Gandhi’s 1939 Letter to Hitler Projected on Fog at Philadelphia Museum of Art
Jitish Kallat’s immersive installation Covering Letter, featuring a video projection of Mahatma Gandhi’s 1939 letter to Adolf Hitler onto a wall of fog, is on view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art until mid-March. The letter, written weeks before World War II, addresses Hitler as “Dear friend” and appeals to him to avert war. Kallat describes the letter as an open invitation to self-criticism, relevant today amid global violence. The work is part of a solo exhibition and draws from Kallat’s ongoing interest in repurposing historical texts, as seen in his Public Notice series featuring writings by Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Swami Vivekananda.
Key facts
- Covering Letter is an immersive installation with video projection by Jitish Kallat.
- The work projects Gandhi’s 1939 letter to Hitler onto a wall of fog.
- The exhibition is at the Philadelphia Museum of Art until mid-March.
- Gandhi’s letter addresses Hitler as 'Dear friend' and urges him to prevent war.
- Kallat views the letter as an invitation to self-criticism amid contemporary violence.
- The artist’s Public Notice series also incorporates texts by Gandhi, Nehru, and Vivekananda.
- This is the first time Covering Letter is shown in the United States.
- The letter was written weeks before the outbreak of World War II.
Entities
Artists
- Jitish Kallat
- Mahatma Gandhi
- Adolf Hitler
- Jawaharlal Nehru
- Swami Vivekananda
Institutions
- Philadelphia Museum of Art
- Artribune
Locations
- Mumbai
- India
- Philadelphia
- United States