Gauri Gill's Masked Realities at MoMA PS1 Merge Myth with Daily Life

Gauri Gill's exhibition "Projects 108" at MoMA PS1 from April 15 to September 3, 2018 featured 75 photographs exploring the intersection of ritual and routine. The show centered on her "Acts of Appearance" series, where members of Maharashtra's indigenous Kokna community wear papier-mâché masks during ordinary activities. These masks, crafted by local artists Subhas and Bhagvan Dharma Kadu, depict everyday figures instead of traditional festival deities. Gill's work recontextualizes the community's Bahoda festival traditions within contemporary settings. Alongside these vibrant images, her "Notes from the Desert" series presented black-and-white documentation of rural Rajasthan. Curator Lucy Gallun arranged the exhibition without conventional labels, encouraging open interpretation. Walls painted in deep blue, crimson, and saffron hues complemented the photographs' theatrical quality. The installation created a cinematic experience where masked participants performed mundane tasks with profound intimacy.