Curators' Note:
In a sense, bringing Bagh-e Hind to a physical space for the first time represented a reversal of our original curatorial process. When creating the online exhibition between June to September 2021, we faced the challenge of compellingly communicating smell and taste and generally centering material culture in an essentially immaterial medium. At the same time, we had unlimited space – in words, images, and sounds our virtual garden could grow with our ideas in any direction we desired.
Now, with a specific real-life location at hand, we are able to actually bring scents, plants, and material objects directly to our audience. However, we also had to work with a specific space that is very much finite and harder to manipulate than a virtual one, as well as the logistic challenges of preparing an installation in Los Angeles between Pune and Boston.
We began by developing numerous ideas for different elements through an ongoing exchange of notes and sketches, expanding or paring down as needed, before turning to the selection, development, and production of the material objects to be displayed. Through January to June 2022, we developed visual, olfactory, and literary connections across media, from flowers blooming in glass to the sparks of painted Mughal fireworks illuminating bars of soap redolent with the sharp smell of real pyrotechnics and Urdu verses blooming across various surfaces and materials.
Scroll through the gallery below to view the exhibition:
Image courtesy: Institute for Art and Olfaction (unless stated otherwise)
Compounded by independent artist and perfumer, Miss Layla, based on the original notes and ingredients between the curators, Bharti and Nicolas
Image courtesy: Institute for Art and Olfaction (unless stated otherwise)