Samsara and Metamorphosis: The Mystical World of Seema Kohli
Pacific Art League, Palo Alto, California
Seema Kohli
Seema Kohli
2011
Photos
Grid of 84 archival prints of self-portraits, of 10x10inch.
The cycle of life revolves around birth, death and the eventual liberation from mortality. All forms of life follow this universal truth of existence and exaltation. It is my belief that all myths, which are at the crux of all faith, evolve out of and around this Law of Nature. In Ouroboros, I attempted to understand various conceptions of immortality through performance and an audio-visual exploration.
I began by first delving into depictions and interpretations of mystical laws in various cultures. Through my research, I stumbled upon Ouroboros, a mythical, coiled, self-sustaining serpent that swallows its own tail to recreate itself. Often drawn half in the light and half in the dark, I found the image to echo more universally recognised symbols such as the Yin Yang, which illustrates the dual nature of all things. Many of these symbols emphasise that opposites are not in conflict with each other. That they are, in fact, in divine harmony.
Ouroboros thus emerged out of an amalgamation of this research and Ardhnarashwar, a previous series of 84 10×10 inch paintings that express different births, yonis and species. Both works depict the constant harmony of energy present in the Universal Laws of Nature, what I call the Wheel of Time.
Although we seem to experience time as a line, I realised through Ouroboros that life is actually a wheel of eternal return. Souls experience different emotions, forms and births in cycles that repeatedly commence, end and, then, begin anew.
“The living being had no need of eyes when there was nothing remaining outside him to be seen; nor of ears when there was nothing to be heard; and there was no surrounding atmosphere to be breathed; nor would there have been any use of organs by the help of which he might receive his food or get rid of what he had already digested, since there was nothing which went from him or came into him: for there was nothing beside him. Of design he was created thus, his own waste providing his own food, and all that he did or suffered taking place in and by himself. For the Creator conceived that a being which was self-sufficient would be far more excellent than one which lacked anything; and, as he had no need to take anything or defend himself against any one, the Creator did not think it necessary to bestow upon him hands: nor had he any need of feet, nor of the whole apparatus of walking; but the movement suited to his spherical form was assigned to him, being of all the seven that which is most appropriate to mind and intelligence; and he was made to move in the same manner and on the same spot, within his own limits revolving in a circle. All the other six motions were taken away from him, and he was made not to partake of their deviations. And as this circular movement required no feet, the universe was created without legs and without feet.”
– Plato in Timaeus
Pacific Art League, Palo Alto, California
Gallerie Nvya, Triveni Kala Sangam, New Delhi
Shridharani Gallery at Triveni Kala Sangam, presented by Gallerie Nvya, Delhi
National Gallery of Modern Art, Bengaluru
Seema Kohli Studio, New Delhi and The Partition Museum, Delhi
Tao Art Gallery, Mumbai
Bihar Museum, Patna
Bikaner House, New Delhi presented by Gallerie Nvya
Venue: Sunder Nursery, New Delhi, Presented by Gallery Ragini
Kolkata Centre for Creativity, Kolkata
Tao Art Gallery
Acrylic Color, Water Colors, Ink On Treated Archival Canvas And Acrylics Sheet With LED Lights54 x 61 inches2017
Acrylic, Water-Color And Ink On Treated Archival Canvas And Acrylics Sheet2017
Drawings And Calligraphy Reproduced From Ancestral Books, Ink And Pencil On Archival Paper2019
Drawings And Calligraphy Reproduced From Ancestral Books, Ink And Pencil On Archival Paper2019
Drawings And Calligraphy Reproduced From Ancestral Books, Ink And Pencil On Archival Paper2019
Wooden SculptureH 10.5ft x L 9.5ft x W 4.7ft2019
Tea Stains, Gouache And Inks On Paper13 x 4 ft2014
Tea Stains, Gouache And Inks On Paper13 x 4 ft2014
Glass- Reinforced Polymer16 x 14 x 11 inches2018
Intaglio Zinc Plate Etchings On Fabriano Paper5 x 5 inch diameter2014
Intaglio Zinc Plate Etchings On Fabriano Paper5 x 5 inch diameter2014
Intaglio Zinc Plate Etchings On Fabriano Paper5 x 5 inch diameter2014
Intaglio Zinc Plate Etchings On Fabriano Paper5 x 5 inch diameter2014
Intaglio Zinc Plate Etchings On Fabriano Paper5 x 5 inch diameter2014
Intaglio Zinc Plate Etchings On Fabriano Paper5 x 5 inch diameter2014
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf60 x 66 inches2018
Sandstone Sculpture5 x 11 x 24 inches2019
Sandstone Sculpture5 x 11 x 24 inches2019
Sandstone Sculpture5 x 11 x 24 inches2019
Sandstone Sculpture5 x 12 x 24 inches2019
Bronze45 x 25 x 17 inches2019
Thread, Beads And Sequence On Canvas Cloth62 x 69 inches2023
Thread, Beads And Sequence On Canvas Cloth56.75 x 55 inches2023
Thread, Beads And Sequence On Canvas Cloth54.75 x 46.5 inches2023
Thread, Beads And Sequence On Canvas Cloth47.75 x 74 inches2023
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf5 x 7 ft2023
Gambhari Wood, Steel And Brass FittingsW65 x L84 inches2023
Stainless Steel 6mm, Weight 180kg8 x 5 ft2023
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf6 x 6 ft2023
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf6 x 6 ft2023
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf3 x 3 ft2023
Acrylic And Water Colors On Arches, 300gsm, Cold Press Paper10.2 x 14 inches2024
Acrylic And Water Colors On Arches, 300gsm, Cold Press Paper10.2 x 14 inches2024
Acrylic, Watercolours And Inks On 360gsm Paper4 x 5 ft2024
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf6 x 6 ft2024
Bronze4 x 4 x 1.5 ft2019
Pen, Ink, Water And Gouache Colors On Paper (Stuck On Aluminium sheet)45 x 96 inches2020
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf6 x 4 ft2020
5.5 x 9 ft2023
BronzeH 65 x L 49 x W 13 inches2026
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf4 x 6 ft2023
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf3 x 4 ft2025
Woodcut Print On Paper121.92 x 152.4 cm2025
Woodcut On Schoelershammer 165 GSM3 x 3 ft2026
Etching On Arches Paper48 x 120 inches2014
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf8 x 6 ft2025
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With Pure Silver Leaf4 x 10 inches2026
BronzeL36 x W32 x H432018
Drawings On Archival Prints And Archival Ink And Gold Dust24 x 70 inches2023
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf4 x 6 ft2023
Acrylic Colors And Ink On Canvas With 24kt Gold And Silver Leaf6.7 x 5 ft2023
Khula Aasman
Khula Aasman
Khula Aasman
Khula Aasman
The Golden Womb Series
Khula Aasman
Khula Aasman
Khula Aasman
Tree of life
Khula Aasman
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