Michelle Poonwalla is delighted to be participating in Tao Art Gallery’s upcoming exhibition Textures and Layers, opening 16 December in Mumbai. The show marks Tao’s first post-Covid physical exhibition and Poonawalla’s first exhibition in India this year. Alongside Poonawalla Textures and Layers’s presents work by five leading artists including Revati Sharma Singh, Kisalay Vora, Jaideep Mehrotra, Kalpana Shah and Shruti Jhaveri.

Curated by Sanjana Shah and Sapna Kar the exhibition celebrates the galleries return to physical shows presenting works that carry a strong presence and explore what it means to physically engage with an artwork. Within this context, Poonawalla will present six works that evolve beyond a traditional 2D painting incorporating sculptural elements which bring themselves off the canvas and into the viewer’s space.

“I believe that true to its historically experimentative nature, art cannot be confined to a primarily virtual platform. To understand the art, one must understand its essence, by interacting with every aspect of it minutely. Every artwork is imprinted upon twice, once by the hands of its maker, and the second time by the senses of its observer.” Sanjana Shah, Creative Director, Tao Art Gallery

Poonawalla’s exhibited works include Blue Wave, inspired by the city of Mumbai, the painting was specially produced for Textures & Layers and references the city through its free flowing language and colour. What if you fly! and Mystical Flight which both feature Pooawalla’s signature butterfly motif - an ephemeral creature that is the result of a metamorphosis - representing both beauty and freedom. Desert Rose which also features butterflies representing the inherent beauty in nature's patterns as the artist allowed them to fall naturally on the work before affixing each one where they landed; and Golden Flutter whose gold plated butterflies are a nod to the artist's recent collaboration with Italian design house Inkiostro Bianco. Alongside these Poonawalla is exhibiting Colours of Life from a new series of abstract paintings produced during lockdown. The work depicts the artist's garden as a vision of positivity and vibrancy as we look to the future in these difficult times.

Michelle Poonawalla is an artist who lives and works between London, UK, and Pune, India. Poonawalla’s works explore universal, socially engaged topics that resonate with a diverse range of audiences, creating powerful memories and moving experiences. Her practice combines cutting-edge technology and traditional artistic mediums in an emotionally charged and poetic form; often utilizing sound, video mapping, projection, motion sensors and other techniques to bring her innovative paintings and installations to life. Her seminal piece, Introspection (2018), is a striking, immersive experiential artwork which leaves many viewers moved and affected, whilst inspiring them to take action in their own lives.

Poonawalla has exhibited at the Saatchi Gallery, London (as part of START, September 2019); Alserkal Avenue, Dubai (Dubai Art Week, March 2019); and as a collateral project at the Kochi Biennale, India (Kochi-Muziris Biennale, 2018). More recently Poonawalla has begun exploring work with shorter digital format films. Her 3min 36 second film Circle of Life addresses the idea of memory was exhibited at the 7th Mediations Biennale in Poland. Other digital works have been shown on SedtionArt.com and at the recent World Art Dubai, 2020.