One of the oldest galleries in Mumbai, Tao Art Gallery, will be hosting a unique two-man show called 'Dreamscapes'. It will showcase works by Argentinian Artist Julia Romano, finalist of Arte Laguna Prize 2021, and Venice and Bombay based, Meghna Patpatia. The exhibition will be inaugurated by the Consul General of Argentina, Guillermo Eduardo Devoto.
At Dreamscapes, audiences will witness the merger in the expression of the two artists from diverse cultures and geography. Both take existing realistic elements and combine them with the surreal aspects of mythology and ancient anthropology. The endeavour is to create these dreamscapes that question what is real and fiction, physical and metaphorical--this intricate relationship with the scape: a universally experienced relationship by all on this planet.
Sanjana, the India ambassador of the Arte Laguna Prize, hopes to juxtapose Julia's digital landscapes with Meghna's artworks. Commenting on the upcoming show, Sanjana Shah, Creative Director, Tao Art Gallery,
said, "Dreamscapes pairs together two artists from different cultures and geographical landscapes, but who share the same desire to explore the synergy between humans and the land they inhabit."
She also added, "As a curator, I found this thematic overlap between the two to be interesting and relevant: Romano explores the impact of past ancestral generations on land while Patpatia envisions a surreal alternate reality or dystopian future as a result of it. The seed of the idea is the same, but the techniques and treatment of the works are different. Both create beautifully stunning and poignant works as a result! I am excited for the audience to come and experience the show and this synergy lives in action."
'Dreamscapes' will beautifully highlight aspects of co-existence and cultural synergy with a subtle undertone of the threat of depletion in a dystopian future. Much like the land around us, the art is layered, multi-faceted and deep in composition.
Talking about her first show in India, Argentinian Artist, Julia Romano, "I am thrilled to be part of this exhibition, working with such great people as the Tao gallery team. I am showing my series of landscapes made with different parts of places photographed by me and painted by classical European artists; these oases are a mixture of time, space and culture. I made one work especially for the show with images taken from my surroundings here in Cordoba (the mountains, trees and plants from my neighbourhood and my garden) and put them together with a panoramic view of Mumbai. So, challenging this union! Only art can be this magical. I strongly believe that by doing this in college, we are also bonding in real life."
Taking it a step further by using the past to imagine the future, Bombay-based Artist Meghna Patpatia added, "Tao has a wonderful space that merges visuals seamlessly with narratives and the ability to collate artists worldwide. Sanjana's curatorial foresight and ability to weave a juxtapositioning of Julia and my art practices have intuitively brought about Dreamscapes. Super excited to see it unfurl."
These combined artistic dreamscapes of this two-man show help in bringing the world a little bit closer and opening our minds a little bit wider.
Previewing on October 21, 6 p.m. onwards and the show will be on display till November 25, 2021.
