Shilpa Gupta's Exhibition at Galleria Continua in San Gimignano

Galleria Continua in San Gimignano presents a solo exhibition by Shilpa Gupta (Mumbai, 1976), one of India's most significant contemporary artists, reinforcing the gallery's commitment to intercultural exchange between Europe and South Asia. The show opens with "Untitled (Rectangles on flags of the world)" (2025), a new work featuring embroidered rectangular motifs from recognized and unrecognized nations' flags, with loose threads inviting viewers to pull and unravel the forms, critiquing the fragility of nationalist constructs. Adjacent is "100 Hand-drawn Maps of Italy" (2007-23), a participatory project where 100 individuals drew Italy from memory, displayed in a sketchbook flipped by a fan, challenging official cartography with subjective perceptions. "Nothing Will Go on Record" (2015) presents partially redacted transcripts of 1999 Lok Sabha debates on the killing of alleged border trespassers in West Bengal, highlighting state censorship and violence. In the former 1950s cinema-theater's lower floor, the large-scale installation "Truth" (2022-25) features a fallen "T" and scattered letters, questioning the objectivity of truth. Gupta's work examines postcolonial trauma, militarized borders, and the political division of cultures, particularly in South Asia.