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SAHAYA SHARMA
2018
Frida Shergil x Amrita Kahlo
West meets East
Photographed by Pragya Bhargava, Delhi Feb '18
Mother’s saree worn by her last on my Naamkaran in '93
Mountain Out of a Molehill (Oil, acrylic, and fabric on canvas, 6 x 8 ft, 2017)
India Art Fair 2018 saw a celebration of painter Amrita Shergil. I was very inspired by the documentation of her life, her art and her being. Not to forget her incredulous talent beyond her years. In 2013, I had become Frida Kahlo for Halloween and she had been my muse for a while through my college years. Ironically, Shergil was often called the Frida of the East.
Frida Shergil X Amrita Kahlo series explores the notion of identity. As a Indian female painter who paints her own reality and is inspired by a ethnic, maximalist and dreamy aesthetics, I found resonance with the work and persona of these two iconic female painters - Frida Kahlo (Mexico) and Amrita Shergil (India). The backdrop is my painting Mountain out of a Molehill (6x8 ft, mixed media on canvas, 2017)
2019
MAE ( में ) X Sahaya
Shot by Neil Chakraborty April 2019
Textile has always intrigued me. Banarasi Shot silks in particular.
में is an Indian homegrown clothing brand that makes dresses, tops, hoodies and bomber jackets with Indian textiles. In the words of Jayeta, Mae's owner:
मैं translates to ‘I’ in Hindi
मैं is an indie clothing label
मैं is contemporary
मैं is a team of people working in New Delhi
मैं is colorful
मैं likes comfort, may be a little obsessive over pockets?
मैं has clothing options from 0-10, casual to OVER THE TOP
मैं is honest
मैं wears culture
मैं vibes to hip-the-hop, but lets not forget our Bollywood!!
मैं आज हूँ
Pankaj Dress by में ( Brocade and Cotton)
Why does the name Pankaj have to be associated with just another indian man’s name ? This is the Pankaj Dress. Pankaj has its roots in the Sanskrit word which means a Lotus Flower. This consists of two words, Panka =mud, Ja=born; the actual meaning is lotus which is born in mud and blossoms after arising from mud.
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Glitch in The Matrix by Sahaya (Acrylic and oil on canvas, 6x8ft. 2017)
"What is real? How do you define 'real'? If you're talking about what you can feel, what you can smell, what you can taste and see, then 'real' is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain"~ Morpheus, Matrix 1999
Sundar Hoodie by में (Cordroy, Brocade and Fleece)
Sundar is about beauty, inner beauty. This colour is one of the most worn colours from a traditional Indian perspective.
COLLYWOBBLES by Sahaya (Acrylic on canvas, 6x4 ft, 2017)
“Collywobbles is a feeling on anxiety and unease in the pit of your stomach, giving an oily, lurching sensation. In contrast to the prettier “butterflies”, the collywobbles are gelatinous, and quiver most violently in the sleepless hours, as we anticipate tomorrow’s deadline, or the conversation we must have with our mother, and everything around us starts to float.” -Tiffany Watt Smith // The Book of Human Emotions
Sharma Ji dress by में (Brocade and Poly mix )
Sharma Ji’s are associated with warm fuzzy people. People you can be yourself around..Sharma ji is the friendly neighbor you feel comfortable around.
No More Daggers by Sahaya (Oil and acrylic on canvas, 3 ft 8"x 6 ft 8", 2018 )
The colour palette of purple, green and yellow came to me in a meditation. The painting clicked into place when I came across the words- ‘No More Daggers’. The painting is an affirmation that EVERYONE deserves to be loved and deserves to love one’s own self.
Oscar by में (Brocade and Poly mix (viscous)
Oscar as in Red Carpet. Oscar as in poised and elegant. Oscar as in the boy who every girl in town had a crush on.
Indie Salmon by Sahaya ( Mixed media on canvas (wool and acrylic), 5. 9”x 4 ft, 2017). Indie isn’t a look or a style it’s part of the way you think, independent from what the mainstream wants you to think." - Urban Dictionary
2020
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