Kali & Durga

by Smruthi Gargi Eswar

(inclusive of taxes)

This artwork is accompanied by an Authenticity Certificate.

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This artwork is accompanied by an Authenticity Certificate.

All orders are insured for transit.

We ship worldwide.

Details

Size:	36 x 24 inches / 60 x 40 inches
Medium:	K3 Pigment Print on Archival Paper / K3 Pigment Print on Hahnemuhle Canvas
Style:	Digital Art
Edition:	Edition of 10 + 2 Artist Prints
Signature:	Bottom Right in English

Description

The difference is a subtle one, but it changes everything - it lies in the way we are seen. Kali does not reserve a special consideration just for us. Her justice is that of the wild. We are seen as part of all creation, and she in turn, is not affected by our gaze. As Durga though, she is maternal, and stops by our homes on her way to the battlefield. Invoked by warriors and worshiped for an alliance, she shows a tenderness that leads to battling for us. A warrior mother, who indulges and cares.
Kali on the other hand, can surprise us with her justice of the wild. She carries us up the river back into the forest, towards a breathing and alive darkness that no one is ever lost in - for the trees and animals there are never lost, and we can ask them assent, to know and be known. She is Yoga Nidra, unwitnessed nature and unperceived reality, and here we come upon a part of creation not destined for us. And in that stillness, a dark and fearless goddess runs past us, naked as she hunts.
Riding in on her lion, Durga symbolizes her conquest over the ego - an unstoppable force of strength, knowledge and wisdom. A warrior mother ascending from the yellow fires is eternally victorious. Here, she too is yellow with turmeric, that we apply on her as we urge her to rest. As Haldi Mukhi (the yellow faced one), Durga comes to us as Parvati - the mountain princess, and our abode becomes her paternal home. We dance and fill the air with the sweetest of scents, singing songs of her glory that sometimes act as a record of her complaints. A meditating husband, while she has to handle the world, bring up her children, create food on the icy peaks, warring, nurturing, enabling all of creation…the list seems to go on. Life of a goddess is strenuous and we listen to the adorable young, yellow faced immortal tell us of her life.

About the Series:
This artwork is part of the “Sister Misfortune” series, through which the artist, Smruthi Gargi Eswar, narrates lesser-known stories from Indian mythology, while reflecting on the narrative surrounding women in our culture. Various Indian goddesses (devis) are depicted with a refreshing artistic lens.
In India, there is a constant burden on women to be “Devi-like”. Through this series, the artist attempts a reverse deification of the goddesses, making them appear like real women, in a real world. The series is an exploration not just of duality, but of multiplicity. It compels us to question our attitudes - women towards themselves, men towards women. How does the idea of a goddess coexist within every woman? How do we, as a society, so casually dismiss, disrespect, disregard, and defile in our everyday existence, those who we have bedecked with gold and enshrined in a temple?

Please note: This artwork is available in two sizes and two different materials.

Description

The difference is a subtle one, but it changes everything - it lies in the way we are seen. Kali does not reserve a special consideration just for us. Her justice is that of the wild. We are seen as part of all creation, and she in turn, is not affected by our gaze. As Durga though, she is maternal, and stops by our homes on her way to the battlefield. Invoked by warriors and worshiped for an alliance, she shows a tenderness that leads to battling for us. A warrior mother, who indulges and cares.
Kali on the other hand, can surprise us with her justice of the wild. She carries us up the river back into the forest, towards a breathing and alive darkness that no one is ever lost in - for the trees and animals there are never lost, and we can ask them assent, to know and be known. She is Yoga Nidra, unwitnessed nature and unperceived reality, and here we come upon a part of creation not destined for us. And in that stillness, a dark and fearless goddess runs past us, naked as she hunts.
Riding in on her lion, Durga symbolizes her conquest over the ego - an unstoppable force of strength, knowledge and wisdom. A warrior mother ascending from the yellow fires is eternally victorious. Here, she too is yellow with turmeric, that we apply on her as we urge her to rest. As Haldi Mukhi (the yellow faced one), Durga comes to us as Parvati - the mountain princess, and our abode becomes her paternal home. We dance and fill the air with the sweetest of scents, singing songs of her glory that sometimes act as a record of her complaints. A meditating husband, while she has to handle the world, bring up her children, create food on the icy peaks, warring, nurturing, enabling all of creation…the list seems to go on. Life of a goddess is strenuous and we listen to the adorable young, yellow faced immortal tell us of her life.

