Cosmic Garden

The exhibition emerges from an ongoing fertile exchange between acclaimed Indian artists Madhvi and Manu Parekh, and Karishma Swali, artistic director of the Mumbai-based Chanakya School of Craft — a non-profit institute committed to the emancipation of women through craft.

Marking the Foundation’s inaugural showcase in Venice, Cosmic Garden pays homage to the pluralistic beauty of India’s artisanal legacies and indigenous art traditions, and it features an array of paintings and sculptures by Madvhi and Manu Parekh, as well as their metamorphosis into a third interdisciplinary medium — hand-embroidery — an art form refined over millennia.

Karishma Swali and 320 highly-skilled artisans from Chanakya conceptualised and interpreted the textile re-imaginings through meticulous needlework embroidery and handcrafting techniques, utilising organic materials like raw linen, jute, silk, and cotton. The result becomes a true artistic statement: a practice based on a dialogue that reinvents the role of the artist and the artisan, blurring the boundaries between art and craft.

Held at Salone Verde - Art & Social Club, and curated by Maria Alicata and Paola Ugolini, Cosmic Garden shines light on the vital role of local communities in showcasing their material culture and preserving the rich, diverse essence of Indian traditions.

The Chanakya Foundation and Karishma Swali Present
Madhvi and Manu Parekh, curated by Maria Alicata and Paola Ugolini