Milaaya Art Gallery, the contemporary art initiative founded by Gayatri Khanna, unveils “Between Heaven and Earth,” a powerful embroidered artwork that brings together artistic vision and master craftsmanship through the medium of hand embroidery.
At first glance, the piece captivates with its sweeping palette of crimson and gold an ethereal winged form rising above lotus-laden waters and densely imagined cityscapes. The composition unfolds like a visual universe where the celestial and the earthly exist in quiet tension, inviting viewers to reflect on the balance between transcendence and the human condition.
Titled Between Heaven and Earth, the work is a meditation on duality and transformation. A majestic Hamsa ascends through swirling skies, carrying an androgynous figure suspended between wisdom and power, stillness and movement. Across its expansive wings, intricate motifs emerge fleeting deer symbolising the passage of time, birds caught in mid-flight, architectural forms hinting at worldly ambition, and drifting clouds that soften the intensity of the composition.
Below, blooming lotuses rise from rhythmic waters, grounding the narrative in serenity and spiritual calm. Every feather, ripple, and motif is painstakingly translated into thread by master artisans, creating a surface rich in texture and dimensionality. The embroidery captures light in subtle ways, allowing the artwork to shift visually depending on the viewer’s perspective.
Through works like Between Heaven and Earth, Milaaya Art explores the potential of embroidery as a contemporary artistic medium. By collaborating with leading artists and translating their ideas into hand-stitched compositions, the initiative creates works that exist at the intersection of fine art and traditional craftsmanship expanding the possibilities of thread-based art as a collectible form.
Milaaya Art made its debut at India Art Fair 2024, presenting a unique vision that reimagines traditional hand embroidery as a powerful medium for contemporary artistic expression. Working closely with leading contemporary artists, each artwork is realised through an intensive and collaborative process in which artists and master artisans work together to translate original artworks into intricately embroidered pieces.
About Milaaya Art Gallery
Milaaya Art is a Mumbai-based contemporary art initiative dedicated to creating thread-based artworks in collaboration with leading artists and master artisans. By translating original artworks into meticulously hand-embroidered compositions, Milaaya Art bridges traditional textile craftsmanship with contemporary artistic practice.
Each work is brought to life through an intensive process that can take several months of dedicated craftsmanship, with artisans translating brushstrokes and imagery into intricate stitches using threads such as cotton, silk, and bullion. The initiative celebrates embroidery not as ornamentation, but as a powerful narrative and artistic medium capable of expressing complex ideas and visual depth.
A percentage of the proceeds from Milaaya Art supports the Milaaya Art Foundation, which works toward preserving the heritage of hand embroidery by empowering artisan communities through training, fair compensation, housing, and healthcare initiatives.
