Bharti Kher, an artist known for her multidimensional work spanning painting, sculpture, and installation, is currently featured at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London. The exhibition, which runs until January 24, engages in a dialogue between her contemporary sculptures and the museum’s neoclassical permanent collection. Kher’s work often explores themes related to her Indian heritage, identity, and the human figure, predominantly female, through personal mythologies.

Raised in Surrey, England, Kher divides her time between London and Delhi. She credits early visits to the V&A during her childhood as formative, particularly the plaster cast room, which sparked her fascination with classical forms and the legacy of British colonial collecting practices. “There’s a part of me that was very aware of colonial legacies, but also inspired by that level of precision and excellence,” she said.

Kher’s artistic approach frequently involves the use of plaster casting, an age-old technique through which she creates life-sized molds of bodies. She describes the process as physically intimate, noting that the heat generated by the plaster causes the pores of the skin to open, effectively transferring a layer of the subject into the sculpture. Her subjects have included family members, such as her parents, whom she cast for an earlier project displayed at the Freud Museum in London. Despite cultural reservations—her parents, as first-generation immigrants, were unfamiliar with therapy—the project was embraced, reflecting complex personal histories.

Having come of age during the rise of the Young British Artists movement, Kher initially planned to move to New York but found her artistic space in India instead, where she has lived for over three decades in partnership with fellow artist Subodh Gupta. Their professional relationship is characterized by mutual support and a friendly competitiveness.

One of her notable ongoing projects is the “Virus” series, begun at age 40 as a proposed 30-year exploration combining psychedelic wall-sized “bindi” paintings with texts forecasting future events. These texts draw from scientific research and personal reflection, framing speculative scenarios such as the emergence of a single world government by 2037 and the increasing value of water. Kher approaches these themes with a mix of seriousness and lightness, emphasizing balance amid uncertainty—an outlook informed by Eastern philosophical traditions rather than anxiety.

Textiles, specifically sari silk, play a prominent role in Kher’s sculptures. The fabric connects her work to familial heritage and regional identity, echoing the transmission of saris across generations and places in India. This connection also evokes the craftsmanship of European neoclassical sculptors like Antonio Canova, with whom her work enters into conversation.

Kher acknowledges the political implications of exhibiting at an institution housing a vast collection of Indian artifacts acquired during the colonial era. While she does not frame her work as explicitly political, she recognizes its role in initiating dialogue around history, identity, and representation. Her installation at the V&A serves as a nuanced engagement with the museum’s complex legacy, blending personal narrative with broader cultural inquiry.