RITHIKA MERCHANT

Rithika Merchant une artiste indienne originaire de Mum-bai, où elle est née en 1986. A la croisée de l’Orient et de l’Occident, son travail est à l’image de son parcours de ci-toyenne du monde. Après avoir grandi à Bombay, elle part étudier à New York et sort diplômée de Parsons en 2008, puis enchaine plusieurs résidences en Europe (Portugal, Grèce, Roumanie) pour finalement s’installer à Barcelone, où elle vit depuis 10 ans, tout en gardant de forts liens avec l’Inde, où sa carrière artistique est florissante.Rithika a connu ces deux dernières années un grand suc-cès médiatique suite à sa collaboration avec la maison Chloé : à l’invitation de Natacha Ramsay-Levi, elle a pro-duit pour la collection été 2018 des peintures remplies de symboles ésotériques et spirituels, ainsi que des images botaniques. Cette collaboration lui a valu à l’automne 2018 la récompense de Young Achiever of the Year aux Women of the Year 2018 Awards du magazine Vogue. Elle continue à ce jour à collaborer ponctuellement avec la maison Chloé pour des collections capsules.

Rithika Merchant crée une mosaïque de mythes qui questionne les récits traditionnels que l’on retrouve dans toutes les cultures. Son travail est une exploration des mythes épiques au-delà des géographies, tout en dé-veloppant son propre vocabulaire visuel fait de créatures et de symboles. L’Europe et l’Inde ont en commun d’être nourries de plusieurs traditions avec des des narration parallèles un peu partout, qui ne sont souvent pas soulignées dans l’histoire classique. Rithika se dit très inspirée par l’art tribal indien et les peintures mi-niature mogholes : la mythologie et l’iconographie indienne l’ont toujours intéressé, surtout par la manière dont ces différents fragments sont tissés pour former une image complète. Elle ré-utilise dans son travail ces anciens moyens de narration dans un contexte plus contemporain.

Ses oeuvres peuvent être envisager comme une collection d’objets mo-dernes faisant appel aux mythes, à l’histoire et aux rituels. Chacune de ses images peut être vue comme un totem qui invite le spectateur à créer son propre récit, à puiser dans nos racines collectives pour gé-nérer un sens, tout en explorant la façon dont les objets peuvent être des marqueurs d’identité ; comment ceux-ci peuvent être réinterprétés dans un contexte contemporain au fur et à mesure que les significations et les interprétations évoluent.La nature joue un rôle prépondérant dans le travail de Rithika, soulignée par l’utilisation de formes organiques et de couleur non saturées. Elle utilise l’aquarelle et le collage, s’inspire des dessins botanique et de l’art populaire du XVIIe siècle, tout en ayant recours à des symboles et des images emblématique de différentes cultures, pour tenter de com-prendre la diaspora, la mémoire, pour créer un corpus d’oeuvres visuel-lement rattaché à notre passé collectif. Ce que nous laissons derrière nous, et ce que nous emportons.

RITHIKA MERCHANT

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2018Vogue Women Of The Year 2018 - Vogue Young Achiever Of The YearVogue Magazine’s VogueWorld 100 Creative Voices

RÉSIDENCES

2016Arthouse Wolfsberg/Garana Garana 2012Arthouse Wolfsberg/Garana Garana 2008Convento São Francsico De Mertola Mertola

COLLECTIONS

Chloé Archive Elisabeth and Hartwig Ochsenfeld, Arthouse Wolfsberg/Garana Palais Galliera, Musée de la mode de la Ville de Paris

COLLABORATIONS

2019Chloé: Chinese New Year 2019 Limited Edition Capsule Collection, textile print collaboration, Paris Chloé: Spring 2019 Collection, textile print adaptation Paris 2018Chloé: Spring/Summer 2018 Collection, textile print collaboration, Paris Chloé: High Summer 2018 Collection, textile print collaboration, Paris

