This ongoing exhibition in Delhi's Saket has an artistic take on environmental preservation

Hindustan Times

5 days ago

There are turtles on the wall of a passage connecting a hub of malls in Saket. These aren't real yet significant enough to capture the attention of passersby towards the rising concerns of environmental degradation. The concern comes into focus – particularly on World Environment Day (June 5) – as the ongoing exhibition titled Slow Is The New Urgent continues to feature works of 11 artists.
Created using multilayered plastic wrappers, ply boards, nails, and staple pins, these vibrantly-hued turtle sculptures are part of Manveer Singh's artwork, Trail of Turtles. 'It is a homage to the Olive Ridley turtles, which play a crucial role in balancing the aquatic ecosystem. But, unfortunately, many of these are dying due to consumption of plastic, which gets mistaken for jellyfish. The damage we are causing to these sea creatures is reflective of the damage humans are causing to the environment in general. No matter how much we progress in other aspects, if we damage the environment, nothing else shall sustain in the long term,' says Singh.
For a viewer, it's difficult to not notice beyond this and spot plastic and industrial chemical carriers also hanging on a wall. These have been painted by artist Mohd Intiyaz, as his work Dar-Badar that explores how the exploitation of natural resources by a few results in suffering for many while reminding one that environmental degradation isn't just ecological but also deeply social.
'Environmental awareness should lead to real change in the way we live, consume, and think about our relationship with Nature,' feels Tahsin Akhtar, who uses everyday objects to shed light on damage to environment through overconsumption, and says, 'I use projection mapping on everyday wood-carved mundane objects because these are part of our personal, daily routine. For example: cosmetic jars, toilet rolls, and mirrors. My work critiques the environmental damage caused by overconsumption. These everyday objects represent the throwaway culture built into capitalist systems. It's here that the resources are quickly taken, used, and thrown away, adding to the environmental harm caused by fast-paced consumer habits. It also points to the idea of digital footprints due to the unseen trail of energy use, server load, and data storage left behind by our online actions, which silently adds to environmental pollution.'
Explaining how this show is both a poetic provocation as well as a proposition, curator Avik Debdas, says, 'The title reflects a deeper philosophy that challenges the velocity of consumption and the attention economy that fuels it. Located in a public skybridge between Delhi's prominent hub of malls, the exhibition uses its very location as a conceptual framework to draw a connection between the consumer market and environmental degradation."
What: Slow Is The New Urgent
Where: KNMA Art Passage, Saket
On till: June 30
Timing: 11am to 8pm
Nearest Metro Station: Malviya Nagar (Yellow Line)