Ranjani Shettar's Floral Sculptures Bloom at Barbican Conservatory

Indian artist Ranjani Shettar (born 1977, Bangalore) presents 'Cloud Songs on the Horizon' at the Barbican Conservatory in London, her first major European institutional solo show. Five clusters of stainless steel and translucent muslin sculptures, some lacquered or dyed with madder root and pomegranate juice, hang within the tropical winter garden inside the brutalist Barbican Estate. Titled 'Moon Dancers', the works create a dreamlike atmosphere. The exhibition, curated by Barbican artistic director Shanay Jhaveri, runs until March 2024. Shettar, who studied at Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath, now lives in rural Karnataka with her husband, sculptor Srinivas Prasad, drawing on organic materials like tamarind, indigo, lacquer, beeswax, and reclaimed teak. Her work has been shown at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, MoMA, SFMOMA, and the Sharjah Biennial. Shettar described the challenge of designing for a changing environment, noting the shifting light and growing plants. She emphasizes aesthetics over messaging, stating her art is not meant to preach. She is supported by the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art.