EXPOSITIONS

2019Mirror of the Mind, Galerie LJ, Paris, solo showOsmosis, TARQ, Mumbai, group show (cur. Shaleen Wadhwana) SPRING! A Group Show of Contemporary Drawing, Galerie LJ, Paris (with Howie Tsui and Jason Jägel), group show Chloe Couture National Art Museum of Ukraine, Kiev, Ukraine, group show Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam/ The World Is One Fa-mily, Kolkata Centre For Creativity, Emami Art, Kolkata, group show The Dot that went for a walk, The Royal Opera House, Mumbai, group show 2018Breaking Barriers, Jehangir Art Gallery/Gallery Art & Soul, Mumbai, group show We See You, We Hear You The Hospital Club Gallery, London. U.K. (Presented by Subject Matter) Homo Faber / Fashion Inside and Out The Mi-chelangelo Foundation, Venice, Italy (cur. Ju-dith Clark), group show

Portal October Gallery, London, group show Sensorium / The End Is Only The Beginning Su-naparanta, Goa Centre for the Arts, Goa India India Art Fair (Presented by TARQ) New Delhi, group show 2015Reliquaries: The Remembered Self R TARQ, Mumbai (with Suruchi Choksi), group show 2017 State of Art Mazda Space, Barcelone (Presented by Galeria Bien Cuadrado and Barcelone Young Gallery Weekend), group show Where The Water Takes Us TARQ, Mumbai, solo showAncestral Home Galeria Bien Cuadrado, Barce-lona (cur. Diana Di Nuzzo), solo showThis Burning Land Belongs To You Swiss Cot-tage Gallery, London (Presented by TARQ for Camden Kala, UK/India Year of Culture), group show To talk to the worms and the stars The New Gal-lery, Calgary, Canada (cur. Natasha Chaykowski)G/rove Latitude 28, New Delhi (cur. Bhavna Ka-kar and Adwait Singh), group show Roots to Healing Northrup Gallery, Goldstein Museum of Design, Minneapolis, Minnesota (cur. Lisa Aston Philander), group show 2016 Gallery III, Stephen Romano Gallery, Brooklyn, New York, group show Hortus Deliciarum, Arthouse Wolfsberg/Gara-na, Garana, group show Statim Finis, Stephen Romano Gallery, Brook-lyn, New York, group show Intersections, Galeria Combustion Espontanea, Madrid, solo showThe Creepy Room, Stephen Romano Gallery, Brooklyn, New York, group show Language of the Birds: Occult and Art, 80WSE Gallery, New York. U.S.A. (cur. Pam Grossman, group show )2015Hieroglyphica, Stephen Romano Gallery, Brook-lyn, New York, group show Magica Sexualis, Stephen Romano Gallery, Brooklyn, New York, group show Opus Hypnagogia: Sacred Spaces of the Visio-nary and Vernacular, The Morbid Anatomy Mu-seum, Brooklyn, New York, group show Rite of Passage, Art*ry Gallery, Fort Kochi, Ke-rala, group show Not Man The Less, But Nature More Summe-rhall, Édimbourg (cur. Michela D’Acquisto & Holly Knox Yeoman), group show Luna Tabulatorum, Stephen Romano Gallery, New York, solo showMetro Curates Art Fair (presented by Ste-phen Romano Gallery), The Metropolitan Pavi-lion,New York, group show In Missa Interfectionis, Vernum Stephen Roma-no Gallery, Brooklyn, New York, group show 2014Diplomatic Art - Expozitia Retrospectiva, Gale-ria Calpe Timisoara, group show

Abundantia Cornu Copiae, Stephen Romano Gallery, Brooklyn, New York, group show Encyclopedia Of The Strange, Tiny Griffon Gallery, Nuremberg, solo showDiplomatic Art, Helios Gallery, Timisoara, group show In Missa Interfectionis, Stephen Romano Galle-ry, Brooklyn, New York, group show Collectiva de Petit Format, Galeria Espai b, Barcelone, group show 2013India Art Festival (presented by Gallery Art & Soul), Mumbai, group show Mythography, Gallery Art & Soul, Mumbai, solo showCrest of the Strawberry, Moon Gospel Flat Farm, Bolinas, Californie, group show Of The Hand Madder, Moon Gallery, SingapourInventari, Galeria Espai b, Barcelone, group show 2012Mitología Comparada, Swab Art Fair (presented by Galeria Espai b), Barcelone, solo showXmas 12/ The Big Group Show Galleri Christof-fer Egelund, Copenhague, group show O Fim, Espaço Santo Antonio, Rio de Janeiro, group show Sobre El Paper, Galeria Espai b, Barcelone, group show Tristesia - Paraphernalia - Memorabilia Funda-tia, Interart Triade, Timisoara, group show Tristesia - Paraphernalia - Memorabilia Ar-thouse Wolfsberg/Garana, Garana, group show Collectiva d’Estiu, Galeria Espai b, Barcelone, group show 2011Origin of Species, Gallery Art & Soul, Mumbai, solo showBarcelone Showcase, Casa Batllo, Barcelone, group show Collectiva Nadal, Galeria Espai b, Barcelone, group show Art de Mercat X-L-XL, Galeria Espai b, Barce-lone, group show Exhibition Room, Who Galeria, Lisbonne, group show Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Mumbai, group show Snowball, Articule Gallery, Montréal, Québec, group show 2010Collectiva Nadal, Galeria Espai b, Barcelone, group show De Sanguine, Guardia Sanframondi, Benevento, group show Chic and Cheap, Galerie Vivell, Liège, group show New Mirror Illustration, Who Galeria, Lisbonne, group show New Mirror Illustration, Muuda, Porto, group show 2009

