an accompanying series of talks and workshops, Bhalla, Deshpande and Rajgopal will be spreading awareness about breast cancer, for the next three years. Their chosen medium for this is embroidery because, "stitching is very cathartic. It's about mending and we want to reach out to the masses, especially women, who aren't self aware about the importance of cancer prevention," says Bhalla. "I am talking about medical detritus through my experiences and I am using my own embroidery and block print as a medium because it has seeped into our [Indian] tradition." She explains that she has used suture thread, which doctors use in surgery to mend open skin and wounds. Bhalla's works also use blood test strips, which she has been collecting since the time her daughter was diagnosed with diabetes five years ago and has embroidered those into her artworks.

For one of her tapestries, Bhalla used block printing and embroidery on gauge bandages

Besides these materials, she incorporates herbs and spices such as cardamom, cinnamon and mustard seeds while creating block motifs for block printing, insisting that their traditional value is something to hold on to. Moreover, she takes inspiration from Ayurveda. "I used these mediums because they are more palatable and comfortable to look at as art is something which is universal and non-threatening," she says.

Body Terrains consists of 10 lightbox pieces, a series of 12 self-portraits, three tapestries and one installation. Her lightbox series involves two layers; the first is a pen on paper followed by a second layer of organza fabric which has embroidery with suture threads. "The idea behind these lightboxes is to talk about resilience, hope, trying to transcend the limits of the body and accepting it, and being positive about moving forward," she explains. Her self-portraits are a series of embroidery and block printed works on paper, while for one of her tapestries, she has done embroidery and block printing on gauge bandages. "I don't plan out the artwork; they are works in progress," she says. Her exhibition also has nine pieces of quilts which are embroidered by women artists employed by Thotpot. "We hope to empower these women to do more of what they think rather than what is traditionally done, and to help them consider how they can change their motifs and skills into something more meaningful."

WHAT: Body Terrains
WHERE: Nine Fish Art Gallery, Byculla
WHEN: Till January 22, 10.30 AM to 7.30 PM