At Rajiv Menon Contemporary in Los Angeles, South Asian artists transform into main characters
The inaugural exhibition of the gallery, EXHIBITIONISMbrings together 19 South Asian artists whose works explore themes of visibility, intimacy and identity. But beyond its role of exhibition space, Menon considers the gallery as part of a wider cultural moment. “Indian Americans and South Asian Asia are culturally maturing,” he explains. “We have not really been able to immigrate in large numbers since 1965 and we are now starting to occupy leadership positions – not only in medicine and law, but in politics, Silicon Valley, Tech and Hollywood.” This change, he maintains, has created a new type of cultural confidence-one where the South Asians no longer prove their belonging but actively shape traditional stories.
Menon’s vision extends beyond the simple fact of showing South Asian artists. Its objective is to promote a community that connects artists to collectors, cultural institutions and, above all, to each other. “I think what art has done is to provide completely new approaches to representation,” he shares. “Rather than wanting to recreate our culture with pure precision or familiarity, artists constantly show us things that we have never seen before. This feeling of possibility and imagination is so exciting among this community. While South Asian culture has long been celebrated in literature, fashion and cinema, contemporary visual art has often been excluded from conversation – something that Menon is determined to change. “In Los Angeles, you can see the art of sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and East Asia, but no one really spoke with South Asia. And yet, the public’s palette was already fundamentally global. »»