About the Series:
This artwork is part of the “Sister Misfortune” series, through which the artist, Smruthi Gargi Eswar, narrates lesser-known stories from Indian mythology, while reflecting on the narrative surrounding women in our culture. Various Indian goddesses (devis) are depicted with a refreshing artistic lens.
In India, there is a constant burden on women to be “Devi-like”. Through this series, the artist attempts a reverse deification of the goddesses, making them appear like real women, in a real world. The series is an exploration not just of duality, but of multiplicity. It compels us to question our attitudes - women towards themselves, men towards women. How does the idea of a goddess coexist within every woman? How do we, as a society, so casually dismiss, disrespect, disregard, and defile in our everyday existence, those who we have bedecked with gold and enshrined in a temple?

Please note: This artwork is available in two sizes and two different materials.

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ABOUT Smruthi Gargi Eswar

Smruthi Gargi Eswar is an artist and storyteller. She studied at the Baroda Faculty of Fine Arts and Chitrakala Parishath, Bangalore briefly. Her art studies started much earlier though, while she was still a student at The Valley School KFI. From a fine arts education, Smruthi moved on to graphic design and photography almost immediately. But over the last few years, she has ventured back into the world of art, finding within it, an avenue to explore, address and express at a more personal level. Her journey from graphic design to art initially established the medium in which her works were created. Now, they vary from terracotta to acrylic to photography. But one of the mediums she enjoys using the most to give voice to her artistic expression even today, is digital or graphic art.

With shows travelling to Budapest, New York, Cochin, Delhi and Mumbai, Smruthi has always enjoyed collaborating with designers, performance artists and other creative professionals. In 2014, she did a solo show in New Delhi, showcasing works from her “Sister Misfortune” series at acclaimed fashion designer Ritu Kumar’s flagship store. The hugely successful art series, for which Smruthi has been creating works for over a decade, has also been exhibited in Kochi, Bangalore, and Mumbai. Smruthi is a board member of Art in Social Structures, an international NGO run and funded by artists that believes that art is the building block of all social structures. Her photography work has been published in India and the Philippines. Her work has been collected by art patrons around the world. The artist is based in Bangalore and Delhi.

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ABOUT Digital Art

Digital art is a term used to describe an artistic practice that uses digital technology either as part of the creative or the presentation process. It falls under the umbrella world of new media art. Since the 1960s, various different names have been used to describe digital art, and some of the other commonly used terms include computer art, multimedia art, and even graphic art.

Digital artworks can be created as unique or editioned pieces. To maintain the value and exclusivity of the artwork, an artist would typically destroy the source file (of the artwork), once the number of pre-decided pieces have been sold. Digital artworks may be presented digitally, but more commonly, they are printed works of art that can be hung on a wall, much like a painting.

Contrary to misconception, creating digital art also requires artistic skills such as sketching, drawing and colouring, as digital artists use all of these to create their artworks on the computer. While there may be some lingering debate about the pros and cons of this new age medium of creation, there is no doubt, that digital art has created a vast expansion of the creative sphere.

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Details

Size:	36 x 24 inches / 60 x 40 inches
Medium:	K3 Pigment Print on Archival Paper / K3 Pigment Print on Hahnemuhle Canvas
Style:	Digital Art
Edition:	Edition of 10 + 2 Artist Prints
Signature:	Bottom Right in English

AUTHENTICITY

This artwork is accompanied by an Authenticity Certificate.

Returns

We accept returns within 7 days of delivery if the item reaches you in damaged condition.
Shipping

This artwork will be shipped rolled. Shipping costs are extra, and will be calculated based on the shipping address.

All orders are insured for transit.

We ship worldwide.

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