The changing economic, social and cultural realities in India in the last two decades caused a huge cultural shift;where the industry culture dominated our society and psyche. This seismic repositioning is strongly reflected in our visual field too. Disparities of local/national and international spawned expanded implication, the variety of responses to these developments from artists within India are so complex as to defy any facile categorization. Various mediums and contexts reflect in the artists’ works.

This present show ‘Entities Define Us’ showcases two promising sculptors from India. The show tries to focus on how the industrial object reflects the artists’ mind and how they depict their thoughts. Arjun Das and Kaushik Halder both chose their subject on the basis of industrial objects. But their way of perception and the use of the material is completely different. 

Arjun Das hails from a rural background. At the age of eleven, he migrated from his village to Kolkata. For survival, he worked in a roadside Dhaba. He completed Bachelor's and Masters’ degree in the sculpture department from Rabindra Bharati University while doing his day job. From that period, he was fascinated by the objects which were used in Dhaba and especially the space arrangement. For him it was a reality of his daily life and he was closely associated with the objects and space which he dealt with every day. Those objects are industrial objects and visually very unworldly. He can relate to those objects with his reality. So, for him, the objects are the identity of a community. 

In sculpture, the material is equally important for the context. Arjun always depicts his particular subject in a conventional medium like wood, both in two-dimensional and three-dimensional forms with integrated details. Because wood is visually and physically a hard material and the artist used it to justify the hard reality of the Dhaba culture. In this age of technological advancements and rampant consumerism, when choices are endless, Arjun tries to depict the industrial object from his own-rooted vision. 

Kaushik Halder is the other participating artist of this curated show. Kaushik completed his Bachelor's degree from Rabindra Bharati University and his Master's from Kala Bhavana, VisvaBharati University in sculpture. During his Kala Bhavana days, Kaushik experimented with different mediums and continues searching for a unique style. Finally, he chose to explore the unconventional sculptural material papier-mâché as his medium and his thought process focused on objects in three-dimensional forms. The reason behind choosing the papier-mâchéis to recontextualize the visual appeal of the object. He chose to use objects that are mundane, generic and result of mass production but he found a different visual application for them that enlarges the form. In his work we can also see the metamorphic characteristics but with the playfulness of the object. The psychology behind this metamorphic form is a commentary on how industry dominated our natural things.Simultaneously the artist admits to the positive side and our undeniable dependency on industry.

Here, in this show, these two kindred spirits, through their artworks and drawings bring 'recontextualization', 'memory and time' and 'personal space'as their thematic practice. The accomplishments are unmistakable, with further promises shining on the horizon.