An Indian postcard from Venice: Why a pavilion at ‘Olympics of the art world’ matters

India’s return to the prestigious Venice Biennale, the 'Olympics of the art world', after a seven-year hiatus, is marked by a vibrant India pavilion this year. Titled 'Geographies of Distance: Returning Home', the showcase is curated by Amin Jaffer and features five artworks rooted in Indian craft traditions. These pieces explore the concept of 'home', employing materials such as clay, bamboo, embroidery, papier-mâché, and cotton.

Artist Sumakshi Singh’s installation, 'Permanent Address', is a poignant exploration of her grandmother's demolished house in Delhi, where she spent her summer vacations in the 2000s. The work is a testament to the delicate and haunting nature of home, symbolised by the artist’s white threads that hold up fragments of a broken past.

Other participants include Ranjani Shettar’s floating garden, Asim Waqif’s bamboo scaffolding that mourns the slow erosion of rural architecture, Skarma Sonam Tashi’s Ladakhi homes rising like a settlement on a mountain slope, and Alwar Balasubramaniam’s display of cracked soil sourced from rural Tamil Nadu. Critics and patrons have hailed the India pavilion as 'dazzling', 'spectacular', and a must-see, for its innovation and craftsmanship.