Worlds Within Words, Fabrica do Braço de Pra-ta, Lisbonne, solo showConversations With Myself, Pois.Cafe, Lisbonne, solo showKala Ghoda Arts Festival Mumbai, group show 2008Senior Citizens, Gallery MC, New York, group show Collection of Dreams, Convento São Francisco De Mertola, Mertola, solo showI’ll show you mine, if you show me yours, Par-sons Fine Arts Gallery,New York, group show 2007City Symphonies/Urban Muck Parsons Fine Arts Gallery,New York, group show Mentor/Meteor Parsons, Fine Arts Gallery, New York, group show 2006HISA Final Show, The Hellenic International Stu-dies In The Arts; Paros, group show 2004The Armature Project, Grand Central Station, New York, group show

solo show «Mirror of the Mind», Galerie LJ, 2019, Paris

Détail de «Ritual Pattern II», technique mixte sur papier, 75 x 55cm, 2019

‘Mirror of the Mind’, 2019 , Paris

solo show «Mirror of the Mind», Galerie LJ, 2019, Paris

«Mirror of the mind», 2019, Aquarelle, gouache et encre sur papier, 50 x 64cm

«Patang», 2019, Aquarelle, gouache, feutre et encre sur papier, 64 x 50cm

«Nazarbattu», 2019, Cerceau à broder, gouache et encre sur papier, 38 x 38cm

«Dvarapala», 2019, Gouache et encre sur papier, 98 x 72cm

L’Officielseptembre 2019

Design Pataki 8 juillet 2019

Navigating Rithika Merchant’s Fantastical Worlds Steeped In Modern Mythby Beverly Pereira

Visual artist Rithika Merchant in her studio in Barcelona, Photograph Credit – Rithika Merchant

“People tend to associate femininity with things which are beautiful but passive, vulnerable, and weak. I strive to break the stereotype of how women are often portrayed in art – either as muses or for their aesthetic qualities. I would like my work to open up a discussion about how women are viewed within society and the role that they are often forced to play. ” – Rithika Merchant

To ponder over Rithika Merchant’s richly detailed paintings is to go down a rabbit hole. Hybrid creatures—half-hu-man, half-animal—totemic iconography and botanical imagery populate the strange and fantastical worlds that she dreams up. Working out of her studio in Barcelona, she employs the gauche and ink technique on stained paper to achieve desaturated or muted colours that lend each of her creations an ethereal, almost otherworldly quality.

Aside from drawing from her personal visual vocabulary, she references myths and epics to navigate the universal themes in mythology and folklore and their degree of similarity around the world. It’s what she likes to call her very own “mosaics of myths”. Her exploration of the cross-cultural parallel between myths, she says, is the result of the combination of having lived in various parts of the world. Merchant grew up in Mumbai, studied Fine Art at Parsons The New School for Design, New York, and at Hellenic International Studies in The Arts, Paros, Greece, and eventually settled in Europe.As much as her body of work comes from an immensely personal place, it is simultaneously relatable, no matter which country or culture the viewer may come from. As an example, her series “Voyager” deals with the profound effect and sense of helplessness she felt watching the European refugee crisis unfold right on her doorstep. For the Barcelona-based visual artist, the idea of water and migration are inseparable. “The mass displacement of people, forced migration, and the dislocation and exile of many groups of people all over the world are very trou-bling to me. Being confronted with the ‘Shame Counter’ daily is a reminder of scale and horrors of this crisis. The digital counter was installed by the mayor of Barcelona and displays the number of known victims who drowned in the Mediterranean in real time. This body of work comes from my own feelings generated by seeing the contrast between my life in this city and what this counter represents,” she says.

