The Elemental You: A Contemplative Journey Through Earth, Ecology, and Art

The Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA) presents The Elemental You, a groundbreaking exhibition showcasing the works of Simryn Gill, Neha Choksi, and Hajra Waheed. Curated by Akansha Rastogi, this exhibition inaugurates a series dedicated to South Asian diaspora artists and offers an intricate exploration of the element “Earth.” Through the lens of geology, culture, and materiality, the exhibition establishes a profound connection between humanity and the natural world.

Kiran Nadar, Founder and Chairperson of KNMA, captures the exhibition’s essence:

“We are thrilled to present this timely exhibition that speaks to degrading environmental conditions and the history of the earth. Rooted in the museum collection, it expands outward with seminal works on loan. The exhibition learns from and showcases the inspiring practices of Simryn Gill, Neha Choksi, and Hajra Waheed. Together, we hope to open discussions around their work, writings, impulses, and visions.”

The Vision Behind The Elemental You

Curator Akansha Rastogi describes the exhibition as both a personal and professional milestone. “I’m in awe of the three artists—Hajra Waheed, Simryn Gill, and Neha Choksi,” she says. “Their lifelong projects and long-term commitments have occupied my imagination for years, influencing me in strange ways I can barely articulate. Curatorially, weaving their practices together has been immensely satisfying and challenging.”

Rastogi explains that the exhibition’s core lies in the idea of care, though the artists themselves do not explicitly frame their works in these terms. “Care is not a term that any one of the three artists use,” she notes, “but I see it so strongly and resiliently present in their oeuvres. In the context of human relationships with the natural world, and the ecological and planetary upheavals that all natural cycles are undergoing, their ideas come closer and feel so urgently important together.”

The exhibition also reflects KNMA’s commitment to South Asian diaspora artists. While the broader framework of showcasing such artists is central to KNMA’s vision, Rastogi emphasizes that the themes and focus of The Elemental You are rooted entirely in the practices of the selected artists. “As a curator working with the KNMA collection for 15 years, it was important for me to initiate this framework and reading,” she explains. “The collection already housed significant works by Simryn Gill and Neha Choksi, and now, through this exhibition, Hajra Waheed’s works have been brought into the fold.”

Intertwined Practices: Gill, Choksi, and Waheed

Each artist brings a unique voice to the exhibition, yet their works resonate collectively, creating a unified exploration of Earth’s elemental nature.

Simryn Gill’s decades-long documentation of Port Dickson, Malaysia, stands as a testament to her meticulous engagement with place. “You’ll find yourself revisiting Port Dickson repeatedly through different series of photographs, some even decades apart,” Rastogi explains. “Gill’s works reveal how people become the landscape where they live, and how geography becomes people. She explores the extreme proximity to a tree that is no longer a tree, opening up complex processes of being and becoming one with the animate, alive, or dead around us.”

Neha Choksi’s Porous Earth series delves into geological time, using materials such as limestone dust and kiln-cast glass to reflect on the Earth’s transformations. “Her works touch on the deep time of matter and the making of the Earth itself,” says Rastogi. “Choksi compels visitors to ‘think like a mountain,’ blending ecological despair with hope for revival.”

Hajra Waheed brings a celestial dimension to the exhibition with works that bridge the terrestrial and the cosmic. “Her breathtaking video work The Spiral exemplifies the idea of ‘survival as revival,’” Rastogi notes. “She draws attention to fleeting natural phenomena, offering a perspective that is both personal and planetary.”

Curating Complex Narratives

The curatorial framework for The Elemental You is as intricate as the works themselves. Rastogi admits, “Yes, it is a complex narrative with multiple threads—the ecological, personal, and geological—interlaced with micro-stories of specific people, communities, and landscapes. There are also the dead and lost beings, things, and matter. I’ve ensured that no one thread takes over the other.”

To guide visitors through this complexity, the exhibition is structured around three conceptual pathways: Clearing, To Think Like a Mountain, and Survival as Revival. “These are not rigid thematic divisions,” Rastogi clarifies. “They are guiding principles that overlay, merge, and sometimes fade within the exhibition’s fabric.”

Simryn Gill’s Clearing serves as a poignant example. The multi-part work includes photograms of a 110-year-old Canary Island palm tree uprooted due to a museum expansion in Australia. “It was meant to be replanted but couldn’t be, due to a weevil infestation,” Rastogi explains. “Presenting Clearing in any museum raises complex questions. As a pathway in the exhibition, it becomes a ritual of letting go while holding space for the lost.”

For Rastogi, these pathways hold personal significance. “As a mother to a cancer-survivor toddler, I resonate deeply with the themes of survival and revival,” she shares. “This exhibition has been a way for me to process and navigate a new life-path.”

A Slow Exhibition

Described as a “slow exhibition,” The Elemental You invites visitors to move at their own pace. “The agency is completely with the visitor,” Rastogi emphasizes. “I’ve liberated them from any kind of load or expectation. There’s information if needed, and a toolkit to navigate the space, but the visitor decides how they engage. They can walk, stay, see, smell, think, leave, and even return. The exhibition is designed to let them breathe deeply and take it all in.”

This slow, contemplative approach aligns with the exhibition’s overarching themes of time as a continuum. Visitors are encouraged to immerse themselves in the geological, cultural, and emotional landscapes presented by the artists.

Extending the Experience

The exhibition’s extensive public program complements the artworks on display. It includes field visits with geologists, workshops, performances, and artist-led gatherings. “Each program is set with an agenda, covering different aspects of the exhibition—from the unwellness of the planet and the self, to sound-based activations and field visits,” Rastogi says. “This is the first time KNMA has undertaken such an extensive and multi-layered program. It’s both educational and participatory.”

These programs deepen the audience’s engagement, offering opportunities to explore the exhibition’s themes in greater depth. “For instance, we have field visits to the geology museum at Delhi University, sound-based activations in Sanjay Van, and artist-led jam sessions,” Rastogi elaborates. “Each program highlights a unique facet of the exhibition, extending its reach beyond the gallery.”

Overcoming Challenges

Curating The Elemental You came with its share of challenges. “One of the biggest hurdles was the short timeframe—just 12 days—to install the exhibition,” Rastogi reveals. “Despite being hugely prepared, it was still a demanding process.”

The complexity of the themes also required careful balancing. “The narrative interlaces so many layers,” Rastogi explains. “Ensuring coherence without overshadowing any thread was a delicate task. But the result is an experience that allows visitors to become archaeologists, archivists, and observers of a world in flux.”

A Call to Contemplation

The Elemental You is more than an exhibition; it is an invitation to reflect on humanity’s relationship with Earth. Through the practices of Simryn Gill, Neha Choksi, and Hajra Waheed, and Rastogi’s thoughtful curation, the exhibition bridges the personal and planetary, offering pathways for contemplation and connection.

Running at KNMA in New Delhi until 9 January 2025, The Elemental You is a space where visitors can slow down, immerse themselves, and engage with themes of care, resilience, and survival. As Rastogi says, “The visitor is implicated and involved. I hope they leave the exhibition fully aware and carrying it with them, to address it publicly or privately, to suffer or survive.”