Untitled I 2017

Nalini Malani made "Untitled I" with translucent ink, and it's like she's conjuring a world from shadows. It's all about the push and pull of dark and light, isn't it? I imagine Malani layering ink wash after ink wash, letting shapes emerge, and then coaxing them further, like finding figures in clouds. There is an interesting use of symmetry here. Look how the ink bleeds and pools, creating these ghostly forms. Those triangular shapes, for instance – are they mountains, or spirits rising? The painting feels like a meditation on memory, how things fade in and out of focus. Malani's work often deals with themes of displacement and identity, so maybe these blurred images are fragments of a lost history, or a dream struggling to surface. Either way, she reminds us that art isn't about answers, but about keeping the conversation going.