Rahul Kumar

Rahul Kumar’s current series of clay-tablets, ‘Original Shadow’, depicts an abstract pattern that reminisces the visuals of a spatial panoramic view of Earth or magnified image of the body. The artist had borrowed inspiration from the Japanese technique of kintsugi, the art of celebrating defects by decorating cracks with pure gold. To achieve actual surface cracks, he fired the clay pieces on a fast-fire schedule. About his work process, Rahul says, “My motivation remains the very act of creating and the tedious yet immensely enjoyable process of clay. My visual references call out the dichotomous inference of the image - that being telescopic spatial view as well as the microscopic view of the human body. The overall form reminds you of the image of an open book, as though giving the story away, though allowing you to read only what has been inscribed.” This series attempts to question the idea of the original.

Rahul Kumar wears many hats: he is a ceramic art practitioner, curator, art writer and former art consultant. In his twenty-five-year long career, his works have been featured in nine solo shows in some of the major venues in the US and India. He is a three-time recipient of the AIFACS National Award. One of his prominent collaborations was with RAQS Media Collective for their solo show at the NGMA, New Delhi. Rahul was one of the select participants of the first Indian Ceramic Triennale held at Jaipur, 2018. His works are in the prestigious collections of India Habitat Centre and Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, New Delhi.

Rahul lives and works in Delhi.