'Electric Floral Fantasy' exhibition by artist Eeshani Mitra opens in Mumbai

New Delhi: Method Kala Ghoda will present 'Electric Floral Fantasy', Eeshani Mitra’s solo exhibition (till April 7) at Method - Kala Ghoda, Mumbai, where Mitra lives and works. This new body of work includes a series of printed photographic installations, video installation and wax-works.

The exhibition continues Eeshani’s exploration of natural and synthetic materials, giving rise to works where the foreign and the familiar collide.

With her abstract photographic compositions that are created by employing a range of image production techniques, she creates a dialogue between the natural and the unnatural, immersing the viewer in the details of its elements.

Extending beyond traditional narratives and formats, the body of work is a window to a surreal world, which is scanned and sometimes moulded in wax by the artist. Interested in the physical interaction of the viewer and the work, Eeshani’s wax-works invite the viewers to touch and investigate the surface of her immersion experiments. Textures emerge, as the nooks and grooves that tend to go amiss, show themselves amongst the space occupied in the wax by floral articles, nylon, paints, plastic, moss and other organic materials.

Eeshani finds inspiration in an emulsive blend of organic and inorganic materials. Her work starts with elements that intrigue her. She observes and understands how the pieces come together, creating textures and patterns each unique to the blend, resulting in compositions that are surreal and dreamlike.

The artist experiments with a range of drying and blending techniques with the materials while at the same time, preserving a balance of elements in her compositions. The textures created in her images are a result of playing with different viscous mediums such as oils, glycerin, detergent, colours, and water. These mediums are placed in a flat-bottomed glass container, where she mixes each synthetic element independently in steps to discern the formation of textures slowly before adding organic materials such as flowers, leaves, and moss.

For her images, she makes use of a large format scanner, capturing the highly detailed textures and minutia of her emulsions. Aside from using glass containers for holding the mediums while scanning, Eeshani often drains out the remaining liquids and transfers them between plastic sheets. These sheets are then carefully placed over the scanner glass and manipulated by hand while the machine begins to scan the ever-changing shapes created by these distortions.

Through multiple attempts by the scanner to create imaging of the fluid compositions, the artist finds and enhances the parts that speak to her.

To make the wax sculptures, Eeshani begins by melting natural wax in a deep container placed over a hot water bath. Gradually, she adds colours and selects various elements such as preserved floral articles, acrylic, and plastic colour gels. She frequently integrates pieces of moss such as preserved reindeer lichens, which are meticulously positioned inside a square silicone mold. Subsequently, she pours the molten wax over them and adds additional layers of elements on top.

Once the sculpture is prepared and repoured for vibrancy, the mold is set aside to prevent dust accumulation during the curing process. It remains undisturbed for a day before being removed from the mold.

A visual artist and zine maker, her work spans various media, including photography, video installation, sound, print and sculpture. By employing a range of image production techniques, she juxtaposes common objects—floral articles, linen, wax, vinyl, and other synthetic materials—to create vivid imagery where the foreign and the familiar seem to collide. Eeshani lives and works between Kolkata and Mumbai.