Title: Beyond The Familiar: Between Reality, Abstraction and Imagination Dates: 14 October – 30 November 2026 Venue: Gallery G, Lavelle Road, Bengaluru Dussehra–Diwali Special Showcase: Madras Moderns Dates: 14–24 October 2026 Venue: Gallery G, Lavelle Road, Bengaluru Description : Gallery G presents two simultaneous shows: Beyond The Familiar: Between Reality, Abstraction and Imagination, a group …
Title: Beyond The Familiar: Between Reality, Abstraction and Imagination
Dates: 14 October – 30 November 2026
Venue: Gallery G, Lavelle Road, Bengaluru Dussehra–Diwali Special Showcase: Madras Moderns Dates: 14–24 October 2026 Venue: Gallery G, Lavelle Road, Bengaluru
Description : Gallery G presents two simultaneous shows: Beyond The Familiar: Between Reality, Abstraction and Imagination, a group exhibition of 47 works by 16 contemporary artists from South India, opening on 14 October 2026 and running until 30 November 2026 and the Dussehra–Diwali Special Showcase, featuring works by nine pioneers of the Madras modernist movement, on view during the first ten days, from 14 to 24 October 2026.
Beyond The Familiar explores how artists move between what they see, what they remember and what they imagine. The works range from realist portraiture to abstraction, and from canvas and paper to clay, copper and natural-dyed fabric.
The artists draw on temple towns and village life, childhood memory, mythology, marine ecosystems and the politics of the body. Together they show how a shared South Indian visual heritage is being reinterpreted today.
The exhibition has been coordinated by artist and educator S Vijayaraghavan. Each work on display carries a QR code that opens an audio description of the artwork in three languages, along with details about the artist.
“This curated group exhibition functions as a transformative, modernist experimental space for creative evolution. Featuring sixteen diverse voices, the showcase explores masterful visual storytelling by challenging the fluid boundaries between tangible environments, conceptual thought, and material exploration,” says Gitanjali Maini, Founder and Managing Director of Gallery G.
Participating artists
Sixteen artists from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala show three works each, with the exception of Sajitha R Shankhar, who shows two.
|
Artist |
Based in |
Medium |
Practice |
|
Bharathi Senthilvelan |
Bengaluru |
Mixed media |
Childhood memories of small-town life in semi abstract colour |
|
Charanya Rajesh |
Chennai |
Oil, soft pastel |
Realist portraits of women rooted in Kanchipuram silk and temple motifs |
|
K Gukanraj |
Chennai |
Ceramic stoneware |
Sculptural ceramics shaped by clay and fire |
|
Hemalatha Senathipathi |
Chennai |
Welded copper, brass, enamel |
Metal sculpture drawing on mythology, birds and the Cholamandal legacy |
|
R Jacob Jebaraj |
Chennai |
Acrylic, serigraph |
Layered works using upcycled and sustainable materials |
|
Kayalvizhi Sethukarasu |
Chennai |
Acrylic |
Abstract landscapes of rural India |
|
N S Manohar |
Chennai |
Acrylic |
Rural sites and figures from Kumbakonam, between memory and observation |
|
Priya Elayaraja |
Chennai |
Acrylic |
Folk-inspired paintings of womanhood and relationships |
|
Ranjini Jacob |
Chennai |
Ceramic, mixed media |
Hand-built ceramics inspired by coral reefs and marine life |
|
Rohini Mani |
Bengaluru |
Mixed media, acrylic |
The body, colourism and the celebration of darker skin tones |
|
S Michael Irudayaraj |
Chennai |
Mixed media, soot on paper |
Pictogram-rich narratives of nature and everyday life |
|
S Vijayaraghavan |
Chennai |
Mixed media, printed pigment |
The metaphorical relationship between self and society |
|
Sajitha R Shankhar |
Thiruvananthapuram |
Acrylic |
The mystical and socio cultural politics of the female form |
|
Sipi Sakkaravarthi |
Chennai |
Natural pigments on fabric |
Textile processes, dyeing and cyanotype |
|
Selva Senthilkumar |
Chennai |
Acrylic, mixed media |
Figurative work with feline forms and urban motifs |
|
Siva Murugan |
Chennai |
Acrylic |
Tradition reimagined in a contemporary visual language |
Dussehra–Diwali Special Showcase: Madras Moderns
From 14 to 24 October, Gallery G presents a separate festive-season display of works by nine pioneers of the Madras modernist movement. It is on view alongside Beyond The Familiar for ten days only.
The showcase brings together some of the most significant voices of South Indian modernism, celebrating the movement’s enduring legacy. It offers a dialogue between these pioneering artists and the contemporary practices in the main exhibition.
Featuring: Achuthan Kudallur, Akkitham Narayanan, Alphonso Arul Doss, A. P. Santhanaraj, K. M. Adimoolam, K. V. Haridasan, M. Senathipathi, M. Sooriyamurthy and P. Perumal.
Meet the Artists
Visitors are invited to meet and greet several of the exhibiting artists at the gallery on Friday, 16 October 2026, from 4 pm to 6 pm.
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