The art fraternity poured in at the Vadhera Art Gallery recently as they organised a remembering ceremony for Hema Upadhyay and her work
The year 2015 has turned out to be an unfortunate year for the art world as it witnessing numerous talented, cherished and loved artists as well as art patrons having left for their heavenly abodes — from Mrinalini Mukherjee to Amol Vadhera, and now Hema Upadhyay whose untimely death/murder has left the entire industry shaken and sad.
It has been more than ten days since the bodies of Upadhyay and her lawyer Harish Bhambhani were found stuffed in wooden boxes, abandoned in a suburban sewer. And like many others, the industry too is still trying to come in terms with the mystery involving her gruesome murder. Recently, Vadhera Art Gallery hosted a memorial service for the late artist that included a small gathering consisting fellow artists, curators, gallerists and patrons.
“Hema was the first artist whose studio I had visited when I had joined the gallery,” recalled Roshini Vadhera, gallerist who was present at the remembering ceremony. She added, “Though when I met her, I was fairly new to the area, Hema unhesitatingly took my suggestions about her work. We remained good friends through out and loved talking about fashion and fitness, the most. Her impeccable fashion sense was always a conversational beginner while my constant body weight issue was something that she would always quiz about.”
She continued, “The void that she has created will never be filled but we are sure that through her works she will always be remembered for many generations.”
For all her friends and acquaintances, Hema was someone who was beautiful, kind, sensitive, warm and a successful young person, who had a strong voice and reach through her work. “The first time that I got to know about an artist named Hema was through a media review of one of her exhibitions. I had an immediate connect with the images, the ideaology behind those artworks and that impeccable vision of hers,” shared gallerlist Peter Nagy. “I remember texting Shireen (director, Chemould gallery) and asking her about Hema and showing my interest in showcasing her work at my gallery in Delhi. She had a lot of talent and was just at the beginning of her career. Surely, ‘art outlives the artist’, but we must make sure that we never forget the wonderful person behind all the hard work and vision. She will be dearly missed.”
Hema was noted for drawing inspirations from her own life in most of her artworks. Her well-known work ‘Killing Site’ drew on the theme of migration and human displacement across Asia, and for art critic and curator Yashodhara Dalmia, Hema’s demise shocking reminded her of the latter’s work titled ‘The Discussion’. “I was in a state of shock and couldn’t help but remember Hema’s work that was showcased earlier this year in a show curated by me at Vadhera Art. The show was called ‘Excavation/Eruption’, a group show where contemporary artists scanned with an ironical eye, the new glittering towers and glitzy malls conjuncted with the slums, cesspools and other detritus of existence. In that exhibition, she showcased a mix-media work that had pictures of limbs pointing at different directions. I felt that it was ironic to call a strong work like that ‘The Discussion’, but Hema, as we knew had a strong personality that was infused with wild imagination, philosophy and enlarged worldview that was always open and c
urious to know other’s point of view.” Talking about how sensitive the late artist was as a person, Yashodhara further recollected, “I remember our last meeting at the Venice Biennale where her work ‘Silent Shadows’ was being showcased as part of the Iran pavilion. She was there with her mother and in between her tiring work she was constantly trying to show her mother the beautiful city. Throughout the trip she ensured that her mother did not feel bored or left out. I am deeply sadden by the turn of events and will for sure miss her warm, affectionate and compassionate persona.”
Adding further about Hema’s sensitive and thoughtful nature, fellow artist Vivan Sundharam who was present at the ceremony stated, “I did not know Hema personally but I have had several opportunities to showcase my work along with hers over the years. In one of the exhibitions, where I was showcasing a video art, and she a huge installation, the gallery decided to place her work next to the window so that the audience can get a view from the outside too. But the light from the window was directly falling on my work making it impossible to watch the video. Hema immediately understood and spoke to the gallery that during daytime we should keep the blinds on and as the night falls one could view the work from outside too. She was one of those considerate artists who always respected others’ work. I pray that she rest in peace and the actual culprits are caught soon.”
