Invited Expert : Dr. Kanika Gupta

Part of the Walkthroughs Series

About the walkthrough series

A series of special walkthroughs will be facilitated by curators from the museum and experts from diverse backgrounds such as literature, history, art, architecture, and more. These walkthroughs will serve as a guide to familiarise people with the exhibition and its curatorial vision while also enabling new insights into the interpretation of works. They are designed for those who wish to delve deeper into the artist’s practice, explore beyond known narratives, and uncover the unsaid and unknown. Each expert will contribute their unique perspectives, resulting in a different theme each time.

Themes and motifs in Gulammohammed Sheikh’s works

Walkthrough led by Dr. Kanika Gupta

This walkthrough traces a trajectory of themes and motifs that recur in the artist’s works. These range from everyday motifs to mythological characters, folklore, and specific references to artworks or stories and the articulation of spaces. We witness a modern and Indianized global visual vocabulary emerge from the hands of an artist who goes on to influence generations after him. In this artist’s hands, these themes and motifs transcend time and space and take us through a philosophical journey set in the sentimental monotony of the familiar everyday Indian life.

About Kanika Gupta

Kanika Gupta (b. 1987, New Delhi) is an art historian, author, a trained dancer and a filmmaker. She did a Master’s in art history from the Faculty of Fine Arts, Maharaja Sayajirao University, Baroda, Gujarat and PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi on the ancient Indian motif of 'female and tree'.

Gupta has published two books: "Lupadakhe – Unknown Master Sculptors of Ancient India" in 2019 and "The Cursed Land of Lustful Women and the Power of Storytelling" in 2023. She has also authored numerous research papers that delve into ancient Indian sculpture, aesthetics, painting, and mythology. She has a keen interest in textiles and craft traditions, which she has been documenting for over a decade.