Many philosophies and world views have a set of classical elements believed to reflect the simplest essential parts and principles of which anything consists or upon which the constitution and fundamental power of anything are based. Most frequently, classical elements refer to ancient beliefs inspired by natural observation of the phases of “matter”. They are earth, air, water and fire.
“It Matters!”- indicates the existence of a thought, a particle and a life and the reason behind it and points to issues and existences which make the universe and its components complete. This can be both tangible and intangible.
The exhibition hopes to strike a chord and inspire viewers to think and reflect on the question of what really “matters”.
The interpretations can be open- ended, personal and subjective to each artist. The exhibition brings together these diverse constructs in one platform and draws attention to what “matters”

Exhibition organised in collaboration with India International Centre

  
Debnath Basu
  Born 1961, in Howrah, West Bengal
Bachelor of Visual Arts in Printmaking, Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata (1987) ,Master of Visual Arts in Printmaking, Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata (1989) ,Coming from the Bengal school where artists interrogate and reintegrate local styles into their work consistently and directly, it is still unique to see Debnath’s work include a piece emphasizing a letter from the Bengali scripts as part of bringing out this local style.
 
  His recent work is has been a mix collages using ink on paper, all in grey tonalities. Viewers will find a human form that slowly emerges from these scribbles and marks. His fundamental idea that the more that is hidden and suppressed, the more his art must reveal and dismantle can be clearly understood in his grey, dark and dense works. The bedlam of his art gets a meaningful value when he writes these scripts/ texts entirely by hand without employing any mechanical means on the paper surfaces, often indecipherable because of its intentionally poor visibility yet clear and legible when pored over carefully.
Debnath still draws inspiration about ideas and imageries of dominance, repression and victimization, from a personal encounter he had with the judicial system a decade back. He uses graphite dust procured from local iron foundries, all retextualising his model for artistic process.		    
  Lives and works in Howrah, West Bengal. India.      
Jay Shree Chakravarty
  Jayshree Chakravarty was educated at Santiniketan and she graduated in Fine Arts from the Viswa Bharati University, Santiniketan, in 1978 and obtained a post-graduate diploma from M.S.University, Baroda, in 1980. She received a Canadian grant in 1982 to study art. She later migrated to France and married a French flautist.
  
  Chakravarty says, 'My paintings are like a personal diary of my days in France and the influences.' She has developed her own personal style, drawing on inspiration from the French impressionists and Byzantine mosaic design.

The artist says that her paintings are mostly autobiographical. "I have beenable to reach out to those who have little to do with my personal life," shepoints out, "and make them identify with my deeply felt imagery."Chakravarty's ink on paper sketches is an exercise in transition and transforming personal experience into mystical truth. She positions herself in the image of a spontaneous, instinctive woman who is a muse and eternalchild rolled into one.

   
  Chakravarty says that her paintings, either ink on paper or oils, have the feel of a dream about them. She believes that relating to human beings of a distant country and a different culture has expanded the horizons of herimagination and forced certain pre-conceived images to change.

In her works, she uses superimposed forms, quite like the sketches that cave painters worked on before they mapped them on the walls of caves. Herimagery, because of her fluid and transparent images, reflect the presentmood of the world, which is fluid in itself. At a mere conventional andfigurative level, her works reflect the unity of man with nature.

  
Kishor Sharma
  Residing in Dongargarh in village Karela in Chattisgarh, Kishor Sharma has mastered the art of turning metal scrap into magnificent sculptures. His small creations say a lot of things. In this era of new technology, by making modern contemporary art his medium, Kishor is trying to water the roots directly.
 
  He majorly works with clay, stone and metal. Whatever be the medium- Kishor’s sculptures carries with them the fragrance of earth and conveys the stories of the small villages and the people to the entire world. Kishor’s works are very detailed where he depicts very precisely the subtleties of form. He is one of those artists who are driven by his passion and creativity irrespective of the factors surrounding the art industry.    
K. P. Reji
  Reji's paintings exude a matter of fact quality. His use of bold, slightly rounded figuration constructs a naïve style reminiscent of Gauguin. Despite - or perhaps because of - their apparent simplicity, his paintings are enigmatic and the motifs he engenders are difficult to decipher. His work is multifaceted and complex in its analysis of the individual's relationship to his external environment. Often political in inflection, his canvases explore the connection between psychological states of mind and socio-political behavior.
 
  Born in Kerala, Reji completed both B.F.A. and M.F.A in Painting from the Faculty of Fine Arts, M.S. University, Baroda. Since then, he has participated in many artist camps, exhibitions and workshops. In 2000 he held a solo exhibition at Zen Studio Gallery and he has exhibited at 'Words and Images', Guild Art Gallery, Mumbai, 2002 and 'Studio The Guild', The Guild, Mumbai. K.P. Reji currently resides in Baroda    
Rajan Krishnan
  Rajan Krishnan was born in 1967, in the Thrissur district of Kerala. Having completed a Bachelor`s degree in Economics, Krishnan decided to pursue his true love and signed up for a B.F.A (Painting) at the College of Fine Arts, Thiruvananthapuram. He then went on to pursue a Master`s degree at the Faculty of Fine Arts, M.S. University, Baroda.
 
