Art Tackles Nature's Stress, Not Romance

The 17th India Art Fair showcases artists who are eschewing romanticized portrayals of nature for a critical engagement with contemporary environmental and economic stresses. This shift is exemplified by Dumiduni Illangasinghe's "Soft Armours," an installation using broken glass bangles and mycelial forms to explore impermanence and resilience.

This philosophical engagement with ecological systems marks a broader trend at the fair. Director Jaya Asokan notes artists' refusal to return to idealized nature, instead critically addressing stressed systems like agriculture, fungal networks, and extractive economies through innovative material experimentation. These practices reflect the complexities and conflicts of the current era.

Kulpreet Singh's "Extinction Archival" uses stubble ash and pesticide on rice paper to depict endangered species, commenting on loss and pollution. Sidhant Kumar challenges pastoral idealizations, highlighting the struggles of migrant farmers using contaminated water due to a lack of resources and capitalistic pressures.

Shreni's "Stand Here Forget" is a generative AV installation layering city sounds with code, inspired by ecological systems to represent invisible urban structures. Raki Nikahetiya's "Forest II" is a pocket forest built from construction waste, offering a refuge and embodying "climate optimism" through regeneration.

Tara Lal's "Aranyani Pavilion" merges ecology and public art, using invasive wood and native plants to foster conversations around ecology and culture. These artists frame ecology as a network of care and resilience, foregrounding adaptation and alternative futures. The fair, running from February 5-8, 2026, highlights this growing focus on nature and ecological concerns in art.