The Cosmic Battle of Subodh Gupta: Explained Aftermath of Artwork

At Delhi's Nature Morte, Subodh Gupta's solo show Cosmic Battle unfolds like a series of back-and-forth discussions as he depicts the transformation from tradition to modernity. The Dhan Mill Compound is a maze-like collection of a few rooms that highlight the artist's distinctive use of found, everyday objects in mapping the effects of cultural dislocation, pattern paradoxes, and their cosmic inverse—the incomprehensible distance between our finite world and a mysterious cosmos.

Subodh Gupta holds a prominent place on the global art scene thanks to the visual power of his sculptures. Each piece is seen by the artist as a culmination of the histories and encounters he has had while travelling. In three installations and four paintings at Nature Morte, his most recent work even goes so far as to allude to the cosmos, subtle spirituality, and the history of existence. 

Cosmic Battle II

A sight to behold is Cosmic Battle II, his most famous piece. The huge semi-sphere that hangs from the ceiling and gently circles assume many forms as it engages with the environment. One is lured into its abyss as a viewer, not because of its physically intimidating size or authoritative presence, but rather because of the physicality of its emotional core. The physical condition of existence, its multifarious materiality, and its symbols of fusing the fleeting and elusive into a concentric cosmic fusion of the wheels of time that find their own milestones in history and memory are all brought to our attention by Subodh Gupta. 

However, Cosmic Battle II begs the viewer to look closer since it resembles a stunning piece of darkroom theatre. Subodh argues that there are bizarre linkages between India's masses and individuals, as well as between the ineluctably earthy and the ineffably heavenly, in the everyday realities of Indian life. Cosmic Battle II took a year to develop in all its splendor. His intention to transcend the item in order to produce forms of subtle beauty, cosmic meaning, and cultural relevance is best illustrated by the alchemical components and the large brass handi. The entire group transforms into a performing installation when Subodh sits in front of it and recites poems by Kabir “Iss Ghat Mein Paras Moti”. 

Subodh Gupta explains, “I have so many memories. I wanted a portrait that had a movement, life is about travels, we carry our vessels utensils everything with us. I wanted to create a kinetic sculpture and allow it to breathe. The utensils, the kitchen objects, everything is inspired by the rituals that impacted me while growing up. I thought of the yagna, the pooja when you put four bricks and begin your ritual. I remember my mother making a platform with red bricks, drawing rangoli on it, on top of which she placed the utensils. I believe that my learning, my history my memories were full of these everyday rituals that were the sites of learning and artistic inspiration.” 

Used kitchenware piled up in a haphazard heap on a table creates an amalgam of emotions reflecting shared histories and numerous ordinary life tales. It provides a consonance between the incongruous ideas of the pile representing experience and man as a vessel. A dizzying sight is created by the wooden planks from abandoned railroad tracks, the choir, and the necklace made of tiny brass hands.