Merchant, whose work has been showcased at galleries in Paris, Madrid, New York and Lisbon, is in the process of working on a series for a solo show at Galerie LJ in Paris. Notably, she’s one of the rare visual artists who has enjoyed free reign working with a luxury fashion brand. We had the chance to catch up with this fascinating artist, whose works are on show at TARQ in Mumbai at an ongoing group exhibition titled Osmosis. Excerpts from the interview…

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The Belly of the Beast, 2017 (Voyager series), 50 x 65 cms, Mixed media collage with gouache, ink and graphite on paper, Photograph Credit Rithika Merchant

Design Pataki: How did your interest in incorporating ideas drawn from myth emerge in your work?

Rithika Merchant: My interest in myths began when I read Joseph Campbell’s Hero With a Thousand Faces. The book really opened my eyes to the universality of the human expe-rience and how it informed many myths. I have always been very interested in narratives, myths and received histories that are available to us. I am also interested in how these different fragments are ‘woven’ together to from a complete image. Most cultures use imagery to tell stories and represent ideas. I try to use these ancient means of storytelling in a more contemporary context.

DP: What is your process of drawing upon the past to paint a contemporary narrative?

RM: I spend a lot of my time reading and researching ideas I have, or subjects that I am interested in. I will often read something

and have a very vivid image in my mind. Sometimes it’s just a flash, and manifesting these ideas comes naturally. I have my own lexicon of symbols and creatures that I use in my work and so I use these along with certain myths as a vehicle to help me as I visualise these ideas and tell stories.

DP: Your thoughts on the way myth and identity inform each other?

RM: In the past, art and stories were often a way to make sense of natural phenomena and psychological events. In modern times and for the foreseeable future, science gives us a complete explanation for most things. However, it places humans as part of a greater scheme rather than the centre of our own narrative. As much as science gives a more accurate description of humanity it takes away the spiritual power given to every human to understand their own destiny. Myth making brings humanity back to the centre of concern.

DP: Is there a mythological figure that you connect with on a personal level?

RM: The 3 legged Raven. This creature inhabits and represents the sun. It is also seen as an animal which inhabits the realm between life and death. This creature speaks to me because the Raven is a symbol of the light and the dark— the duality that inhabits us all.

DP: Feminine entities and symbolism are central to much of your work. What do you hope viewers take away from your work in this regard?

RM: I consider myself a feminist, so I think my work, in general, is quite tinged with these ideals. I am very inte-rested in women’s issues and their place and portrayal within history, myth and folklore.

Some of my work in the show at TARQ also explores feminine identity and the power of women. People tend to associate femininity with things which are beautiful but passive, vulnerable and weak. I attempt to use a variety of feminine symbols to re-contextualize this and present a more rounded idea of femininity. Women can be strong/destructive/beautiful/vulnerable/powerful.

I strive to break the stereotype of how women are often portrayed in art—either as muses or for their aesthetic qualities. I would like my work to open up a discussion about how women are viewed within society and the role that they are often forced to play.

CNY Pig, 2018, 64 x 50 cms, Gouache and Ink on Paper. Textile and accessory print collaboration for Chloé Chinese New Year 2019 Limited Edition Capsule Collection, Photograph Credit – Chloé 2

Trial by Fire, 2019, 70 x 98 cm, Gouache and ink on paper, Photograph Credit Rithika Merchant

DP: You have enjoyed a continued collaborative relationship with Chloé since 2018, most recently for a capsule collection centered around the Chinese Year of the Pig. Are you always given free rein when it comes to commis-sioned work?

RM: The prints I worked on for this collection are filled with lots of esoteric and spiritual symbols and botanical imagery, similar to my previous work for them. However, the prints are much more graphic and bold than the work I typically make. The team at Chloé usually gives me a fairly broad brief and then I usually come back to them with a sketch that we fine tune. Natacha (Ramsay-Levi) and the team have been very open and receptive to my ideas, so it’s been quite easy to reach a final product that everyone is happy with.

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Verve Magazinejuillet-août 2018