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Lavanya Mani
The Ark 2: Dispersal
2022
20 textile panels in vitrine: fermented iron mordant and myrobalan tannin on cotton fabric
45.72 x 60.96 cm each
Imperiled Geographies
2022
Fermented iron mordant, rust print appliqué and hand embroidery on cotton fabric
91.4 x 182.9 cm
Signs taken for wonders
2009
Natural dye and appliqué on cotton fabric 183 x 345 cm
Private collection
Courtesy of the artist and Chemould Prescott Road, Mumbai
Questioning orientalist discourse, Lavanya Mani recontextualises the fantastical myths and fables
disseminated by Victorian travellers and the histories of traditional textile production. Signs taken for wonders (2009) charts colonialist constructions of the ‘Orient’ across time. The Ark 2: Dispersal (2022), displayed in a vitrine, comprises
20 small drawings of tropical flora executed in a style evoking colonial- era botanical drawings, alluding to how the cross-territorial exchange of plants shaped global cultures.
Imperiled Geographies (2022), a set of six wall paintings that use embroidery, appliqué techniques and rust, mirror disease-laden bodily anomalies, showcasing the role of non-human entities in shaping the world’s histories.
