AHMEDABAD.- Michelle Poonwalla is showing a new series of drawings at 079 Stories gallery in Ahmedabad as part of KAGAZ, a group exhibition of works on paper which runs until the 26 February. Poonawlla is showcasing five portraits taken in her home city of Pune. The drawings celebrate friendship and companionship and show the importance of having someone there for you in these most challenging of times that many of us around the world are currently facing.

For Poonawalla, drawings and works on paper represent a very personal and emotive medium, allowing her to delicately portray the emotion of the subjects. As with Poonawalla’s larger body of work the drawings are intended to create a moment of reflection for the viewer and ask them to think about their surroundings and the wider world.

Talking about the exhibition Poonawalla notes “For me drawing is a very important medium. Whilst audiences may be more familiar with my larger installations and digital work, drawing forms the base of everything I do and I was delighted when 079 Stories asked me to present a series of works on paper.”

Paper is the strongest and the most versatile medium of expressing oneself may it be in the form of words, crafts, or art. KAGAZ is a celebration of this and alongside Poonawalla the exhibition presents 21 artists from across the country displaying works on paper including Anuj Ambalal, Al Qawi Nanawati, Ashish Kushwaha, Claire Iono, Ghanshyam Rathod, Hindol Brahmbhatt, Krishnendu Roy, Malabika Burman, Milburn Cherian, Pradeep Ahirwar, Rachnan Badrakia, Ronak Sopariwala, Satish Gupta, Shahanshah Mittal, Shefali Nayan, Shrikant Kadam, Vikesh Ghosh and Viraj Mithani.

Michelle Poonawalla is an artist who lives and works between London, UK, and Pune, India. Poonawalla’s works explore universal, socially engaged topics that resonate with a diverse range of audiences, creating powerful memories and moving experiences. Her practice combines cutting-edge technology and traditional artistic mediums in an emotionally charged and poetic form; often utilizing sound, video mapping, projection, motion sensors and other techniques to bring her innovative paintings and installations to life. Her seminal piece, Introspection (2018), is a striking, immersive experiential artwork which leaves many viewers moved and affected, whilst inspiring them to take action in their own lives.

Poonawalla has exhibited at the Saatchi Gallery, London (as part of START, September 2019); Alserkal Avenue, Dubai (Dubai Art Week, March 2019); and as a collateral project at the Kochi Biennale, India (Kochi-Muziris Biennale, 2018). More recently Poonawalla has begun exploring work with shorter digital format films. Her 3min 36 second film Circle of Life addresses the idea of memory was exhibited at the 7th Mediations Biennale in Poland. Other digital works have been shown on SedtionArt.com and World Art Dubai.

Poonawalla is currently exhibiting work in The Tangible Imaginative at Tao Art Gallery, Mumbai.