  Rajan Krishnan`s art is very sensitive to his immediate natural environment. The fields and villages of the Kerala of his youth play the role of `principal protagonist` in most of his works, expressing his deepest aesthetic proclivities. His early works are slightly sentimental in their depiction of childhood memories of home, but this phase seems to have given way to a more assertive cynicism that unflinchingly records the sudden and sweeping changes wrought on the landscapes he has known and loved.    
Sujith Sn
  Sujith SN was born in Baroda in 1980. He spent his formative years in Gujarat before his parents settled back in Palakkad in North Kerala. Sujith completed his B.F.A from the Fine Arts College, Thrissur and went on to pursue a M.F.A in painting at the Sarojini Naidu School of Fine Arts, Performing Arts and Communication, University of Hyderabad in 2007. Sujith’s works have been part of noted exhibitions in India and abroad.
 
  His recent shows include “Psalms of Silence and Dark”, solo show, HSLU, Luzern, Switzerland (2012); The Skoda Prize Twenty (2011-2012); “The Map is not the Territory” at Latitude 28, New Delhi (2010); “Indian Subway” at Grosvenor Vadehra Gallery, London (2010); “Earth” at Gallery OED, Kochi, India (2010) and “The City and the Tower” which was his first solo at Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai in 2008. Sujith has been the recipient of many awards including the FICA Emerging Artist Award 2011; he was long listed for the Skoda Prize 2011. Sujith’s recent works are inspired by the concept of “momento mori”, a Latin phrase that translates to “remember your mortality”.    
  The human condition therefore becomes central to Sujith’s works. Urban panoramas and chaotic development have also been themes that the artist has often delved in. While his preferred medium of working is water colours, Sujith also works with charcoals, oils and photography  
Sumedh Rajendran
  In each of Rajendran’s works of art, the artist makes a ‘conscious decision’ to raise awareness about the ‘sad state of affairs’ around him. His sculptures amalgamate various fundamental forms such as animals, objects and humans, resulting in hybrid species that break downs all preconceived notions one may have while categorizing anything into a ‘type’. His use of industrial materials such as ceramic tiles, steel, iron and other unbending resources also breaks barriers by transforming tough, primal materials into the organic forms that make up his installations.
 
  Born in 1972 in Trivandrum, Kerala, Sumedh Rajendran completed his Bachelor’s degree in Sculpture from the College of Fine Arts there in 1994, and obtained his Master’s degree from the Delhi College of Art in 1999. He has several solo and group exhibitions to his credit.

Rajendran has also participated in various residencies across South Asia including Khoj, New Delhi, and the Teertha International Artist Residency, Colombo, Sri Lanka.

    
Tanmoy Samanta
  Tanmoy Samanta’s paintings speak a language that is deceptively simple on the surface but becomes increasingly layered and complex, sometimes even profound, as one engages in a deeper conversation with them. He uses images from his surroundings to create frozen narratives that allow multiple readings. It could be an old car, a pot or a human head.
 
  Rajan Krishnan`s art is very sensitive to his immediate natural environment. The fields and villages of the Kerala of his youth play the role of `principal protagonist` in most of his works, expressing his deepest aesthetic proclivities. His early works are slightly sentimental in their depiction of childhood memories of home, but this phase seems to have given way to a more assertive cynicism that unflinchingly records the sudden and sweeping changes wrought on the landscapes he has known and loved.    
V. Ramesh
  The journey of one`s existence and work run parallel, feeding and acting on each other. I have, over the years, discarded many hard-held notions. The earlier solidity of the human figure as well as the tight compositions, have way to a blurring of boundaries. These are in a continuous state of flux. Extensive reading of Advaitic philosophy during the last few years has, perhaps, opened up for me perceptions of the unity -- the oneness of being - and - existence -- that exist under the surface of constant change.
  
  V. Ramesh has developed a distinctive narrative vocabulary rooted in our sacred and literary culture. At a time when Indian Contemporary art is looking westwards for inspiration, Ramesh chose to look inwards. His engaging iconographies lend themselves to powerfully suggestive narratives particularly in terms of literary and sacred traditions. In doing so, they create their own powerful visual vocabulary, compelling the viewer to tend to look deep within even while re-visiting the past. His paintings are large in scale and densely layered. You would need to zoom in the images to understand his technique and layers of meanings.    
Waseem Ahmed
  Ahmed’s work is uncompromising, yet his treatment of this subject is particularly nuanced. Mullah figures are delicately painted like saints or princes, their features refined, their expressions filled with inner peace. Around them, a spiritual world of the anticipated paradise is symbolized by the Garden, enriched by delicate calligraphy. Figures of covered women are everywhere. It is a world of desire and fulfillment within the transient reality of life on earth.
  
  The latter, however, is made of mud and blood. Waseem Ahmed succeeds beautifully in presenting the collision of these two contradicting worlds. He presents the current compost of atrocities as a parallel psychological landscape to the Paradise that is so violently desired. This is a landscape of desolation and sublimation. The burqa becomes a camouflage for the suicide bomber; individual figures are turned into bullets, personifying fear.

His language deliberately uses the precision of the Mughal classical art on paper to suspend his subjects in this paradoxical present. Waseem Ahmed’s work combines a traditional medium with controversial subjects and reclaims the original function of miniatures: as chronicles of contemporary social issues